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I'm going to repost a comment from citylab page: This piece is lying or deceptive, depending on your perspective. The Roman Empire may have built cities on gri

I'm going to repost a comment from citylab page: This piece is lying or deceptive, depending on your perspective. The Roman Empire may have built cities on grids, but most major European cities are generally not on grids, at least not in the sense of American cities. Just have a look at London, Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Rome and many more. They are full little side streets that head off in unpredictable directions. They're not full of Cul-de-sacs, though, as most streets are not dead ends. But, don't pretend that the main alternative to cul-de-sacs is the American grid. Both are awful, compared to Paris! Without being an expert, I would guess that what makes European cities more enjoyable that American ones (they usually are!), is that they have many streets that are for pedestrians only - this makes for a much more enjoyable experience walking the city, and creates lots of wonderful spaces for restaurants and other venues to have outdoor seating. - by wowsuchgoodpoint

jakewins 10y ago
The point isn't that streets are for pedestrians - the point is that the streets are not single-purpose. The street I lived on in Stockholm had a life cycle like: - 6am - early people head to work - 8am - kids head to school - 10am - parents with baby strollers pass by on their way to cafes - 11am - first people show up for lunch at the square - 12pm-2pm - bulk lunch traffic - 4pm - people start coming back home - 5pm - people going shopping down the street - 6pm - shops start closing, shop keepers fiddling with their things - 7pm - dinner guests start passing by on their way to the restaurants - 11pm - last restaurant guests start heading home Compare that to the cul-de-sac I now live on in the US: - 6am - people start leaving, everyone drives - 10am - all cars are gone at this point - 5pm - people come home, all in cars The difference here has nothing to do with grid or windy streets, it has to do with mixed use buildings and streets built to be used for multiple purposes. The effect is quite substantial: In the Stockholm neighborhood, I always felt safe, always had neighbors going places on the street. In my US neighborhood, the streets are almost always empty. No one has a reason to come here for most of the day. This is why the local PD posts a patrol car at our dead-end cul-de-sac every Saturday night, because otherwise people come out here to smoke pot, since there's never anyone around
bane 10y ago
And plazas, don't forget plazas. It's a beautiful thing to go to a local plaza, look around for a cafe and hang out with a light meal and some coffee for 3 or 4 hours and read a book and not get bothered. And then maybe meet up with a friend on the steps of the local church or whatever. Built well, plazas are fantastic public spaces.

jakewins 10y ago

The point isn't that streets are for pedestrians - the point is that the streets are not single-purpose. The street I lived on in Stockholm had a life cycle like: - 6am - early people head to work - 8am - kids head to school - 10am - parents with baby strollers pass by on their way to cafes - 11am - first people show up for lunch at the square - 12pm-2pm - bulk lunch traffic - 4pm - people start coming back home - 5pm - people going shopping down the street - 6pm - shops start closing, shop keepers fiddling with their things - 7pm - dinner guests start passing by on their way to the restaurants - 11pm - last restaurant guests start heading home Compare that to the cul-de-sac I now live on in the US: - 6am - people start leaving, everyone drives - 10am - all cars are gone at this point - 5pm - people come home, all in cars The difference here has nothing to do with grid or windy streets, it has to do with mixed use buildings and streets built to be used for multiple purposes. The effect is quite substantial: In the Stockholm neighborhood, I always felt safe, always had neighbors going places on the street. In my US neighborhood, the streets are almost always empty. No one has a reason to come here for most of the day. This is why the local PD posts a patrol car at our dead-end cul-de-sac every Saturday night, because otherwise people come out here to smoke pot, since there's never anyone around

bane 10y ago

And plazas, don't forget plazas. It's a beautiful thing to go to a local plaza, look around for a cafe and hang out with a light meal and some coffee for 3 or 4 hours and read a book and not get bothered. And then maybe meet up with a friend on the steps of the local church or whatever. Built well, plazas are fantastic public spaces.