The International Conference on Land Transportation, Locomotive Heritage and Road Culture - 2017
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Item Usage of Stone in Road-Building: An Industrial Archaeological Perspective(The International Conference on Land Transportation, Locomotive Heritage and Road Culture - 2017, 2017) Kodithuwakku, K.; Withanachchi, C.R.Stone is a prominent geo-material used for various necessities in the evolution of human culture for quite a long time. The usage of stone in the history of road-building has been in practice sincecirca 4thand 5th century A.C. It was practiced in Sri Lanka until the first half of the 20thcentury. The type of stone used was granite, commonly known among the locals as ‘Black Stone’, Gneiss or Charnokite with a high degree of hardness used for constructing roads, bridges, culverts and other superstructures. In the late 19th century the Telford and Macadam methods were introduced for paving at ascertained sizes and strata. At the inception, rollers made with granite driven by oxen or elephants were used to press the paving. One of such rollers is exhibited in the Highway Museum at Pilimathalawa. Thereafter, steam and diesel-powered rollers have been used respectively. In the municipal areas, setts were used for paving roads. Granite bars had been used for the construction of bridges called SilaSetuin inAnuradhapura period. These bridges are of two types namely, beam bridges and slab bridges. Stone beam bridges are largest bridge type and remains of several bridges have been identified in the Anuradhapura region. Masonry arch- bridges are the earliest example for the stone bridges used in British Colonial Period. Foundations, piers, abutments and wing walls of the arch-bridges have been made using granite. In the second half of 19th century, several segmental arch-bridges using stones emerged. The dressed stone blocks have been used to build parapet walls with coping of iron bridges. Apart from these, stones have been used to carve mile posts, guard stones of culverts and manhole plates. The objective of this paper is to examine and identify the usage of granite for road construction. A field survey in situ has been conducted to achieve the positive results.Item Tale of the Colombo-Kandy Road (A1) construction: beside travelling and transportation(The International Conference on Land Transportation, Locomotive Heritage and Road Culture - 2017, 2017) Samaratunga, I.The subjected road of this study is called Colombo-Kandy A1, which was an alternative to the early Colombo-Kandy route which passes through Hanwella, Ruwanwella and Balana. After defeating the Uva-Wellassa uprising in 1818; the Governor of the Ceylon Lieutenant General Sir Edward Barns determined to construct a road (Colombo-Kandy A1) from the capital city of the country to the newly conquered up country.The objective of this research was to explore the impact of Colombo-Kandy A1 road in the formation of Socio-economic condition of Sri Lanka from 1820 to 1840. The study revolved around major contributors of the construction process and subsequent uses of the road as an instrument for socio-economic upward mobility. The research problem was “what were the impacts of the road construction to the socio-economy of the country other than its obvious functionality of travelling and transportation”. Predominantly, data was collected using maps, autobiographies, biographies and travelers’ diaries written in the 19th Century. Further, books and papers published on the British Colonial period of Sri Lanka have been referred. It was identified that under the visionary guidance of the Governor of the Ceylon, four other personals namely, Lieutenant General John Fraser (1790-1862), Don Solomon Dias Bandaranayaike (1774-1859), Thomas Skinner (1804-1877) and Captain Dowson (?-1829) led the road construction. It is observed that these officers contributed for the construction through their different capabilities, eventually the local leader could establish as one of most influential political families of the country. In 1830s the first ever road constructed by the British in the Ceylon became an instrument of socio-economic upliftment for other social classes in the low country. There were six bridges along the newly constructed Colombo-Kandy road. Toll rents and Tavern income at those locations became a source of prosperity for the rising class. In Conclusion, A1 road not only connected two geo-locations; but also confronted communities and provided opportunities for socio-economic upward mobility.