Each city has its own avenues. As a rule, these are the main streets of the city. But let's study this issue from the point of view of the Russian language and urban planning.
Prospectus in Russian
To begin with, “prospectus” is a word of foreign origin. This word has Latin roots. The Romans called prospectus a view of the future or projection of the future.
In Russian, "prospectus" is a polysemantic word. The first and direct meaning of the word is "a wide, direct and longest street in a city or metropolis." In our native language, the “avenue” was seen in the 18th century, when Peter the Great built St. Petersburg. At that time, the straight and wide streets of St. Petersburg were called "perspectives." A little later, the word acquired a modern sound and spelling. The famous Nevsky Prospect was called 300 years ago as: “a promising road leading to the Nevsky Monastery” or “Nevsky Prospect”. Modern writing developed only at the end of the 18th century.
Prospect in urban planning
For the urban planner, the “avenue” is one of the major and central streets of the city or such a street that connects neighboring parts of the same city. Architects endowed the avenue with several signs.
Leading signs of the city avenue
Architects and urban planners came to the conclusion that the avenue should have certain characteristics. Let's look at them:
- no prospectus should have a dead end;
- the beginning and / or end of the avenue is only (!) the area, intersection or traffic intersection;
- in any case, the avenue must have a through passage;
- on such a large street vast areas should be allocated for a pedestrian crossing without affecting the movement of the flow of vehicles;
- public transport - on the main streets of the city should go public transport.
If these signs are absent, then, most likely, the name "prospectus" was assigned to the street not according to the rules of urban planning. But the city authorities have the right and the will to apply such a name to the street, depending, for example, on toponymic features or traditions.
In millionaire cities, there are few prospectuses. At the same time, for example, in Novosibirsk there are not two or three streets called avenues, but much more:
- Red (6492 meters).
- Dzerzhinsky.
- Dimitrova.
- Nautical.
- Komsomol.
- Builders.
- University.
- Karl Marx.
Many Novosibirsk citizens believe that Red Avenue is the longest street in the city. But this is not so. The length of the Red Avenue is 6492 meters. In fact, the record holder for the length in Novosibirsk is Pervomaiskaya Street. Its length is exactly 7 kilometers.
Moscow avenue
In the vocabulary of Muscovites "prospectus" appeared a hundred years after the emergence of St. Petersburg. For a very long time, they used this word to call straight alleys in gardens and parks. From the beginning of the 20th century, Izmailovsky Park retained the name of avenue-avenues: Elaginsky, Moscow, Izmailovsky and Narodny.
The main Moscow highways began to be called “prospectuses” only from the middle of the 20th century, after 1950.
Today in Moscow there are streets so named, they are wide and long. Prospectuses laid near Moscow State University in the south-west of the capital: Vernadsky, Lomonosovsky, Universitetsky and Michurinsky.
Prospectuses of St. Petersburg
Flying over St. Petersburg by plane, you can see its streets. They look like an elegant ornament that complements the picturesque bridges over the sparkling surface of many rivers and canals.
St. Petersburg Avenue is the history and memory of great people who lived several centuries earlier. Its streets are peculiar heroes of the literary works of Pushkin, Gogol and Dostoevsky. Avenues pass through the historical center of the Northern capital: Nevsky, Voznesensky, Admiralteysky, Greek, etc.
Sign street of St. Petersburg
Nevsky Prospect is a visiting card of the city. In importance, it can only be compared with the Moscow Arbat or the Champs Elysees of Paris. The length of the Neva Railway is more than 4 kilometers. It ranged from the famous Admiralty to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. This laurel gave its name to the tract. The opinion that the avenue was named after the main river of St. Petersburg is erroneous. There is no way out to the river. But the avenue has several bridges over the Fontanka, Moika, etc. Famous Nevsky bridges:
In 1871, the name "Nevsky Prospect" was approved by the city authorities. But in 1918, the main thoroughfare of the city was renamed. They called it "Avenue October 25."
It was necessary to lay the Nevsky tract in order to connect the new part of the city with the Admiralty. At this time, the monks paved their way. They built the road for six years. It was difficult, as swamps and swamps met on the Nevsky route. This road has become in demand in a short time. Peter the Great gives the order to build the Police Bridge (Green), as well as to equip the Nevsky Prospect.
Thus, the avenue is the main street of the city, which is quite wide and long. Zones for a pedestrian crossing that do not interfere with the movement of vehicles are highlighted on it. Also, public transport should go on the main city highways, which will deliver citizens to the center from remote areas of the city.