Street-network Sprawl in Ratchaburi, Thailand

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.

Ratchaburi: city in Thailand

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 Ratchaburi, Thailand on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Ratchaburi as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 5.69, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 5.22, 6.64, nan and 6.7. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Ratchaburi spans a total of 274 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 5.22, which is highly disconnected.

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 5.22, 5.6, 5.6 and 5.69. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Ratchaburi has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.38 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.09.

Ratchaburi and Ratchaburi 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 Ratchaburi followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

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

Ratchaburi and Thailand 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 Thailand rose steadily.

How do development practices in Ratchaburi fare in comparison to others in Thailand? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Ratchaburi was the 19th-most disconnected out of the 42 cities in Thailand. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Thailand, street construction in Ratchaburi has become more disconnected. Ratchaburi ranked 5th in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990 and 19th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Ratchaburi and Ratchaburi do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Ratchaburi rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Ratchaburi followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

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

Ratchaburi and Thailand do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Ratchaburi rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Thailand rose steadily.

To date, Ratchaburi is the 11th-most disconnected out of the 42 cities in Thailand. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Thailand, the street network in Ratchaburi has become more connected. Ratchaburi ranked 5th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 11th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Ratchaburi had a built-up area of 10.93 square kilometers, and a population of 76840 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: