A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway or wide road in a commercial district.

In Europe, boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former city walls.

In North American usage, boulevards may be wide, multi-lane thoroughfares divided with only a central median.

Etymology

The word boulevard is borrowed from French. In France, it originally meant the flat surface of a rampart, and later a promenade taking the place of a demolished fortification. It is a borrowing from the Dutch word ' 'bulwark'.

Notable examples

Asia

Azerbaijan

  • Baku Boulevard

Bangladesh

  • Manik Mia Avenue

Cambodia

  • Norodom Boulevard
  • Monivong Boulevard
  • Sihanouk Boulevard
  • Xi Jinping Boulevard

India

  • M G Road
  • Anna Salai
  • Indira Gandhi Sarani
  • Marine Drive
  • Krishnaraja Boulevard
  • Rajpath
  • Necklace Road
  • Mahatma Gandhi Road
  • Foreshore Road

Indonesia

  • Jalan Jenderal Sudirman
  • Jalan M.H. Thamrin
  • Jalan Jenderal Gatot Subroto
  • Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said
  • Jalan Gajah Mada/Jalan Hayam Wuruk
  • Jalan Prof. Dr. Satrio
  • Jalan Plaza Boulevard

Vietnam

  • Thang Long Boulevard

Iran

  • Keshavarz Boulevard

Philippines

  • Roxas Boulevard
  • Shaw Boulevard
  • España Boulevard
  • Quezon Boulevard
  • Aurora Boulevard
  • Osmeña Boulevard

Australia and Oceania

Australia

  • St Kilda Road, Melbourne
  • Royal Parade, Melbourne
  • Victoria Parade, Melbourne
  • Flemington Road, Melbourne
  • Mount Alexander Road, Melbourne
  • The Boulevard, Perth

New Zealand

  • The Four Avenues, Christchurch
  • Anzac Avenue, Dunedin
  • Marine Parade, Napier

Europe

Austria

  • Vienna Ring Road

Denmark

Boulevards in Copenhagen:

  • Nørre Voldgade
  • H. C. Andersens Boulevard
  • Vesterbrogade
  • Sønder Boulevard
  • Dalgas Boulevard
  • Strandboulevarden
  • Frederiksberg Allé

France

  • Boulevard Beaumarchais
  • Boulevard du Temple
  • Boulevard Montmartre
  • Boulevard des Italiens
  • Boulevard des Capucines
  • Boulevard de la Madeleine

Germany

  • Unter den Linden, Berlin
  • Kurfürstendamm, Berlin
  • Karl-Marx-Allee, Berlin
  • Boulevard der Stars, Berlin
  • Königsallee, Düsseldorf
  • Goerdelerring, Leipzig
  • Brienner Straße, Munich
  • Leopoldstraße, Munich
  • Maximilianstraße, Munich
  • Prinzregentenstraße, Munich

Hungary

  • Little Boulevard, Budapest
  • Grand Boulevard, Budapest
  • Hungária Boulevard, Budapest

Ireland

  • O'Connell Street, Dublin

Italy

  • Viali di Circonvallazione, Florence
  • , Milan
  • , Parma
  • Via Merulana, Rome

Netherlands

  • Lange Voorhout, The Hague

Spain

  • Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, Barcelona
  • , Barcelona
  • Avinguda Diagonal, Barcelona
  • Alameda Principal, Málaga

Portugal

  • Avenida da Liberdade, Lisbon

Russia

  • Boulevard Ring, Moscow
  • Tverskoy Boulevard
  • Garden Ring, Moscow

Ukraine

  • Lesya Ukrainka Boulevard
  • Sections of Small Ring Road, Kyiv

North America

Canada

  • Lake Shore Boulevard, Toronto
  • Pie-IX Boulevard, Montreal
  • King George Boulevard, Surrey

Mexico

  • Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City

United States

  • Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn
  • Broadway, Manhattan
  • West Side Highway, Manhattan
  • FDR Drive, Manhattan (future project)
  • Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles
  • Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles
  • Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles
  • Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles
  • Chicago Boulevard System
  • Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia
  • Roosevelt Boulevard, Philadelphia
  • Southern Boulevard Park, Philadelphia
  • Boulevard, Atlanta
  • Park Avenue, New York City
  • Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas
  • Ohio River Boulevard, Pittsburgh

South America

Argentina

  • , Buenos Aires

Uruguay

  • Artigas Boulevard, Montevideo

Brazil

  • Avenida Rio Branco, Rio de Janeiro
  • Avenida São João, São Paulo

References

Books

  • Boulevards in Vietnam