Type of pedestrian street From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A step street is a thoroughfare fitted with steps for pedestrian traffic rather than paved or tracked for motor vehicles. It is a practical way of providing access up and down a slope that is too steep for automobiles. Step streets consist of a staircase of stone or concrete steps, often with a handrail on posts down the center, and sometimes lined with trees. Examples can be found in hilly urban areas. Step streets fell out of popularity with urban designers as the use of the automobile increased in cities. In the early 2010s, efforts were made to restore some of these open-air staircases in New York City.[1][2]
There are also several step streets in San Francisco, California.[10][11] One of these is the Lyon Street Steps between Broadway and Green Street in Pacific Heights, with 332 steps.[12] Another, the Filbert Street Steps, descend the east slope of Telegraph Hill and run through the Grace Marchant Garden, tended by the residents who live along these steps.[13] In total, there are 600 public stairs in San Francisco, not all of which are step streets.[14]
The town of Gurabo, Puerto Rico, is popularly known as Pueblo de las Escaleras ("town of the stairs") due to the number of step streets in the district of El Cerro near the center of town.[15][16]
In Montreal, Rue Saint-Christophe contains both stairs and a small slide, and is part of Parc Simonne-Monet-Chartrand.[17]
