Despite being one of the few major thoroughfares in Rome able to cope with a high volume of traffic without congestion,[3] it is the subject of much ire both within the Roman community and among historical scholars due to the circumstances under which it was constructed.

Through all of these reconstructions, the area in front of the short courtyard of Saint Peter's Basilica remained a maze of densely packed structures overhanging narrow side-streets and alleyways.

Plans were drawn up several times over the years for the construction of a major link between the Vatican City and the centre of Rome; the number of submissions increasing dramatically with the onset of the Italian Renaissance.

Proponents of a closed plan would usually suggest that the space between the two causeways be separated by a colonnade, or by a row of inhabited structures whose designs would be scrutinised and approved by architects employed by the Holy See.

With the potential expense of clearing Borgo, Bernini decided instead to make use of the warren of poorly maintained medieval buildings to obscure any view of the Vatican structures from any significant distance.

In this way, pilgrims emerged from the relative darkness of the city into the vast open space and grandeur of the Square and its surrounding buildings – a sight calculated to inspire awe in first-time visitors to the Holy See's seat of power.

[10] From the final major reconstruction of Borgo in the 15th century, the site which the Via della Conciliazione now covers remained occupied by residential, religious, and historical buildings for nearly 500 years.

Dictator Benito Mussolini, who had signed the accord on behalf of the King, resurrected the idea of a grand thoroughfare symbolically connecting the Vatican to the heart of the Italian capital.

[14] Among the buildings dismantled, either totally or in part, and rebuilt in another position, were the Palazzo dei Convertendi, the house of Giacomo Bartolomeo da Brescia, the Church of the Nunziatina, and the palaces Rusticucci-Accoramboni and degli Alicorni (the latter had been already demolished in 1931).

At times, such as during the funeral of Pope John Paul II, it has acted as an extension to the square itself, allowing a greater number of visitors to attend functions conducted there.