Historical Studies (Chinese Edition)

No.3, 2017

 

The Parish, the Turnpike Trust and the Reform of British Road Administration in the Sixteenth to Nineteenth Centuries

(Abstract)

 

Shen Qi

 

Starting from the 16th century, the parish was the base-level organization of English road administration. In the 17th century, the flourishing of the commodity economy and the specialization of road transport led to a transportation quandary. In the latter half of the 17th century, parliamentary legislation tried to strengthen the parish system, but was unable to resolve its problems due to through-road externalities and funding bottlenecks. From the end of the 17th century, parliament authorized another road management body, the turnpike trust. These resolved the former system’s contradiction between road users and those responsible for road upkeep, achieving effective road maintenance and supervision premised on freedom of passage and public ownership. The turnpike trust also expanded channels for funding road maintenance and helped achieve a balance of interests, providing an effective means of maintaining, constructing and improving heavily used roads. Road governance under parliamentary supervision was an important part of local governance during this period.