"For all their sophistication, Roman roads are responsible for the narrowness of our train seats today. The first Victorian trains were built to the same wist as horse-drawn wagons; they, in turn, were designed to fit the ruts left in the roads by Roman chariots. The standard British railway gauge - 4 feet 8.5 inches - mirrors the specification for a Roman war chariot: that width, the Romans thought, accommodated a large horse's bottom, while also allowing for a little wriggle room on either side. As our own bottoms have grown bigger, those seats have grown more uncomfortable".
How England Made the English by Harry Mount
Publisher: Penguin Books, 2013
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