Westeros Public Works Department

[GallowsKnight]

Westeros is too darn big. It's miraculous how long it has been kept together.

Now if you gave me one region, maybe.

But there's a lot of non-physical things that need to change. Improved taxation, standing armies, giving political power to lords and wealthy merchants in exchange for stability and cash.

[thecryptile]

In addition to canals, schools, bridges, dragon-proof castles and health inspections to shut down inadvertent cannibalism, Westeros needs a highway patrol. Maybe the NW could do it, keep it from just being another private army- one thing they've got enough of in the 7K.

[Riptide]

Dig a canal between the Blue Fork and Ironman`s Bay. Giving them access to the lucrative trade of the Narrow Sea would go a long way toward placating the Ironborn and making the "Old Way" less attractive. Seal meat, animal pelts from the North, mammoth ivory from the Frozen Shore; all of these things would fetch a handsome price in the Free Cities. The Tullies would likely object to Ironborn longships plying their rivers, but they could likely be placated with a cut of the trade tariffs.

IMO, the best place for a canal is from the Green Fork to Seaguard. The Green Fork is very wide, nesersery for a navigable river, and a canal here (or from the Blue Fork) has many advantages over a Fever River one. It is further south so the journey from Lannisport to Gulltown or Kingslanding would be shorter, and the distance from the river to the sea is also much shorter.

I don't get the idea of building a bridge at Lord Harroway's Town; isn't the Ruby Ford just next to it where the Kingsroad crosses the Trident?

[BreastplateWithNipples]

If I was king I'd have the public works department sponsor major urban renewal campaigns in the capital cities of the seven kingdoms. Encourage the lords to move into the cities, and have their castles torn down. For the sake of political unity.

ONE REALM! ONE KING! ONE FÜHRER!

;)

Well actually the biggest thing you could probably do for long-term development would be to build better grain storages for winter. The long winters are what's holding back the development of the North and other regions by killing such a huge part of the population. Better granaries (and better management!) would help a great deal. People could also be put to work during the winter, for example producing textiles, if there was food available for them.

[Manderlay]

If I was king, build roads the way Romans did, much better than the kingsroad and similar to the Valayrian roads in Essos, I would have all the lords of the seven kingdoms major or minor, landed knights etc. sign a document that makes Inns neutral ground and safe for everyone, I would build Inns at strategic points on all the roads for travellers, especially in isolated places like North and crackclaw point etc. The Inns would be a scantuary where the lords would not have authority to give orders except the king and his council. Holdfasts at Strategic locations, well actually right next to the Inns that patrol the kingsroad and make sure no travellers are harmed. encourage progress, try to bridge the distance between people of noble birth and common folk, make sure criminals are executed or jailed according to their crimes but not sent to the wall, would make sure that the NW was a honourable calling for everyone in the south as well not just the North and few houses. Remove the taint from the bastards by seeking the help of the faith, would make certain laws that if a cruel man or mad man or a tyrant ever came into power may it be king or lordship, that person be removed with the help of the council.

[Fire Eater]

IMO, the best place for a canal is from the Green Fork to Seaguard. The Green Fork is very wide, nesersery for a navigable river, and a canal here (or from the Blue Fork) has many advantages over a Fever River one. It is further south so the journey from Lannisport to Gulltown or Kingslanding would be shorter, and the distance from the river to the sea is also much shorter.

I don't get the idea of building a bridge at Lord Harroway's Town; isn't the Ruby Ford just next to it where the Kingsroad crosses the Trident?

The Green Fork isn't large enough for large seagoing vessels like cogs.

ETA: edited for accuracy

[Runaway Penguin]

1. Communications

Roads: Start with the Kingsroad and other major arteries, make them paved.

Build more stone bridges. While I do not knw how wide Trident is downstream, if it can be forded it can have a bridge as well.

Improve major ports. Promote naval technology development - namely sailships.

2. Governement

Support creation of cities - preferably Crown cities.

Claim dibs especially on overlooked but important chokepoints - build towns with forts on both ends of the Neck; Have them garrisoned with troops answering to both Lord Paramount of the area and troops answering to the Crown. Crown names commander of the garrison (non-hereditary). Same for other important spots.

Take more care in the status of Crown domains (like the Gift - what one King giveth, the other can take away/govern; clearly the Crown and Watch should have vested interest in Gift being inhabited). Move on the Watch to reform to turn into a more capable and more attractive force - say force, where there are other options than lifetime. Many a lord or knight would not hesitate to send 2nd or even 1st son to the Wall for 5 years - given he gets proper military training there. Same for tradesmen etc. If even most rapists take knife rather than Wall, something is deeply wrong.

All in all, start building more stable structure of Crown and its offices.

3. Education

Establish schools in major cities and towns. If maesters and Faith want to cooperate, it would be a good employment for novices / failed novices (but not failed too much) etc. if they won't, well, there are still people who can read, write, count and teach this. Austria-Hungary gave teaching quite often to military veterans who could read and write.

4. Communication

Establish optical telegraph lines, at least the most important ones (King's Landing - Harrenhall - Riverrun - Casterly Rock; King's Landing - Storm's End, King's Landing - Highgarden - Oldtown). Yes, yes, there are ravens, but they are pretty fiddly and not that reliable. And slower than optical telegraph ;)

[jarl the climber]

Helping the smallfolk improve their crop yeilds would be the best place to start. So teaching them better methods, irrigating feilds, building levies to prevent flooding, etc. would be a good start. Then you must improve the local road system so the farmers can get their surplus to market easier. Improving the inland water system is a key since water transport is so much more efficent than land transport with the technology they have. Encourage new industries with the aid of the crown, like glass production, would be a good idea.

[TheFlayedMan]

Imagine the good Robert could have done in those 37 years. Boy, he really was an awful king.

[Riptide]

The Green Fork isn't wide enough for large seagoing vessels like cogs.

What makes you say that?

The Neck has a shorter distance.

What? Not according to the map at http://gameofthrones.net/images/Westeros_Maps/map_of_westeros.jpg.

[Runaway Penguin]

When making canals, you don't need them for seagoing vessels, indeed it would be a waste. We are not talking Panama here. You need them wide and deep enough for canal/river boats. So you don't need to care about which river is accessible (and how far) for seagoing vessels.

But it all boils down to transport infrastructure - the better it is, the more long-range trade goes on (and stimulates short-range).

Oh, given climate, very important thing would be a set of granaries. Crown ones for regions whose lords won't want to invest in ones (makes basis for sneaky dismantling of feudalism and rise of enlightened absolutism ;))

[juanml82]

4. Communication

Establish optical telegraph lines, at least the most important ones (King's Landing - Harrenhall - Riverrun - Casterly Rock; King's Landing - Storm's End, King's Landing - Highgarden - Oldtown). Yes, yes, there are ravens, but they are pretty fiddly and not that reliable. And slower than optical telegraph ;)

I hadn't heard of that. It's quite interestig. The issue is that Westeros is too big. It can work between more densely populated regions: The Riverlands, the Westerlands, part of the Reach, the Wall if they get most castles manned. But I don't see it working in the North, Dorne or the Vale (ravens are probably better for the Vale's geography).

And it might also diminish the maesters influence, as you don't need a maester to operate them.

[Godsbraid]

Given the climate, begin an industrialization process in the northern parts of the North. Produce wool and wool-products by introducing machines like “Spinning Jenny” that can be driven by water turbines (like a mill). Build /expand harbors on the eastern coast, and trade with the South and the Free Cities in order to get enough food. In order to make it work, the North will need more sheep to make wool (and in winter it will be more sheep to eat). Find something that can be produced during winter, so the trade with food-supplies doesn’t stop.

Also improve roads.

Divide the big lordships into smaller pieces, so each lord own small bits of land here and there. It will make it harder for them to start wars if the potential soldiers/resources of each lord are spread over large areas.

Make a law that states the kings’ (or queens’) responsibilities (including severe consequences if he/she does not follow it). :whip:

Open schools for the common people. As Queen I will order the septons and the maesters to act as teachers until others have been found/educated. :read:

[The Dornish Direwolf]

Dig a canal between the Blue Fork and Ironman`s Bay. Giving them access to the lucrative trade of the Narrow Sea would go a long way toward placating the Ironborn and making the "Old Way" less attractive. Seal meat, animal pelts from the North, mammoth ivory from the Frozen Shore; all of these things would fetch a handsome price in the Free Cities. The Tullies would likely object to Ironborn longships plying their rivers, but they could likely be placated with a cut of the trade tariffs.

Also, a complex system of canals/qanats in Dorne, fed by the Greenblood. This could make Dorne an important agricultural center, since, unlike the Reach, it could continue to be productive during even the harshest winter. And when the price of grain soars during winter, the Martels can rake in approximately ALL of the money.

We do not sow.

[Pod The Impaler]

Claim dibs especially on overlooked but important chokepoints - build towns with forts on both ends of the Neck; Have them garrisoned with troops answering to both Lord Paramount of the area and troops answering to the Crown. Crown names commander of the garrison (non-hereditary).

So, then The Twins as a crown asset - strategic chokepoint and money-maker ?

[Castellan]

I don't see Westeros as that big.

Modern transport and communications give us an unreal expectation of how close different parts of a country can expect to be.

[KOM]

- Demolish Harrenhall, ...

- Give a grid plan to KL and a functional sewage system.

- Build some "Mini-Citadels" in White Harbor, Gulltown, Lannisport and KL.

this.

Esp 'functional sewage system.' Sources of healthy drinking water and waste disposal would likely be a huge plus for disease control and public health in big cities. And aqueducts to bring in fresh water from mountain glaciers to cities?

And then water-powered textile mills and grain mills.... (ok, nm).

Also, someone else mentioned western seaport for the north. That seems useful, esp if the Greyjoys can stop their reaving.

[Fire Eater]

When making canals, you don't need them for seagoing vessels, indeed it would be a waste. We are not talking Panama here. You need them wide and deep enough for canal/river boats. So you don't need to care about which river is accessible (and how far) for seagoing vessels.

But the canal is too connect two seas not two rivers. There's little sense to having a canal that connects both the Narrow and Sunset Seas when it can't accommodate seagoing vessels.

[juanml82]

But the canal is too connect two seas not two rivers. There's little sense to having a canal that connects both the Narrow and Sunset Seas when it can't accommodate seagoing vessels.

I guess it would require to unload a seagoing vessel at one end, carry on in swallow boats until reaching the other end, unload again and load everything back in another, seagoing this time, vessel

[EnergeticCrab]

Obviously, I'd take up Jalabhar Xho's plea and conquer to the Summer Islands.

I feel for this guy so hard and I think it will happen because it has been consistently mentioned.

But think of the trade!!!

For me, I think my top choices would be:

- A second major bridge over the Trident, if posible, near Lord Harroway's Town.

- A sea port on the Sunset Sea for the North, on the Salt Spear / south of Barrowton.

- Fortify the town of Stoney Sept / build a castle there

Secondary choices:

- Put some sort of naval presence in Dorne, because their not being a naval power makes little sense.

- Restore Harrenhal and find a way to man it

- Establish a colony / trading post of sorts on the Sea of Myrth

- Try to do more to rebuild the Night's Watch fortresses

- Settle the gift with those wildlings willing to keep the peace (as Jon Snow or Stannis attempts)

Everything here!!!

Schools. And roads to get to schools.

THIS IS NEEDED. BADLY.

Build qanats in Dorne as well as reservoirs to collect what limited rainwater they get.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qanat

Hire specialists from the Free Cities to build Valyrian-style roads across the continent.

Develop aqueducts for King's Landing. Include public baths and fountains.

Take a page from Alfred the Great and the Byzantine themes in Anatolia by dotting the Riverlands with fortress-towns that are within a day's march from one another. It'll give the Riverlands defense in depth and refuges for its smallfolk when bandits and armies pillage the countryside. Meanwhile, the soldiers in each fortress-town can sally out and attack isolated groups to wreck communications, logistics, etc.

Build a port/naval base at the mouth of the Fever River.

All great practical ideas.

This thread has made me realize how batshit terrible Westeros is. So weird to think of a civilization with advanced siege engines and full plate armor... but without basic things like roads, aqueducts, etc.

I think this everytime I re-read the series.