Nash's Archway Bridge, a little way south of the current bridge, and the new Archway Road were opened in 1813, though the road surface, being constructed of sand and gravel, proved difficult for heavy traffic. Parliamentary Commissioners took over the road, and John Benjamin Macneill, chief engineer to Thomas Telford, proposed using Roman cement and gravel, an innovative technique that was used for the first time on Archway Road, and is the basis for modern road building. The construction was financed by tolls which were abolished in 1876 – traffic increased substantially thereafter, particularly after the introduction of trams on the road.