EPOCH IN ROAD MAKING.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 184, 6 August 1925, Page 3 (Supplement)

EPOCH IN ROAD MAKING.

WORK OF THE HIGHWAYS BOARD. SYSTEMATIC CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE. THE FUTURE PROGRAMME. When one considers what has already been (lone by the Main' Highways Board in the comparatively brief period since its inception and the general programme outlined (a programme necessarily controlled by the revenue which will be made available for it and also by the revenue which can be raised by the local bodies), it must be realised that New Zealand has entered into a new epoch in regard to its roads, and that there is every .promise of vast improvements in the near future. Indeed the work already done, particularly in the North Island, despite some initial setbacks, augurs well for a continued progress which will later redound to the credit of this country and convert its main highways from a reproach to something which we may be proud of. In the development of the Main Highways Board a certain mileage was selected, generally speaking, in a continuous system as the main highways system of New Zealand. The importance of a road as a main artery of traffic, or as the developmental agent, or as a feeder to railway station or port, was the main determining factor in each case. The selections were originally made by the district engineers of the Public Works Department, and later the tentative proposals were considered by all the local authorities .particularly interested. In order to improve the style of construction and maintenance of these roads it was felt that more money was necessary than had been available for local authorities up to that time, and that as this extra money was required to raise the road to the standard required by modern mechanical transport, means should be provided by owners of motor vehicles. Tyre and Motor Tax. Accordingly a tax was placed on all rubber tyres imported into the Dominion, no tyres being made in New Zealand. This tax is collected through the Customs, and is used for the payment of interest on loan moneys to be raised for the work of the main highways. The Act provides that, in the case of new construction or reconstruction, the local authority through whose district the highway

runs shall find one-half of the cost of the work and the Highways Board the other half. This provides for construction and improvement. Coming to the question of maintenance, the Act provides that one-third of the cost shall be found by the Highways Board and two-thirds by the local authorities. The Highways Board obtains its quota by means of annual license fee on motor vehicles, which varies between 10/ and £5. Provision is made in the Act where* by the Main Highways Board can make more generous provision for construction and maintenance in cases where roads pass through sparsely populated districts.

There are altogether about 6000 miles of highway, of which over 1300 miles are classed as Government roads, and have thereby been more favourably treated. In addition to the revenue from motors the Government from the Public Works Fund pays to the Highways Board annually not less than £200,000 for construction work, and from the consolidated funds (ordinary revenue) it pays £35,000 annually towards maintenance. The reason for fixing this amount was that, prior to the constitution of the Main Highways Board, the Government was paying, through the Public Works Department, on construction and maintenance on quite a considerable mileage on roads which have now been incorporated in the highways system. The expenditure for three years prior to the coming into force of the Act averaged about the sums indicated.

The Highways Board consists of two representatives of County councils, one of the automobile association, and three of the Government, one of whom must be an engineer. As it happens, two of the representatives are engineers, which should be advantageous to tho board. Several amendments to the Act have been found necessary, not in the way of policy, but to assist in the administration, and these have been brought before the Government with the idea of being passed this year.

In addition to tho tax referred to local bodies have power to tax heavy motor traffic (two tons and over), the scale ranging from £5 to £75. The «, board does not handle any of these funds, but naturally takes them into | account when considering the possibili- | ties of a district to finance its opera- | tions. The money derived from this | heavy license tax must by law be spent | on the maintenance of the roads. As | has been pointed out, the board has 6000 | miles of roads and it has already spent | £400,000. The money spent has been | largely dependent on the capacity of 1 the local bodies to finance their share of | the work. Early in the history of the | board tho local bodies found difficulty | in raising money owing to sonic vague- f ness in the Act, which was, however, | remedied by Parliament. | The future programme of the board is | also largely dependent on the money | available. The primary object is to | make a continuous line of highway and | the board is more interested at present | in length than width and condition. It | wants to put a road of some kind right | through the Dominion. One big thing | done during the year was the covering | of the gap over Mount Messenger, in | Northern Taranaki, where there was a | long stretch unmetalled. Another aim | of the board is to get through from Kai- | taia to Auckland, and this scheme is being well pushed on with. Next to that | comes the connection through the Main | Trunk. At present there is no direct road from. Auckland to Wellington | through the centre of the island owing § to the block between Ohakune and Te j Kuiti. That is a main avenue for traf- j fie which the board earnestly hopes to j get through, Wherever traffic is dense J the board will endeavour to get some- ! thing better on the road than bare | metal. It has done a considerable | amount of bitumen roading, a small j amount of concrete and a very con- ? siderable ■ amount of metalled and | gravelled roading. It can readily be ; understood from this how £400,000 has ! been spent already ; Great South Road. Members of the board expressed pleasure at the way the local bodies concerned in the improvement of the Great South Road near Auckland have come to a unanimous point of view and they do not anticipate any further hitch to the progress of this very important work. Soon they hope to see a good road policy in operation from Auckland to the Waikato County boundary. This summer the board expects to have good road connection from the Hauraki Plains on to the Grand Trunk, and it is intended to as soon as possible provide a good "all weather" road from

Opotiki to Gisborne, this work to be | completed within a year. Coming further | South most of the roads are made and | the work is more in the nature of | /a /. resurfacing. Good surfaces on roads | \ carrying heavy traffic is becoming the %*%& order of the day. I " In the South Island a good deal of the | work for some time yet will consist of replacing all the wooden bridges with | structures of more durable material. | ||p Most of the roads in the South Island | |p aro metalled already. The heaviest task § |p to do there is to restore the connection f between Marlborough and Canterbury, | ' which waa broken very badly by the | < floods of over a year ago. < Already a tremendous amount of | work has been accomplished, and the \ board claims that this must have been f of great assistance to the local bodies, f J Indeed the result is plainly apparent in 'i $ several localities. The local authorities \ % have now developed a wider outlook % % through having to work together. They 'i are beginning to realise that their job § is a national job as well as a local one, f and they are endeavouring to bring f their roads into such a state of repair |%| as to prevent any possibility of their I | neighbours being able to reproach them. | f In short there has commenced an era % 'i of healthy rivalry in good roads. f f