I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
- Robert Frost, Road Less Traveled
The journey to a destination is more important than the destination itself; this is a common understanding that has been accepted and acknowledged by all human generations that have lived on this Earth. The primary purpose of a road is to connect two places, serve as a mean of travel. But they have evolved much more than that; they connect people, societies, cultures, livelihoods. And for the traveler they are a source of inspiration. It is no wonder hence that the construction of roads and highways and the elements found on them are artworks created by humans whilst creating something meant as a necessity. The monograph ‘The View From The Road’ by Appleyard, Lynch and Myer of the Joint Center for Urban Studies for Harvard University and M.I.T. elucidates how the road becomes a piece of an art in the eyes of a driver and a passenger and also the essential elements involved in creating this piece of art.
The monograph starts with highways. The authors say that the experience of travelling on a highway is a sensatory process and happens sequentially. Vision being the predominant one is followed by a sense of space and motion, like entering a large scale architectural feat. Kinesthetic senses, like being in a amusement park, are also felt in every turn, bump uphill or downhill, although not so violent.
The car, the authors say, is a perfect mode of travel on roads. They give a sense of superiority to the traveler whilst creating a filter from the external surroundings. It is while travelling in a car a sense of space can be conceptualized and perceived. Space, physically, can be narrow, broad, a concave down or a convex high leading to varied experiences of the road. But this experience can be modified by the speed at which the driver/passenger travels; for example, traversing a dark tunnel at 60 miles per hour would seem like a blip in the roadway, while doing so at 3 miles per hour would seem as if the tunnel was endless. Similarly an overhead closure in a roadway makes it look much smaller than if it were an open road, though both roads have the same width.
The placement of objects along the road is another factor that contributes to the experience. The position of the intended destination, say a tower, influences the drivers’ reaction to the road. Say if the tower appears, disappears, then reappears, playing hide and seek, it makes the journey and road something to look forward to. Objects far away from the traveler give him/her a sense of floating, without any forward movement. Same can be experienced in elevated highways, in an airplane and similar places. The true perception of motion comes with the objects nearer to the road, and thus the mind gets attracted to them first. So, travelling along certain highways where things are miles away from the road can be creating a feel of freedom but would actually push the traveler into a sense of boredom.
The color and texture of the objects sets the tone of the road. The quality of light is also susceptible to change the spatial form of the object. Skyscrapers appear differently in broad daylight and artificial light in the night. The night lights along the road, especially those adorning important landmarks offer a feel of continuity for the traveler.
Roads were not constructed by workmen to give a sense of beauty; the aim was to provide safe way to travel. Given the present era of new ideologies, the evolution of roads from a just being path to a medium that connects and influences human life is a change that can give more meaning to the land on which the road is based. Three vital objectives should be considered in the construction of roads:
Firstly, the road should give the viewer and sense of rhythm and balance; a view of contrasts and continuity. The modulation may be effectual in the form of vision, space and motion, color or texture.
The driver’s environment should be strengthened; the driver should be able to connect within the surroundings and locate him/herself on the road with landmarks, topological features and should be able to recognize them with a confidence.
As the authors say ‘The roadside should be a fascinating book to read on the run’, the user should be able to grasp the history of the road, understand its usage, its symbolism and that of the surrounding places.
The monograph is a directive to the subject of roads. As the authors say, the things mentioned in it have to be consolidated and executed methodically. To improve the aesthetics of roads, and experimental design should be put to test. It’s because roads are not just achievements of a nation in technology, they also stand as an artwork of time.
