A side road is a minor

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

typically leading off a main road.Main road — definition

Free Online Dictionary
'. A side road may be so minor as to be uncategorized with a road number. In an

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

, a side road may be a narrow street leading off a more major street, especially in a

residential area A residential area is a land used in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas. Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single-family housing, multi-family residen ...

Side street

A side street is a

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a city, town or village, typically lined with Building, buildings on one or both sides. Streets often include pavements (sidewalks), pedestrian crossings, and sometimes amenities like Street light, streetligh ...

that intersects a main street and ends there. It is generally of little importance to through traffic. Being the last mile of the road system, it generally carries little traffic. Common characteristics of a side street include low

speed limit Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed, express ...

s (usually not more than 30 mph or 50 km/h), curbside parking, and few or no painted line markings to display lanes. Intersections in urban or suburban areas are usually marked by

stop sign A stop sign is a traffic sign designed to notify drivers that they must come to a complete stop and make sure the intersection (road), intersection (or level crossing, railroad crossing) is safely clear of vehicles and pedestrians before contin ...

s, or occasionally

yield sign In road transport, a yield or give way sign indicates that merging drivers must prepare to stop if necessary to let a driver on another approach proceed. A driver who stops or slows down to let another vehicle through has yielded the right of ...

s in some suburban areas when intersecting other side streets. In rural areas, some intersections are uncontrolled. Most side streets are lined with residences. Occasionally, a

place of worship A place of worship is a specially designed structure or space where individuals or a group of people such as a congregation come to perform acts of devotion, veneration, or religious study. A building constructed or used for this purpose is s ...

or a

school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

may be located on a side street, but in a residential area, it is rare to find any commercial development (this is often prohibited by local

zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...

laws, unless directly adjacent to a major street). Side streets, when built, are mostly intended only for the traffic of their residents and visitors. However, many side streets that do not dead end are also used for

rat running Rat running (also known as rodent running or cut-through driving) is the practice by motorists of using residential side streets or any unintended short cut such as a parking lot, delivery service lane or cemetery road instead of the intended ...

motorist Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a land vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, and buses. A driver's permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met, and drivers are required to ...

s in congested areas.

References

{{Road types Types of roads

Side street

See also

References