Street-network Sprawl in Ciudad de la Costa, Uruguay

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.

Ciudad de la Costa: city in Canelones, Uruguay

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 Ciudad de la Costa, Uruguay on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Ciudad de la Costa as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.05, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are -0.03, 0.07, 1.12 and 0.92. Street construction in Ciudad de la Costa 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 Ciudad de la Costa spans a total of 483 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 0.07, which is very well-connected.

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 -0.03, 0.03, 0.05 and 0.05. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Ciudad de la Costa has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.06 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.0.

Ciudad de la Costa and Canelones do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Ciudad de la Costa peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Canelones rose steadily.

How do development practices in Ciudad de la Costa fare in comparison to others in Canelones? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Ciudad de la Costa was the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Canelones. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Canelones, street construction in Ciudad de la Costa has become more connected. Ciudad de la Costa ranked 1st in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Ciudad de la Costa and Uruguay do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Ciudad de la Costa peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Uruguay rose steadily.

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

Ciudad de la Costa and Canelones follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

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

Ciudad de la Costa and Uruguay follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Ciudad de la Costa is the 4th-most disconnected out of the 6 cities in Uruguay. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Uruguay, the street network in Ciudad de la Costa has become more connected. Ciudad de la Costa ranked 1st in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 4th in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Ciudad de la Costa had a built-up area of 15.52 square kilometers, and a population of 79524 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: