THE THEORY OF CITY DESIGN. 71 



it will be realized that as long as the radial system is sufficiently 

 employed for reducing the distance from all parts to the principal 

 centres, and for bringing into prominence such aesthetic features 

 as great public buildings and monuments, the substantial benefits 

 of the system will have been secured. The adoption then of the 

 rectangular system for the balance of the design, modified only 

 under the compulsion of meeting topographical difficulties, will 

 admit of the advantages of that system being also fully exploited. 



6. Curved Streets. — On an undulating site, a strict adherence 

 to any general and supposed ideal scheme for the system of streets 

 is, as just indicated, often impracticable, because of the resulting 

 severity in the gradient of some of the streets. Conformity to the 

 fundamental design should therefore not be inflexible. If modific- 

 ations of, or departures therefrom, will avoid the difficulty, there can 

 be no valid reason for hesitating to make them, and such positions 

 for the streets as would give uniform gradients might very properly 

 be selected on conical hillsides, and round the heads of small 

 valleys. This selection will involve the introduction of a curved 

 form for the streets, and it may be occasionally, even the adoption 

 of the zig-zag form. The use of curved streets is to be regarded 

 not only as proper means for the alleviation of gradients, but also 

 as an element in the design, capable of enhancing its merit as 

 regards variety and artistic effect; especially in situations where 

 traffic considerations are of less than average moment. The rigid 

 adherence to straight streets and a rectangular system, charac- 

 teristic of towns in the States of Australia, is a signal defect in 

 the prevailing ideas of city-design : and its abandonment in favour 

 of an independent treatment of each site, and an adoption of a 

 radial-rectangular system would be distinctly beneficial even for 

 villages. But to return to the question of curved streets. In 

 situations where traffic is concentrated, where too, street rail and 

 tramways are required, and where moreover the necessity of 

 ameliorating the grade does not exist, curved streets are a disad 

 vantage. Where a lengthy street view is effective, as bringing 

 into prominence a great public building or monument, curved 



