A Network (capita viarum) of Roads, Bridges and City Gates Connecting to the Colonnaded Streets of Roman-Period Nysa-Scythopolis: Evidence of Efficient Traffic Planning

This article investigates the strategic importance of Nysa-Scythopolis (Bet She’an) as a key transportation and urban center during the Roman and Byzantine periods. Located at a critical junction between the Jordan Valley and the central mountain ridges, the city comprised a complex network of regional roads and monumental gates, facilitating both local and imperial mobility. This study focuses on three of five major Roman gates—Aelia Capitolina, Gerasa, Neapolis, Damascus and Caesarea—each aligned with major intercity arteries, as well as on the construction of two Roman bridges crossing Naḥal Ḥarod, Jisr el-Khan and the skew bridge Jisr el-Maktu‘a. Gate typologies are analyzed, as well as their integration into urban planning—via spacious paved piazzas and a bypass street system—illustrating the city’s logistical efficiency and its central role in the Roman transportation network in the Levant.