[riffraff]

I am unconvinced by "The Europeans[..]did not adapt and subsequently lost the option of smooth land transportation for almost one thousand years."

By the subsequent text, "Roman road infrastructure remained relatively useful until about the 11th century AD" and they started building them again in the late middle age. The middle ages by definition in the 15th century so the 11th is already near the late middle age.

Moreover:

"New roads appeared during the economic revival of the late Middle Ages, but these were not paved or hardened in any other way. This made them at best inefficient in good weather and nearly impassable when (and after) it rained. "

But that is also true of the chinese ones. I imagine pushing a wheelbarrow balancing on a single central wheel in the mud is not easier than a two wheeled cart.

Good article nonetheless, but I thought the "dark ages" trope was already discredited?

[jt2190]

You may find one of the comments on the article interesting. Here's a excerpt:

  > "Niether can you compare the road systems. Europe never 
  > had a mercantile road system because it never needed 
  > one because of the excellent water transport. Europe 
  > has the highest density of navigable rivers in the 
  > world as well as the longest fractal coastline. Few 
  > places in Europe were more than a half-day travel by 
  > wagon from water transport. All they needed were short
  > stretches of local road to connect 
  > to the nearest water transport.

[1] http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/12/the-chinese-wheelbarr...

[VladRussian2]

>I am unconvinced by "The Europeans[..]did not adapt and subsequently lost the option of smooth land transportation for almost one thousand years."

>By the subsequent text, "Roman road infrastructure remained relatively useful until about the 11th century AD" and they started building them again in the late middle age. The middle ages by definition in the 15th century so the 11th is already near the late middle age.

it isn't that Roman roads disappeared as physical artefacts - they are still there. It is the long-distance trade using this roads under protection of unified Roman Empire stopped. Similarly like long distance trade blooming under Mongol Empire (without any noticeable road infrastructure) had decreased significantly with Mongol Empire breaking up.

[vidarh]

> But that is also true of the chinese ones.

The article claims that this was only the case on the eastern plains, and that large parts of the network of paths in China actually were paved.