Imagine roads that could monitor traffic, warn you of icy patches, and charge your electric car while you drive. It isn't a science fiction movie-it is rather the future of smart roads, one of the trends of civil engineering in the near future and beyond, in how we are to experience things.

Smart roads contain sensors which are actually inside the pavement. Sensors record real-time information such as traffic speed, weather conditions, and the temperature of the road in that area. Traffic management systems collect information from the sensors and then respond by adjusting traffic light adjustment and limit speed update with warnings to the driver if there are hazards present. It results in a smoother and more safe journey for all the people.

Some roads are even designed to harness solar energy. Imagine solar panels integrated into the road surface, providing power for everything from streetlights to electric vehicle charging stations. It's an innovative way in which this makes the roads multi-functional, generating clean energy while reducing the carbon footprint of the city.

But that is not all smart roads are being designed to have direct communication with the vehicles in them. They will provide real-time updates on traffic and accidents and even charge electric cars. Once self-driving cars are increasingly found on roads, these roads will certainly play their role in directing and controlling them in making traveling both less stressful and efficient.

The revolution of smart roads blurs the distinction between technology and infrastructure to ensure safer, greener, and better connected transportation networks. It's simply about cities becoming smarter and journeys easier.