The archaeology of ancient roads reveals the degree to which communication infrastructure was a primary imperial investment across cultures — from the Inca road system to the Persian Royal Road to the Roman road network, empires consistently prioritized the ability to move troops, information, and goods rapidly.

The Persian Royal Road, described by Herodotus, ran approximately 2,700 km from Susa to Sardis with royal rest stations (paradeisos) every day's ride. Royal couriers could cover the entire route in a week; ordinary travel took three months. Herodotus' famous observation — 'neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds' — was about the Persian postal system and was later adapted for the United States Postal Service's unofficial motto.

Roman roads served multiple imperial functions: military deployment (a legion could march 25 miles per day on a good road), administrative communication (the cursus publicus, the imperial post), and commercial transport. The milestones (miliaria) that marked Roman roads at every Roman mile recorded the emperor's name and the distance to the nearest major city, combining practical information with imperial presence.

The Roman road system's legacy is visible in the modern European landscape: many modern roads and highways follow Roman alignments because the Romans chose routes that were genuinely optimal. The straight-line roads of Roman Britain, visible in modern maps, follow a network that was still the primary communication spine of medieval England. The Appian Way, begun in 312 BC, has given its name to an entire class of roads (viae) and is partly still traversable on its original paving.