The Art of Cities/Transportation

Roads and Streets

These two simple transportation thoroughfares are arguably the most important in any city. Streets are mainly quiet residential streets, and roads are usually city-centre trunk routes. These are the purposes which roads and streets are given in the "definitions" below.

Streets (to the left) are the small, usually residential routes which are never too congested. They often come in the form of cul-de-sacs (streets with a dead end). They are almost always unmarked and are commonly separated from the pavement by a narrow strip of grass or trees. Another notable feature about streets is that, at junctions, the corners are much more curved than roads, making turning much easier for vehicles. Often, they are four car-widths wide: two widths for opposing traffic and two more for cars to park on either side against the curb.

Roads (to the right) are typically wider and busier than streets. They often contain multiple lanes of traffic in either direction. Where streets have stop signs to control traffic, roads have signals using a system of lights to alert drivers when to cross an intersection. These lights are used to increase efficiency of traffic flow.