Question

The road foundation for modern highways construction, was developed by ____________

(a) Tresguet

(b) Telford

(c) Macadam

(d) Telford and Macadam simultaneously.

I got this question during an interview.

This intriguing question originated from Detailed Specifications of Road Work topic in division Specifications, Estimation of Quantities of Materials and Transport of Civil Engineering Drawing

Answer 1

The correct choice is (d) Telford and Macadam simultaneously.

The best I can explain: Thomas Telford, born in Dumfriesshire Scotland, was a surveyor and engineer who applied Tresaguet’s road building theories. In 1801 Telford worked for the British Commission of Highlands Roads and Bridges. He became director of the Holyhead Road Commission between 1815 and 1830. Telford extended Tresaguet’s theories, but emphasized high-quality stone. He recognized that some of the road problems of the French could be avoided by using cubical stone blocks.

         John Loudon McAdam was born in Ayr, Scotland in 1756. In 1787 he became a trustee of the Ayrshire Turnpike in the Scottish Lowlands and during the next seven years this hobby became an obsession. He moved to Bristol, England in 1802 and became a Commissioner for Paving in 1806. On 15 January 1816 he was elected Surveyor-General of roads for the Turnpike Trust, and was now responsible for 149 miles of road. McAdam first put his ideas about road construction into major practice, the first ‘macadamised’ stretch of road being Marsh Road at Ashton Gate, Bristol.