Street-network Sprawl in Brownsville, 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.

Brownsville: 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 Brownsville, United States on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Brownsville as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.03, 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 2.72, 2.53, 4.8 and 4.79. Disconnectivity in street construction in Brownsville follows a zig-zag trend. In 1976-1990, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Brownsville spans a total of 757 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 2.53, 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 2.72, 2.6, 2.99 and 3.03. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Brownsville has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

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

How do development practices in Brownsville fare in comparison to others in Texas? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Brownsville was the 10th-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 Brownsville has become more connected. Brownsville ranked 4th in 1975, 16th in 1976-1990, 10th in 1991-2000 and 10th in 2001-2014.

Brownsville and United States do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Brownsville followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in United States peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Brownsville fare in comparison to others in United States? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Brownsville was the 186th-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 Brownsville has become more connected. Brownsville ranked 124th in 1975, 281st in 1976-1990, 207th in 1991-2000 and 186th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Brownsville is the 10th-most disconnected out of the 26 cities in Texas. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Texas, the street network in Brownsville has become more connected. Brownsville ranked 4th in 1975, 10th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 10th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Brownsville is the 157th-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, the street network in Brownsville has become more connected. Brownsville ranked 124th in 1975, 188th in 1976-1990, 154th in 1991-2000 and 157th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Brownsville had a built-up area of 29.14 square kilometers, and a population of 152649 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: