Urban Roads

Urban roads (i.e. roads within an urban or city area) are classified as follows. • Expressway • Arterial Road • Collector Road • Local Street

Expressway

Expressways are the highest category of the road where vehicles are expected to travel at high speed. Mobility has the highest importance for these roads and therefore, such roads generally do not have any at-grade junctions (i.e. two roads crossing at the same level). Grade separated facilities such as Flyovers, Interchanges, Underpasses, etc. are expected on Expressways in place of crossings with other roads. These are high-speed facilities, but as a driver, you must respect the speed limit and other restrictions to ensure safety.

Arterial streets

Arterial streets are the next level of major roads in an urban area. Here the mobility function is lower than the expressway and therefore, speed is also lower. You should carefully note the speed restriction and other regulations on such roads and drive safely as per the function of the road.

Collector roads

Collector roads connect residential areas with arterial streets. The speed on these roads is lower than that on arterial streets. Roadside activities and disturbances are also higher on such roads. Hence, you need to be extra careful as a driver to avoid conflicts with pedestrians and other road users. Even in the absence of a posted speed limit, you should drive slowly on such facilities as accessibility has higher importance than mobility on such roads.

Local streets

Local streets mainly provide accessibility to residential areas. These are typically residential streets, and the primary function is to provide access to local neighbourhoods. So, the speed of vehicles must be low, and you must drive slowly and safely giving due priority to pedestrians, cyclists, etc.

Altogether, you should keep in mind that all roads in urban areas are not for travelling at high speed. You must respect the posted speed limit in all cases. Even in the absence of posted speed limit, you must assess the function of the road and select a speed that is compatible with the roadway function.