Mexico City - Paseo de la Reforma

The Paseo de la Reforma, the principal east-west traffic artery of Mexico City, extends for a total distance of 15km/9.3mi from Tlatelolco to the residential district of Las Lomas ("The Hills") on the city's western boundary. The principal section, however, is the stretch from the intersection with Avenido Benito Juárez to Chapultepec Park. This boulevard is 60 m (200 ft) wide, with six to eight traffic lanes, a green strip in the middle, busts of famous men (mainly heroes of the wars of independence, etc.) along the sides and large roundabouts (glorietas) at the intersections, with monuments or groups of trees. The patrician houses of the colonial period which once flanked the street have almost completely disappeared, to be replaced by tall modern blocks containing offices, hotels, restaurants, cinemas and shops. This magnificent avenue was originally laid out during the reign of the Emperor Maximilian to provide a direct link between his residence in Chapultepec Castle and the official seat of government on the Zócalo. It takes its present name from the reforming laws promulgated by Maximilian's antagonist Benito Juárez in 1861.