A street is a public thoroughfare (usually paved) in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, but is more often paved with a hard, durable surface such as concrete, cobblestone or brick. Portions may also be smoothed with asphalt, embedded with rails, or otherwise prepared to accommodate non- pedestrian traffic.
Originally the word "street" simply meant a paved road ( Latin : "via strata"). The word "street" is still sometimes used colloquially as a synonym for " road ", for example in connection with the ancient Watling Street, but city residents and urban planners draw a crucial modern distinction: a road 's main function is transportation, while streets facilitate public interaction. Examples of streets include pedestrian streets, alleys, and city -centre streets too crowded for road vehicles to pass. Conversely, highways and motorways are types of roads, but few would refer to them as streets.
