Street-network Sprawl in أش شلال, 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.

أش شلال: city in Blue Nile, 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 أش شلال, Sudan on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in أش شلال as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.27, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are -0.14, -0.69, nan and 0.8. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in أش شلال spans a total of 91 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 0.8, which is relatively 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 -0.14, -0.45, -0.45 and 0.27. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but أش شلال has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

أش شلال and Blue Nile do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Blue Nile peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in أش شلال fare in comparison to others in Blue Nile? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in أش شلال was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Blue Nile. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. أش شلال ranked 2nd in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990 and 1st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

أش شلال and Sudan do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Sudan peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in أش شلال fare in comparison to others in Sudan? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in أش شلال was the 24th-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 أش شلال has become more connected. أش شلال ranked 28th in 1975, 48th in 1976-1990 and 24th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

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

To date, أش شلال is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Blue Nile. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Blue Nile, the street network in أش شلال has become more disconnected. أش شلال ranked 2nd in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

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

To date, أش شلال is the 45th-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 أش شلال has become more connected. أش شلال ranked 28th in 1975, 47th in 1976-1990, 48th in 1991-2000 and 45th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, أش شلال had a built-up area of 1.47 square kilometers, and a population of 78403 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: