Cul-de-sac facts for kids

A cul-de-sac in Sacramento, California

A cul-de-sac is a street that has only one way in and one way out. It's like a dead-end road, but it usually has a round area at the end where cars can easily turn around. City planners use culs-de-sac to keep neighborhoods quiet and safe by limiting cars just passing through. Some culs-de-sac are completely closed off, but others have paths for cyclists or pedestrians to walk or ride through.

Why Use Culs-de-sac?

Modern Neighborhood Design

Since the end of World War II, many new neighborhoods in America have started using culs-de-sac a lot. These neighborhoods, called subdivisions, often have one or two main roads. From these main roads, many culs-de-sac branch off, filling up all the space in the area. Only a few roads connect the whole neighborhood to bigger, main roads outside.

This is different from older city designs from the early 1900s. Back then, cities often used a grid pattern, like a checkerboard. This was partly because people used streetcars a lot, and there were many alleys.

Benefits for Residents

Using culs-de-sac helps reduce the amount of car traffic on the smaller streets inside a neighborhood. This means less noise and, some people believe, fewer accidents. It also means that most people who drive on a cul-de-sac either live there or are visiting someone who does. This can make the street feel more private and safer.

Images for kids

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  Aerial photographs of communities with cul-de-sac layouts in Loudoun County, Virginia

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  A short cul-de-sac in Welwyn Garden City, England

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  A dead end in Alicante, Spain

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  Workers' village at El Lahun pyramid site, Egypt (c. 1885 BC)

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  Two dead ends, made by closing a minor road in the center to block through-traffic

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  The Channel 4 soap opera Brookside was filmed exclusively in Brookside Close in Liverpool.

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  Cul-de-sac in the Varisto neighbourhood of Vantaa, Finland

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  A cul-de-sac in Wrocław, Poland

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  One of several short, narrow, connected cul-de-sac streets in Athens, Greece. The photos show the street (below) and the connecting footpath to the corresponding street (above)

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  A plan of Village Homes in Davis, California, showing the street and path network with connected culs-de-sac

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  A cul-de-sac sign in Dublin, Ireland

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  Dead end sign in English and Spanish in Otay Mesa, San Diego

See also

In Spanish: Cul-de-sac para niños