Street-network Sprawl in Wad Madanī, Sudan

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.

Wad Madanī: city in Al Jazirah, Sudan

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 Wad Madanī, Sudan on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Wad Madanī as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.19, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.81, 0.15, 0.85 and 0.9. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Wad Madanī fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Wad Madanī spans a total of 742 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 0.15, 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 2.81, 0.16, 0.17 and 0.19. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Wad Madanī has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

Wad Madanī and Al Jazirah follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Wad Madanī fare in comparison to others in Al Jazirah? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Wad Madanī was the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 9 cities in Al Jazirah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Al Jazirah, street construction in Wad Madanī has become more connected. Wad Madanī ranked 2nd in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 3rd in 1991-2000 and 3rd in 2001-2014.

Wad Madanī and Sudan do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Wad Madanī was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Sudan peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Wad Madanī fare in comparison to others in Sudan? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Wad Madanī was the 21st-most disconnected out of the 63 cities in Sudan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Sudan, street construction in Wad Madanī has become more connected. Wad Madanī ranked 6th in 1975, 32nd in 1976-1990, 17th in 1991-2000 and 21st in 2001-2014.

Wad Madanī and Al Jazirah follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Wad Madanī is the 7th-most disconnected out of the 9 cities in Al Jazirah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Al Jazirah, the street network in Wad Madanī has become more connected. Wad Madanī ranked 2nd in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990, 7th in 1991-2000 and 7th in 2001-2014.

Wad Madanī and Sudan do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Wad Madanī was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Sudan rose steadily.

To date, Wad Madanī is the 49th-most disconnected out of the 63 cities in Sudan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Sudan, the street network in Wad Madanī has become more connected. Wad Madanī ranked 6th in 1975, 34th in 1976-1990, 36th in 1991-2000 and 49th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Wad Madanī had a built-up area of 21.29 square kilometers, and a population of 549310 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: