Roman Roads
It is often said that "all roads lead to Rome," and in fact, they once did. The road system of the Ancient Romans was one of the greatest engineering accomplishments of its time, with over 50,000 miles of paved road radiating from their center at the miliarius aurem in the Forum in the city of Rome. Although the Roman road system was originally built to facilitate the movement of troops throughout the empire, it was inevitably used for other purposes by civilians then and now.

ROMAN ENGINEERING

Of course, the roads were used for trade, as were the waterways surrounding and connecting parts of the Roman Empire to itself and the rest of the known world. The Romans had exceptional nautical technology for their time; however their network of roads, even with the perils of land travel, was unparalleled in convenience and was often the only choice for travel or shipping goods. The Romans were the first ancient civilization to build paved roads, which did not prevent travel during or after inclement weather. Indeed, mud or gravel would hinder, if not completely halt many vehicles pulled by animals or other people, not to mention discourage travelers on foot. Roman engineers, however, did not stop with just paving Roman roads. Roads were crowned—that is, they were higher in the middle than on the sides to allow water to run off—and they often had gutters for drainage along the shoulders. Probably the mostincredible engineering feat concerning the Roman road system, though, is how well the roads were built. Many are still major thoroughfares for cars today. Indeed, their road-building methods were unsurpassed until the invention of the macadam in the 19th century. These technological advantages made travel and the shipment of goods across land much easier. Romans shipped lots of goods within the vast expanses of their empire as well as to the rest of the