A side road is a minor

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-acces ...

typically leading off a main road.Main road — definition

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

urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...

, 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 resi ...

Side street

A side street is a street 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 - expre ...

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 signs, or occasionally yield signs 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 or a

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

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 Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...

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 Dead End or dead end may refer to: * Dead end (street), a street connected only at one end with other streets, called by many other official names, including ''cul-de-sac''. Film and television * ''The Dead End'' (1914 film), directed by Davi ...

are also used for

rat running Rat running (also known as rodent running, cut-through driving, or dive-bombing) 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 o ...

by motorists in congested areas.

References

{{Road types Types of roads

Side street

See also

References