HASBOROUGH ROAD.

Bruce Herald, Volume LI, Issue 67, 30 August 1915, Page 4

HASBOROUGH ROAD.

AND MOTOR TRAFFIC. TURNED DOWN BY RATEPAYERS. A meeting convened by Mr D. Boyd, member for Matau riding in Bruce County Council, was held in the Athenaeum Hall, Stirling, on Tuesday afternoon to allow ratepayers of Bruce county to voice their opinions on the question as to whether Hasborough and Riverbank roads from Balclutha to Stirling should be opened to motor traffic or not. The story of this matter is that periodically Balclutha and neighbouring motorists organise an agitatjon to induce the controlling bodies of the roads to remove the motor prohibition; some farmers who have occasion to use the road duly get alarmed; the Balclutha Borough Council regularly gives its consent, and in the past Bruce County Council just as regularly refused consent, and so, as half a road is no better than no rc/ad at all, the motorists on each occasion quietly subdued and resolved to try, try again. On the last try they armed themselves with a £SO offer for fencing. Local bodies are composed of mortals and prone to human nature's weakness; it comes just as hard on the members as it does on anybody else to decline a present of £SO. They sidled away from the bait, and caution prevailing, passed it carefully over to the ratepayers to be accepted or spurned. The farmers spurned it, and so the motorists are left once mdre to climb the high road and tax their patience, cars and vocabulary. The meeting was attended by about 25 Bruce county ratepayers. Mr J. Clark, chairman of the Bruce County Council, presided. He called on Councillor D. Boyd to speak. Councillor I). Boyd said that while his own opinion was that the motorists should be allowed to travel on the Riverbank and Hasborough roads, he recognised it as his duty to abide by the opinion of his ratepayers, as this question was a matter which vitally concerned them. Consequently lie had moved, and it was agreed by the council, that the decision should rest with the ratepayers, and he had the meeting convened. He moved: "That this meeting of Bruce county ratepayers are of opinion that it would be i,n the best interests of the travelling public to have the Stirling to Balclutha riverbank road opened to motor traffic, provided that a fence sufficiently secure to guard against accidents be erected upon the river side of the road." Nobody seconded this.

Mr T. Parker considered the motion was a bit previous. To accommodate the 'present traffic the road would need to be improved a good deal, and a tremendous lot of 'work would require to be done before the road would ever be made safe for motor traffic. Before the road was opened for motors it should be widened and the ditch filled in, and this work would fall on the county council. He asked: Where was the money to come from to do that? He had no sympathy with the motorists in their agitation to get the riverbank road opened, but he would like to see them get a good road up the hill. Mr J. Wilkins said that with one exception the ratepayers 'of the county in North Balclutha thought that the motor prohibition should remain in force. It was a good idea to hold this meeting and give the ratepayers an opportunity to say what should be done, and that would take all the responsibility off the council. Mr P. Haggart said that before anything could be done with regard to opening the road for motorists the local bodies concerned would have to see that the road was safe and wide enough for traffic. Mr -fas. Bell also spoke against the opening of the road, and said that it would not be fair for the council to tax the ratepayers for widening the road for the convenience of a few motorists. Mr P. Haggart moved: "That this meeting of ratepayers is of opinion that the Stirling to Balclutha riverbank road should remain closed to motor traffic." —Seconded by Mr Parker. Mr Bovd explained that he moved his motion because it would be the means of opening up discussion, and, in the event of it being carried, the matter would not have gone from the meeting without there being a proper understandj ing that the road should be made sufficiently safe before the prohibition was removed. The day would come when the demand to open the road must be acceded to. A farmer: There won't be any horses left to frighten then. Mr Parker: Has the council evef thought of widening the road? The Chairman: The council has no money for the work at the present time. I don't think we have been offered enough money from the motorists to justify us in contemplating that expenditure. Discussion followed oh the narrow state of the road. Mr P. Farquhar said that once the road was made sufficiently wide and fenced lie did not think the ratepayers would object to motor traffic, being allowed on it, but it would not do togrant the request with the road remaining in its present state. The day was not far distant when the road would be used by motors. Mr Bell said that there were some motor-ear drivers who ignored the bylaw now and motored on the road whenever they liked. The Chairman said that this was going to be stopped with a firm hand. Some prosecutions would follow soon. The motion was then put and carried by 21 to two.