What distinguishes a collector street from an arterial street?

Collector streets serve a critical role in urban planning by acting as intermediaries between local streets and arterial streets. They are designed to collect and distribute traffic from residential or local areas to the larger arterial roads that facilitate longer trips and higher-speed traffic flow. The primary function of a collector street is to connect neighborhoods and local roads to the arterial network, ensuring that residents have efficient access to major roadways without high-speed traffic directly flowing through their communities.

In contrast, arterial streets are primarily designed for through traffic, typically featuring higher speed limits and carrying a larger volume of vehicles. They often handle longer distances and provide less direct access to adjacent properties compared to collector streets.

The other options do not align with the defining characteristics of collector streets. For instance, collector streets generally have lower speed limits compared to arterial roads, carry less traffic than arterial streets, and do not typically have limited access, which is a feature more common to arterial roads. This distinction emphasizes the vital role of collector streets in the overall hierarchy of a roadway network, facilitating movement and access efficiently.