Street-network Sprawl in Austin, United States

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.

Austin: city in Texas, United States

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 Austin, United States on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Austin as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.33, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.51, 3.16, 4.82 and 4.37. Street construction in Austin 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 Austin spans a total of 6426 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 3.16, 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 2.51, 2.92, 3.22 and 3.33. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Austin has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.41 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.11.

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

How do development practices in Austin fare in comparison to others in Texas? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Austin was the 14th-most disconnected out of the 26 cities in Texas. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Texas, street construction in Austin has become more connected. Austin ranked 6th in 1975, 14th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 14th in 2001-2014.

Austin and United States follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Austin fare in comparison to others in United States? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Austin was the 214th-most disconnected out of the 315 cities in United States. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in United States, street construction in Austin has become more connected. Austin ranked 140th in 1975, 260th in 1976-1990, 204th in 1991-2000 and 214th in 2001-2014.

Austin and Texas follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Austin is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 26 cities in Texas. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Austin ranked 6th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 6th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

Austin and United States follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Austin is the 130th-most disconnected out of the 315 cities in United States. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in United States, the street network in Austin has become more disconnected. Austin ranked 140th in 1975, 147th in 1976-1990, 136th in 1991-2000 and 130th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Austin had a built-up area of 378.54 square kilometers, and a population of 1063620 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: