This fact sheet is the seventh in a series published by ITE on the publication "Context Sensitive Solutions in Designing Major Urban Thoroughfares." Main streets used to be the principal thoroughfares of American towns, where people could find all types of goods and services. They were the center of commercial, social and civic activities. Main streets thrived until the 1960s and 1970s, when largerscale, auto-oriented shopping centers became popular. Many communities now are revitalizing their main streets to return to a traditional small-town mercantile environment or are creating hybrids of traditional and contemporary commercial centers.

The value of today's main streets is summarized in this quote from Portland Metro's Main Street Handbook: "Main streets flourish because they provide a variety of goods and services, a pleasant community environment and efficiency for those who frequent them. When people do their shopping at a main street, they simply accomplish more with less travel, and may find the experience more entertaining."

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Further Reading:

Fact Sheet 7 - Main Street Design