Street-network Sprawl in Berdychiv, Ukraine

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.

Berdychiv: city in Zhytomyr, Ukraine

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 Berdychiv, Ukraine on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Berdychiv as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.74, 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 2.15, 2.98, nan and 1.72. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Berdychiv spans a total of 206 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 2.98, 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 2.15, 2.73, 2.74 and 2.74. The aggregate street network in Berdychiv increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 2000.

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

How do development practices in Berdychiv fare in comparison to others in Zhytomyr? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Berdychiv was the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Zhytomyr. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Zhytomyr, street construction in Berdychiv has become more connected. Berdychiv ranked 1st in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990 and 2nd in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Berdychiv and Ukraine 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 Ukraine rose steadily.

How do development practices in Berdychiv fare in comparison to others in Ukraine? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Berdychiv was the 46th-most disconnected out of the 78 cities in Ukraine. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Ukraine, street construction in Berdychiv has become more disconnected. Berdychiv ranked 20th in 1975, 10th in 1976-1990 and 46th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Berdychiv and Zhytomyr do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Berdychiv peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Zhytomyr rose steadily.

To date, Berdychiv is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Zhytomyr. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Berdychiv ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Berdychiv and Ukraine do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Berdychiv peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Ukraine rose steadily.

To date, Berdychiv is the 11th-most disconnected out of the 78 cities in Ukraine. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Ukraine, the street network in Berdychiv has become more disconnected. Berdychiv ranked 20th in 1975, 9th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 11th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Berdychiv had a built-up area of 17.06 square kilometers, and a population of 75672 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: