Spatial autoregressive analysis of nationwide street network patterns with global open data

The study of street network patterns is beneficial in understanding the layout or physical form of a city. Many studies have analyzed street network patterns, but the similarity and/or difference of street network patterns across a country or region are rarely quantitatively understood. To fill this gap, this research proposes a quantitative analysis of street network patterns nationwide. Specifically, the street network patterns across a country or region were first mapped, and then the relationship between such patterns and various landscape factors (calculated based on global open data) was quantitatively investigated by employing three regression models (ordinary least squares, spatial lag model, and spatial error model). Not only the whole region of China but also its subregions were used as study areas, which involved a total of 362 prefecture-level cities and 2081 built-up areas for analysis. Results showed that (1) similar street network patterns are spatially aggregated; (2) a number of factors, including both land-cover and terrain factors, are found to be significantly correlated with street network patterns; and (3) the spatial lag model is preferred in most of the application scenarios. Not only the analytical method and data can be applied to other countries and regions but also these findings are useful for understanding street network patterns and their associated urban forms in a country or region.