Road network
A connected system of roads that links destinations within a region. Its layout and connections shape how people and goods can travel between places.
Road: A prepared route for vehicles, cyclists, or pedestrians to travel between places. Roads are the links that connect destinations across the network.
Shortest path problem: The problem of finding a minimum-cost path between nodes in a graph. Road routing uses it to find paths by distance, time, or another cost.
Transportation planning: The process of evaluating and shaping transport systems to meet present and future needs. Planners assess road connections, demand, and capacity when proposing changes.
Accessibility: The ease with which people can reach desired destinations and opportunities. Network coverage and connectivity shape which destinations can be reached.
Street hierarchy: A classification of streets by their roles in movement and access. Hierarchies trade direct property access against efficient through movement.
Intersection: A point where two or more roads meet or cross. Intersections determine where routes can branch, cross, or turn.
Traffic assignment: The process of estimating how trips distribute across routes in a transport network. It predicts how travelers’ route choices load different roads.
Freight transport: The movement of goods between locations using transport modes and infrastructure. Road links connect factories, ports, warehouses, and customers.
Urban sprawl: Low-density, outward expansion of urban development across a broad area. Road expansion can make distant sites easier to develop and reach.
Grid plan: An urban layout in which streets intersect at regular intervals to form a grid. A grid offers many route choices, unlike networks with few central corridors.