Why cross the road?

This morning when I took Bravo out, I saw a group of geese crossing a busy road. I've always wondered why they walk across, rather than fly. But walk they did, honking every step of the way. One wonders if the cars would have stopped for another noise, or if it was just a conditioned response to honking, but they did stop, and the group crossed safely. Once they were all across, the honking stopped.

Why did they cross the road? To get to the other pond.