Thursday, January 7, 2016

The World's 5 Most Interesting Streets


The world is a crazy place. We’ve got big cities and small towns, sprawling forests and concrete jungles, tall buildings and short buildings, but most importantly wound throughout all of this is the path in which we get around - streets!


Not all streets are made the same. If you go looking, you might just find that some of the most unique streets in the world are really close to home. We’ve narrowed down five of our favourites, so take a look:

The World’s Longest Street
We’re standing on it! Did you know that Yonge Street is the longest street in the world? It begins at Lake Ontario and stretches all the way north to Lake Simcoe - approximately 86 kilometres. It was created as part of the settlement of western Upper Canada in 1794, was the basis on which Toronto’s first subway line was formed, and is now home to some of our city’s biggest landmarks like the Eaton Centre, Yonge-Dundas Square, and of course, Aura!
Photo via arbron on Flickr


The World’s Shortest Street
If you thought some of Toronto’s side streets were short, you haven’t seen anything yet! Ebenezer Place in Wick, Scotland has been around since 1883 and is the shortest street in the world. Consisting of only one address, 1 Ebenezer Place is home to No 1 Bistro - a restaurant that’s part of Mackays Hotel. This street is only 5.3 metres long!
Photo via Mackays Hotel Facebook Page



The World’s Widest Street
In Buenos Aires lives the world’s widest street. 9 de Julio Avenue is over 300 feet wide and fills the gap of an entire city block. If you’re a pedestrian, don’t think you can cross the street in just one take - it usually takes about 3 green lights to get all the way across. If you’re a driver, make sure you start changing lanes way ahead of time if you’re about to make a turn!

Photo via homeracion on Flickr


The World’s Narrowest Street
A street called Spreuerhofstraße can be found in Reutlingen, Germany and is the world’s most narrow street. Its widest point is only 50 centimetres while its narrowest is 31 centimetres. This street has been around since 1727.
Photo via Kathrin Mezger on Flickr



The World’s Most Crooked Street
Any California dreamers out there? The world’s most wacky street is located in San Francisco. Lombard Street is famous for being steep and having eight hairpin (or switchback) turns. It was made this way because of its steepness - most cars would not have been able to use the street because of the angle, so adding the hairpin turns makes it possible.
Photo via ltdan on Flickr