<
https://theconversation.com/road-to-nowhere-why-the-suburban-cul-de-sac-is-an-urban-planning-dead-end-194628>
"The cul-de-sac is a suburban trap. It’s virtually useless as a road, doesn’t
support public transport, cycling or walking, and doesn’t work well as a play
or gathering place. Its literal translation from the French is “bottom of a
sack” – which sounds a lot less glamorous, you’ll agree.
And yet we persist with them. The calls for more housing that resonate across
many urban societies almost always include plans to repurpose broad swathes of
agricultural land into single-family housing serviced by twisting strands of
cul-de-sac-capped roads.
But there is a danger in embracing this type of development. Despite the French
name, the cul-de-sac as it exists today is not even from Europe. Like many
modern transport nightmares, it originated in the car-oriented suburban
planning of 1950s America, a defence against the perceived threat of the inner
city.
Cul-de-sacs were envisioned initially as small offshoots from more traditional
grid roads. They eventually morphed into isolated loops at the end of
curvilinear patterns where only residents of the suburb would travel. They are
the antithesis of connectivity."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
