Ernst was speaking only of a general path of development; it would certainly be adjusted later according to East Africa's circumstances. In truth, the development of the automobile industry could not avoid a new issue: road construction.
Now that automobiles had appeared, East Africa's road construction had to be put on the agenda. East Africa had built many roads in the past, especially in the east, where road density was already comparable to that of some European countries.
However, the standards of these roads were very low. There were gravel roads, dirt roads, roads paved with cinders, brick-and-stone roads, and cement roads.
More than eighty percent of East Africa's wilderness and countryside consisted of dirt roads. Some road surfaces had been compacted, villages near industrial zones had cinder roads, and there were also a small number of gravel roads.
Cities mainly had brick-and-stone roads, including flagstone roads. Industrial zones generally had cement roads, while cities with middling economic conditions also had dirt roads, especially some western cities, where infrastructure was severely lacking.
Yet the east was not necessarily much better. Although eastern road standards surpassed Europe's average, Europe's current road conditions were also too dreadful to put into words. They were all six of one and half a dozen of the other.
Now that automobiles had appeared, the world's road network would also have to change to meet the future development of the automobile industry.
In Ernst's view, the high compatibility between hardened road surfaces and rubber tires was also a major driving force behind road development. The two complemented one another and neither could be spared. If classical wooden or iron tires were pressed onto hardened roads, Ernst could not bear even imagining the noise alone.
Although hardened road surfaces were the trend of the future, Ernst was not