Road Builder
In 1765 Parliament passed an act authorising the creation of turnpike trusts to build new toll funded roads in the Knaresborough area. There were few people around with road-building experience and John seized the opportunity, building on his practical experience as a carrier.
He won a contract to build a three-mile (5 km) section between Minskip and Ferrensby of a new road from Harrogate to Boroughbridge. He explored this section of countryside alone and worked out the most practical route.
Metcalf went on to build roads throughout Lancashire, Derbyshire, Cheshire and Yorkshire, including roads between:
- Knaresborough and Wetherby
- Wakefield, Huddersfield and Saddleworth (via the Standedge pass)
- Bury and Blackburn with a branch to Accrington
- Skipton, Colne and Burnley
Metcalf believed that a good road should have good foundations, be well drained and have a smooth convex surface to allow rainwater to drain quickly into ditches at the side of the road. He understood the importance of good drainage, knowing it was rain that caused most of the problems on the roads.
He worked out a way to build a road across a bog using a series of rafts made from ling (a type of heather) and furze (gorse) tied in bundles as foundations. This established his reputation as a road builder since other engineers had believed it could not be done.
He acquired an unequalled mastery of his trade with his own accurate method of calculating costs and materials, which he could never successfully explain to others.
Read more about this topic: John Metcalf (civil Engineer)
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