for maximum visibility

[kjc0123]

What is the meaning of "for maximum visibility" in the following sentence?

On the highways leading in, the cheap metal buildings and mobile homes were gathering as tightly as possible next to the roads for maximum visibility.

[Grunty]

I am only guessing on this one, but was the area one that has had civil strife or bandits?  It may be that by building close together, and close to the road, the inhabitants would be more likely to see trouble coming, and to band together in defence.

[jno]

It could mean either 'so they could be seen clearly' or 'so the people in them could see things outside most clearly'. I think the second of these is more likely, as Grunty suggests.