Street-network Sprawl in San Jose, Philippines

What is Street-network sprawl?

Street-network Sprawl is a way to measure urban sprawl, worldwide, through the connectedness of the streets. Less sprawl means more connected, more walkable streets. Well-connected streets – like New York City’s grid – are more walkable and can be served by public transit.

The street network is permanent, and its connectivity affects the livability and environmental footprint of cities for decades and centuries to come. In places with more connected streets, residents drive less and walk more. A well-connected street network is associated with better outcomes for health, the environment, sustainable consumption, social integration, and equity.

We can quantify how connected street networks are with the Street Network Disconnectedness Index (SNDi).

SNDi -- our measure of street-network sprawl (disconnectedness)

The SNDi is a comprehensive measurement of “sprawl”. It captures:

A higher SNDi means less-connected streets – i.e., more sprawl. For the 10137 cities in our dataset, the average SNDi is 2.25, with half of the cities' SNDis falling between 1.08 and 3.25.

More information on the sprawl index can be found in these research papers:

To see the state of street-network sprawl across the globe, visit the sprawlmap.

San Jose: city in Nueva Ecija, Philippines

What exactly constitutes the spatial extent of the city? For these aggregations, we used the Global Human Settlement Layer Urban Center Database (GHS-UCDB) to define the boundaries of the city. These cities -- or urban centers -- cover areas that are densely populated and built-up, and so may extend beyond the spatial borders of these cities that we may be familiar with. The GHS area is shaded in blue.

View San Jose, Philippines on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in San Jose as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.97, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.86, 3.57, 3.72 and 1.42. Street construction in San Jose increased in disconnectivity initially but has since improved. The streets constructed in 1991-2000 were the most disconnected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in San Jose spans a total of 102 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 2.86, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Effect on the aggregate network: New construction in each period adds to the total stock of streets, but does not change streets that have already been built. Therefore, it has a limited effect on the street network as a whole. The SNDis of the aggregate street network in the respective time periods are 2.86, 2.92, 3.02 and 2.97. The aggregate street network in San Jose increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 2000.

San Jose and Nueva Ecija do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in San Jose peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nueva Ecija rose steadily.

How do development practices in San Jose fare in comparison to others in Nueva Ecija? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in San Jose was the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 3 cities in Nueva Ecija. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. San Jose ranked 3rd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 3rd in 1991-2000 and 3rd in 2001-2014.

San Jose and Philippines do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in San Jose peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Philippines rose steadily.

How do development practices in San Jose fare in comparison to others in Philippines? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in San Jose was the 84th-most disconnected out of the 89 cities in Philippines. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Philippines, street construction in San Jose has become more connected. San Jose ranked 46th in 1975, 59th in 1976-1990, 65th in 1991-2000 and 84th in 2001-2014.

San Jose and Nueva Ecija do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in San Jose peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nueva Ecija rose steadily.

To date, San Jose is the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 3 cities in Nueva Ecija. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. San Jose ranked 3rd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 3rd in 1991-2000 and 3rd in 2001-2014.

San Jose and Philippines do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in San Jose peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Philippines rose steadily.

To date, San Jose is the 76th-most disconnected out of the 89 cities in Philippines. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Philippines, the street network in San Jose has become more connected. San Jose ranked 46th in 1975, 70th in 1976-1990, 72nd in 1991-2000 and 76th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, San Jose had a built-up area of 2.96 square kilometers, and a population of 71151 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: