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What's the difference between an Ave, Rd, St, Ln, Dr, Way, Pl, Blvd etc. and how is it decided which road is what?


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everything I found here is either rephrased from an urban planning textbook, wikipedia, or googles define function, I never claimed to be an expert on anything, what I gave here is essentially the most common occuring definition I could find, but many are used interchangeably, how a word is used in vernacular does not change an accepted definition.

  • road has no special qualifiers. It connects point a to point b.
  • street connects buildings together, usually in a city, usually east to west, opposite of avenue.
  • An avenue runs north south. Avenues and streets may be used interchangeably for directions, usually has median
  • boulevard is a street with trees down the middle or on both sides
  • lane is a narrow street usually lacking a median.
  • drive is a private, winding road

  • way is a small out of the way road

  • court usually ends in a cul de sac or similar little loop

  • plaza or square is usually a wide open space, but in modern definitons, one of the above probably fits better for a plaza as a road.

  • a terrace is a raised flat area around a building. When used for a road it probably better fits one of the above.

  • uk, a close is similar to a court, a short road serving a few houses, may have cul de sac

  • run is usually located near a stream or other small body of water

  • place is similar to a court, or close, usually a short skinny dead end road, with or without cul de sac, sometimes p shaped

  • bay is a small road where both ends link to the same connecting road

  • crescent is a windy s like shape, or just a crescent shape, for the record, above definition of bay was also given to me for crescent

  • trail is usually in or near a wooded area

  • mews is an old british way of saying row of stables, more modernly seperate houses surrounding a courtyard

  • highway is a major public road, usually connecting multiple cities

  • motorway is similar to a highway, with the term more common in New Zealand, the UK, and Austrailia, no stopping, no pedestrian or animal traffic allowed

  • an interstate is a highway system connecting usually connecting multiple states, although some exist with no connections

  • turnpike is part of a highway, and usully has a toll, often located close to a city or commercial are

  • freeway is part of a highway with 2 or more lanes on each side, no tolls, sometimes termedexpressway, no intersections or cross streets.

  • parkway is a major public road, usually decorated, sometimes part of a highway, has traffic lights.

  • causeway combines roads and bridges, usually to cross a body of water

  • circuit and speedway are used interchangeably, usually refers to a racing course, practically probably something above.

  • as the name implies, garden is usually a well decorated small road, but probably better fits an above

  • view is usually on a raised area of land, a hill or something similar.

  • byway is a minor road, usually a bit out of the way and not following main roads.

  • cove is a narrow road, can be sheltered, usually near a larger body of water or mountains

  • row is a street with a continuous line of close together houses on one or both sides, usually serving a specific function like a frat

  • beltway is a highway surrounding an urban area

  • quay is a concrete platform running along water

  • crossing is where two roads meet

  • alley a narrow path or road between buildings, sometimes connects streets, not always driveable

  • point usually dead ends at a hill

  • pike usually a toll road

  • esplanade long open, level area, usually a walking path near the ocean

  • square open area where multiple streets meet, guess how its usually shaped.

  • landing usually near a dock or port, historically where boats drop goods.

  • walk historically a walking path or sidewalk, probably became a road later in its history

  • grove thickly sheltered by trees

  • copse a small grove

  • driveway almost always private, short, leading to a single residence or a few related ones

  • laneway uncommon, usually down a country road, itself a public road leading to multiple private driveways.

  • trace beaten path

  • circle usually circles around an area, but sometimes is like a "square", an open place intersected by multiple roads.

  • channel usually near a water channel, the water itself connecting two larger bodies of water,

  • grange historically would have been a farmhouse or collection of houses on a farm, the road probably runs through what used to be a farm

  • park originally meaning an enclosed space, came to refer to an enclosed area of nature in a city, usually a well decorated road.

  • mill probably near an old flour mill or other mill.

  • spur similar to a byway, a smaller road branching off from a major road.

  • bypass passes around a populated area to divert traffic

  • roundabout or traffic circle circle around a traffic island with multiple connecting routes, a roundabout is usually smaller, with less room for crossing and passing, and safer

  • wynd a narrow lane between houses, similar to an alley, more common in UK

  • drive shortened form of driveway, not a driveway itself, usually in a neighborhood, connects several houses

  • parade wider than average road historically used as a parade ground.

  • terrace more common in uk, a row of houses.

  • chase on land historically used as private hunting grounds.

  • branch divides a road or area into multiple subdivisions.

Wow that is amazingly detailed and specific. 

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