source: https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/15uz539/city_street_network_orientation/
From the post:
Urban spatial order: street network orientation, configuration, and entropy
By: Geoff Boeing
This study examines street network orientation, configuration, and entropy in 100 cities around the world using OpenStreetMap data and OSMnx.
See full paper: https://appliednetsci.springeropen.com/articles/10.1007/s41109-019-0189-1
If you zoom in it does show some off axis stuff, and downtown is only a small portion of the entire city so it seems reasonable. Though it's definitely inconsistent, like if it uses all of Denver city limits but for NYC only shows Manhattan and ignores the other 4 boroughs