Smart Implementation of Highly Variable Path Hights

So many people want half dirt slabs for smooth pathways and various building applications. Sure those slabs could be implemented and that would be all well and good. However, I feel like there is a better and more versatile way to give people smooth dirt pathways and gradual inclines without needing to make any new tools, crafting recipes, or blocks.

This idea is an expansion on the already present mechanic of grass pathways made by a shovel. I suggest that dirt block paths act like snow in reverse. The dirt block would be made up of eight layers of thickness. Every time you right click with a shovel to make a path like we currently do, a layer is removed. The dirt would break if you removed all eight layers and would act the same way as if you mined it. If you were to mine the dirt block normally when several layers are removed it would also be broken normally.

No new textures or items would need to be created, and any paths created this way would be a lot smoother than even half slabs could manage. For those who want smoothness with more than just snow this would be a good option for builders and possibly even as an aesthetic block in naturally generated villages.