PART FIRST.
THE MODE OF MAKING ROADS.
The modes of making and repairing Roads are so various in the different parts of the kingdom, that it would be an endless task to attempt a particular account of each. It may, however, be possible to give a general idea of them, according to the materials produced in each part of the country.
In the neighbourhood of London, the roads are formed of gravel; in Essex and Sussex, they are formed of flint; in Wilts, Somerset, and Glocester, limestone is principally used; in the North of England, and in Scotland, whinstone is the principal material; and in Shropshire and Staffordshire, large pebbles mixed with sand.
Excellent roads may be made with any of these materials.
The gravel of which the roads round London are formed is the worst; because it is mixed with a large portion of clay, and because the component parts of gravel are round, and want the angular points of contact, by which broken stone unites, and forms a solid body; the loose state of the roads near London, is a consequence of this quality in the material, and of the entire neglect, or ignorance of the method of amending it.
A more careful examination of facts connected with the roads round London, has discovered several other causes, from whence proceeds the defective state of these roads. The greatest appears to be, the division of the roads into so many small Trusts, which precludes the possibility of any extended plan of operations, for the benefit of the whole. Before any one road round London can be properly reformed, and all wasteful expenditure restrained, a comprehensive view of the local situation of the whole district will be requisite.
Another great impediment to improvement, arises from the laws and regulations, which prevent a supply of good road materials, of several kinds, being brought to London by water, and landed in different places, convenient for the roads. Were these restrictions removed, as far as concerns stone, flint, or any ballast for road-making, London is so favorably situated for water carriage by the river, and by the canals connected with it, that a supply, equal to the wants of all the roads in the vicinity of London, might be obtained at a reasonable rate, and of good quality, so as to render the use of the bad gravel round the metropolis no longer necessary.[[1]] But this measure, to be performed in an economical, and efficient manner, must be done upon an extended scale; it must become one interest, directed by one select body of men of weight, ability, and character.
[1]. This must not be understood as conveying an opinion, that a good road may not be constructed with the London gravel, properly prepared and applied. The road at Reading, in Berkshire, has lately been made perfectly smooth, solid, and level, with a gravel inferior to that of London, and at less than it formerly cost. Carriages make no impression on this road, and it has remained good in all changes of weather. Nevertheless, a means having been discovered, by diligent enquiry, for importing flints, from a distance, the Reading road will, in future, be repaired with flint, at half the expence required to prepare the gravel of the neighbourhood.
A road near London may be made as smooth, solid, and easy for cattle to draw carriages over, as the road near Bristol; and the London road so made will last longer, and consequently be less expensive than the Bristol road, because the materials which may be obtained are more durable, and may be procured at less expence.
Flint makes an excellent road, if due attention be paid to the size; but from want of that attention, many of the flint roads are rough, loose, and expensive.