章 6: ROAD
I knew that the task of completing the construction of an affordable and sustainable road without the use of modern machinery and equipment will be an uphill battle, but it was not an impossible task. I just had to act with whatever I could use to my advantage and fill in the gaps with creativity. Cement was easy enough to manufacture but the levelling and evening of the wet cement without heavy machinery will prove to be the difficult part.
I had read about the history of road construction as part of one of my papers to impress a professor. At the time of doing it, I never ever imagined it would become so important that my very life would be defined by it someday. This was the project that was going to make the king and the rest of his officials see that I was capable of being a component ruler in the future. If I do not produce sufficient enough results, I would have to be fine being treated as a wilful young lord trying to achieve greatness without the strength to back it up.
I had the parchment taken out and as I cleared my thoughts, I began to note down the various steps that typically went into the construction of the roads.
First and foremost was the need to evaluate the topography of the environment in which one is considering the construction of roads. This was done to make note of various environmental factors that one had to take into consideration so as to determine the cleaning process with which one can start the construction.
The clearing of the area refers to the digging of the ground to make space for the construction of an even base to lay the foundations of a steady road. The ground in any new area will be uneven before the beginning of such projects as it cannot be even for such long stretches of land. Once we determine how much depth is required, we will move on to either remove or add soil according to the requirements.
In modern times we would have had to use a small number of excavation vehicles to dig and transport the soil that was unearthed from the construction site but this era did not have those facilities. I instead planned to use the large amount of cheap labour to compensate for this shortcoming. Yes, it would take many folds more time in the completion of the project but my hands were also tied.
After we have completed making an even space, we will move on to forming the base. Base is usually formed by filling the now created ditch with a layer of small stones laid down evenly throughout the desired path.
Generally, at this point we would use heavy machineries to first even the soil area that has been taken out to help create an even starting point before filling the base and once again when the stone base is filled. We could most certainly not make use of the modern machines so I would have to take another approach because pressing of every layer was a very necessary step when constructing a sustainable road which could stand the test of times.
I had planned to have custom build the rolling pins, like the ones seen on industrial rollers and instead of a machine use the behemoth and pride of the now kings, elephants. The elephants will be tasked with pulling the pin over the area while being guided by their mahout (the one who rears and rides an elephant while in royal employment).
The crushing of stones was an already old industry so it could be possible even without modern machines and I did not have to worry much.
Cement was the major component in the creation of concrete, whose blocks were important in the construction of pavements and important roads that were limited in length. This gave them a better finish as well as a higher aesthetic feel when compared to the tar made highways. I had planned to keep the roads near the vicinity of a major village or city as concrete and the rest of the way will be tar.
Coal was abundant in the world as of now but was mostly underused. The current applications only included cooking or warmth during cold. But with my knowledge of how to use coal tar in construction of affordable and sustainable roads I could properly utilize them at the lowest of costs before others realise its true value. Coal tar was a by-product of the thermal ignition of coal under extreme conditions so I will have to have personnel who could help in construction of areas where we could do this process as the construction progresses.
After it is cooled down a bit, we will roll it with the help of pins to even it before adding a similar layer and repeating the procedure.
As for the concrete road, they followed mostly the same procedures but require greater initial depth and instead of tar there is placement of concrete blocks. The concrete blocks will then have to be cooled down and this time it cannot be left open but instead use water to be regularly sprayed for it to seep inside the road and provide greater stability. The roads made by this method will certainly be better but they will also require higher maintenance.
Both the roads will have a final step of making a proper drainage system so that during heavy or continues rains the road does not cave under pressure.
After making out a basic plan that was good enough to start the project I closed the parchment, rolled it, tugged it under my arm and left the study to return to my room to change before heading for dinner.
I was very expectant of the day I finally start the project as it can also be considered my first personal project after graduating. I was nervous and thrilled at the same time.
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