Road Construction:
History
The use of
Road infrastructure has been part of us since Adam, even though now there are
better and sophisticated ways of road construction now. Road Transport is the number one mode of
transporting people, goods and services in most parts of the world. This makes
people wonder how road construction all began.
The first
road was built by ancient Romans an extensive and durable system of roads to
serve their needs. The Roman road-building era began in 312 BC. The roads
provided economic and military access from Rome to distant parts of its
far-flung empire. The first road constructed was the Appian Way, which led from
Rome to Brundisium (now Brindisi), a port in what is now southern Italy. The
Appian Way was the main route to Greece, and it ran over 560 km.
workers building road with cobblestones
The roads
were constructed by carefully placing cobblestones in the ground, these
cobblestones are cut in specific patterns before they are placed.
The construction techniques
were simple but effective as they served the means of transporting goods and
services form one place to another by land. The Appian Way in Rome still exists
although it was constructed 2300 years ago. The Roman roads are considered the
beginning of road construction, Telford Pavements are known as the second step
of this process, followed by the Macadam Pavements that ultimately lead to the
Bitumen Roads, now concrete roads have added another dimension to stability and
strength of the roadways.
Today, road construction
involves traffic studies, road alignments, road design, and drainage systems,
slope gradients, use heavy construction equipment for rapid, effective, durable
and easier to build roads.
Research is still been made by
civil engineers on newer ways
of designing and building the most efficient and cost-effective roads.
References
- History of Roads, auuuu.com
- Road construction :History and procedure, brighthubengineering.com
