Overview
- The study, published in Scientific Data, increases earlier estimates by about 100,000 kilometers across an area of roughly 4 million square kilometers.
- The map distinguishes main viae publicae at about one third of the total network and secondary roads at about two thirds, with main routes around 100,000 kilometers.
- Researchers synthesized historical and archaeological records with aerial and satellite imagery, adjusted routes to real terrain, and digitized them in a geospatial system.
- Most segments carry significant uncertainty, with about 90% imprecisely located, around 7% inferred, and roughly 3% highly certain, and empire-wide chronology remains unresolved.
- The interactive map and open dataset are available online for use in archaeology, studies of trade and disease transmission, and comparisons with modern transport corridors.