Pothole Britain.

[BDG]

Post SHTF, there would be very little traffic to make pot holes worse. There would be very little fuel for you to use in a vehicle. Sooner the roads break down and nature takes them back, the better. Motorways and A roads would take decades to decay, most of these are ancient routes.

Before the Turnpikes were established in the UK and it was the responsibility of the parish to maintain roads, it was not uncommon for holes big enough to swallow wagons to be present were people had been digging clay for pots and bricks and the like.

Think of what can be harvested from the roads - different coloured reflectors, steel from barriers, gantries and the like, railings, mesh, ladders...

[Highlander]

(18 December 2013, 22:04)BDG Wrote: Before the Turnpikes were established in the UK and it was the responsibility of the parish to maintain roads, it was not uncommon for holes big enough to swallow wagons to be present were people had been digging clay for pots and bricks and the like.

Thats where the term `pot holes` comes from

[BDG]

Nice story but etymologically pot is an old middle English word for pit.

[Highlander]

(18 December 2013, 23:44)BDG Wrote: Nice story but etymologically pot is an old middle English word for pit.

Same thing really, it describes some of them nicely...

[bigpaul]

(18 December 2013, 22:04)BDG Wrote: Post SHTF, there would be very little traffic to make pot holes worse. There would be very little fuel for you to use in a vehicle. Sooner the roads break down and nature takes them back, the better. Motorways and A roads would take decades to decay, most of these are ancient routes.

I think your probably right about the motorways and main A dual carriageways but something moving on them post SHTF will be easily spotted- best to be avoided, NR said something about the military calling these "killing zones" for obvious reasons. A roads in North Devon are mainly one lane in each direction affairs-easily flooded and trees down. mother nature will very quickly take over these roads .

[Mortblanc]

Nearly 30 years post event the roads are still there and still very usable.

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/04/roa...chernobyl/

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1500 years post event the roads are still there and still usable

https://www.google.com/search?q=roman+ro...B950%3B633

[bigpaul]

it wont take long for the rural roads around here to be unusable, we have seen it for ourselves, first the ditches fill up with water, that overflows into the road, the water recedes but leaves behind mud and silt, first we get grass growing in the middle of the road then weeds followed by scrub, eventually saplings start to appear. ice and snow help to break up the surface of the roads, as water freezes the ice expands and splits the road. that's without fallen trees blocking the road and huge piles of leaves in the autumn. without anyone clearing the debris and repairing the roads the effect will be that the road becomes unnavigateable.

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quite recently 2 rural roads we use A LOT literally FELL into the river, (due to heavy rain- our normal weather around here- swelling the river) these took several months to repair, the road was CLOSED for all the time the repairs took and vehicles had to take a long detour, as I type another road is out of service for exactly the same reason, post SHTF with no one to repair them these (now) 3 roads would be totally impassable and unusable.

[BDG]

(19 December 2013, 17:58)Mortblanc Wrote: Nearly 30 years post event the roads are still there and still very usable.

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/04/roa...chernobyl/

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1500 years post event the roads are still there and still usable

https://www.google.com/search?q=roman+ro...B950%3B633

The road in Chernobyl is maintained - it is the main route in used by scientists, work crews etcetera. The Roman road has been uncovered - it would have previously been covered with soil and growth as BP said.

If you check out pictures of Pripyat amusement park without snow (the big wheel in the picture) you will see trees growing through tarmac, the tarmac breaking up and nature taking it all back.

[bigpaul]

the first things to grow will be dandelion and burdock, they'll grow through tarmac and concrete.

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Buddleia will grow anywhere and through anything!