Editing Industrial Revolution (section)

====Roads====
[[File:Rakeman – First American Macadam Road.jpg|thumb|Construction of the first macadam road in the United States in 1823. In the foreground, workers are breaking stones "so as not to exceed 6 ounces in weight or to pass a two-inch ring".<ref name="rakemanPainting">[https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/rakeman/1823.htm "1823 – First American Macadam Road"] ''(Painting – [[Carl Rakeman]])'' US Department of Transportation – Federal Highway Administration (Accessed 10 October 2008)</ref>]]
France was known for having an excellent road system at this time; however, most roads on the European continent and in the UK were in bad condition, dangerously rutted.<ref name="Grübler"/><ref name="Hunter_1985">{{cite book |title=A History of Industrial Power in the United States, 1730–1930, Vol. 2: Steam Power |last1=Hunter |first1= Louis C.|year=1985 | publisher =University Press of Virginia|location= Charlottesville |page=18}}''"There exist everywhere roads suitable for hauling".''[[Robert Fulton]] on roads in France</ref> Much of the original British road system was poorly maintained by local parishes, but from the 1720s [[turnpike trust]]s were set up to charge tolls and maintain some roads. Increasing numbers of main roads were turnpiked from the 1750s: almost every main road in England and Wales was the responsibility of a turnpike trust. New engineered roads were built by [[John Metcalf (civil engineer)|John Metcalf]], [[Thomas Telford]] and [[John Loudon McAdam|John McAdam]], with the first '[[macadam]]' stretch of road being Marsh Road at [[Ashton Gate, Bristol|Ashton Gate]], [[Bristol]] in 1816.<ref>Richard Brown (1991). "Society and Economy in Modern Britain 1700–1850" p. 136. Routledge, 1991</ref> The first macadam road in the U.S. was the "Boonsborough Turnpike Road" between [[Hagerstown, Maryland|Hagerstown]] and [[Boonsboro, Maryland]] in 1823.<ref name="rakemanPainting" />

The major turnpikes radiated from London and were the means by which the [[Royal Mail]] was able to reach the rest of the country. Heavy goods transport on these roads was by slow, broad-wheeled carts hauled by teams of horses. Lighter goods were conveyed by smaller carts or teams of [[packhorse]]. [[Stagecoach]]es carried the rich, and the less wealthy rode on [[Un-sprung cart|carriers carts]]. Productivity of road transport increased greatly during the Industrial Revolution, and the cost of travel fell dramatically. Between 1690 and 1840 productivity tripled for long-distance carrying and increased four-fold in stage coaching.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gerhold|first=Dorian|date=August 1996|title=Productivity Change in Road Transport before and after Turnpiking, 1690–1840|journal=The Economic History Review|volume=49|issue=3|page=511|jstor=2597761}}</ref>