Thread by @ganeshbabudotme

Ring roads as a ‘spatial imaginary’ has been quite a hit around the world. Most large cities around the world have one.

Bypasses around many large and small towns were built in many areas when many old roads were upgraded to four-lane status in the 1930s to 1950s, leaving the old road in place to serve the town or city, but allowing through travelers to continue on a wider and faster route.

Construction of fully circumferential ring roads has generally occurred more recently, beginning in the 1960s in many areas, when the U.S. Interstate Highway System and similar-quality roads elsewhere were designed.

Ring roads have now been built around numerous cities and metropolitan areas, including cities with multiple ring roads, irregularly shaped ring roads, and ring roads made up of various other long-distance roads.

London has three ring roads. Beijing, has six ring roads. Moscow has five. Most cities have 1.

What are the spatial impacts of these ring roads?

They tend to induce demand, leading to more car journeys being taken and thus higher levels of pollution being created.

By creating easy access by car to large areas of land, they can also act as a catalyst for development, leading to urban sprawl and car-centric planning.

Ring roads have also been criticised for splitting communities and being difficult to navigate for pedestrians and cyclists acting as barriers in the urban fabric.

Has the ‘concept’ of a ring road outlived it’s utility?

I’d like to draw a parallel to the old city walls of cities around the world.

Advancement of artillery and aerial warfare made city walls obsolete and city walls around the world came down to be replaced by green spaces.

Is it time we tear down these ring roads and start reimagining them as something else?

Landscape parks, cycleways, for energy generation, water buffers and so on..

#urbanism #cities #urbandesign #stedenbouwkunde