Street-network Sprawl in Freiburg im Üechtland, Switzerland

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.

Freiburg im Üechtland: city in Fribourg, Switzerland

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 Freiburg im Üechtland, Switzerland on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Freiburg im Üechtland as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.26, 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 2.93, 3.66, 5.06 and 4.32. Street construction in Freiburg im Üechtland 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 Freiburg im Üechtland spans a total of 209 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 2.93, 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 2.93, 3.23, 3.25 and 3.26. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Freiburg im Üechtland has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.3 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.01.

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

How do development practices in Freiburg im Üechtland fare in comparison to others in Fribourg? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Freiburg im Üechtland was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Fribourg. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Freiburg im Üechtland ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

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

How do development practices in Freiburg im Üechtland fare in comparison to others in Switzerland? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Freiburg im Üechtland was the 5th-most disconnected out of the 16 cities in Switzerland. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Switzerland, street construction in Freiburg im Üechtland has become more connected. Freiburg im Üechtland ranked 1st in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 3rd in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

Freiburg im Üechtland and Fribourg follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Freiburg im Üechtland is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Fribourg. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Freiburg im Üechtland ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Freiburg im Üechtland and Switzerland follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Freiburg im Üechtland is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 16 cities in Switzerland. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Switzerland, the street network in Freiburg im Üechtland has become more connected. Freiburg im Üechtland ranked 1st in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Freiburg im Üechtland had a built-up area of 10.28 square kilometers, and a population of 56743 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: