ROAD CONDITIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 4, 6 January 1937, Page 8

ROAD CONDITIONS.

BETTER SURFACES. IMPROVEMENT IN NORTH. MAIH HIGHWAYS PASSABLE. The fine weather in Auckland this morning is a reflection of the reports regarding road conditions received by the Automobile Association (Auckland) from all districts in Xortli Auckland. Rain cased off yesterday afternoon and. although there were a few scattered showers overnight, further improvement to road surfaces was noticcable this morning. The association has recommended a large number of touring parties not to postpone their tours to the Xortli. The position at Waima, between Rawene and Kaikohe, is still a little indefinite, as the temporary ford was washed out and the state of the stream at present does not permit further work being carricd out. Most of the roads are free of flood water and it is expected that by to-morrow morning traffic will resume its normal running, even in the outlying districts. The Bay of Plenty is still recovering from the storm, and reports received by the association this morning indicated that the rain had stopped and the storm had abated. Blockages occurred on both sides of Opotiki, but these are expected to be # cleared this afternoon. Such routes as the Cape Runaway (East Coast scenic route), Taugarakau (Jorge roads, and those to Waikaremoana and through the Urewera country are not in suitable condition, and motorists are advised to defer travelling by those routes until improvements are effected. Generally speaking, all the main arterial highways i&esent no difficulties for drivers. The ordinary metal surfaces of many highways, however, suffered severely (luring the w.et period and this, combined with the extremely heavy traffic experienced over the holidays. has resulted in deep i>otholes developing. Graders were at work today on the Rotorua and other roads that carry heavy traffic. Representations were made last evening by the association to Mr. F. S. Dyson, district engineer to the Public Works Department, who stated that every endeavour was being made to restore the surfaces as quickly as possible. In some cases the quarries or sources of metal supplies were submerged under water and this fact and the bad weather had rendered the task of reconditioning the roads much more difficult. -