Street-network Sprawl in Lleida, Spain

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.

Lleida: city in Cataluña, Spain

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 Lleida, Spain on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Lleida as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.5, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.13, 0.89, 1.72 and 1.36. Street construction in Lleida 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 Lleida spans a total of 333 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 0.13, which is very well-connected.

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 0.13, 0.36, 0.42 and 0.5. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Lleida has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.23 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.09.

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

How do development practices in Lleida fare in comparison to others in Cataluña? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Lleida was the 6th-most disconnected out of the 9 cities in Cataluña. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Cataluña, street construction in Lleida has become more disconnected. Lleida ranked 7th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

Lleida and Spain follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Lleida fare in comparison to others in Spain? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Lleida was the 41st-most disconnected out of the 72 cities in Spain. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Spain, street construction in Lleida has become more disconnected. Lleida ranked 57th in 1975, 53rd in 1976-1990, 38th in 1991-2000 and 41st in 2001-2014.

Lleida and Cataluña follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Lleida is the 5th-most disconnected out of the 9 cities in Cataluña. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Cataluña, the street network in Lleida has become more disconnected. Lleida ranked 7th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 6th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

Lleida and Spain follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Lleida is the 54th-most disconnected out of the 72 cities in Spain. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Spain, the street network in Lleida has become more disconnected. Lleida ranked 57th in 1975, 58th in 1976-1990, 57th in 1991-2000 and 54th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Lleida had a built-up area of 13.13 square kilometers, and a population of 97783 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: