SOUTH ISLAND HIGHWAYS.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18917, 4 February 1927, Page 13

SOUTH ISLAND HIGHWAYS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE IREBS.

Sir, —I read i\ith much interna .Mi A. F. Wright's, article un South Island -Main Highways. Everyone w'\o has motored over our main roads knu»s that ho has not over-stated the position in Ihu least. In I net, the niaui.c:in wlii.-h lar-c .«liiuglo is used on roads uilli high crowns, sind ut cornel*, fan only he characterised as criiuinai, it if so conducive to serious accidents. The utilisation of South Island l.'.r.i'.cys for North Island improvements—tins is no new thing, as Canterbury peopl.: will remember that when the Central ouveriimeiit was formed, Canterbury handed over with her railways U'J.UOO.UU'i ;•• hard cash, from which tsho has recent J no benefit, but which wo believe was used largc!v to develop the North Island: under these circumstances, surelv the South Island can claim thai the wt of the loan suggested by Mr Wright bhould ho borno by both Islands, not bv the South Island only! With regard to the methods of con.struction, it has lieen staled that tarsealed roads would not stand up to the traffic which will develop, and therefore bitumen must bo used. It is interesting to note iii this connexion,, that according to the British Ministry of Transport's figures, it appears that the percentage of bitumen on the Lon-don-Edinburgh, I.ondo:i-Carl isle-Glas-gow, and London-Portsmouth roads was onlv fivo (o) per cent., the remainder beiii" chiefly tarred macadam. Of eourso roads, especially shingle roads, which aro only sprayed with tar or other sealing coat, will not stand up to continuous heavy traffic, but roads properly constructed with tarred .macadam arc standing up satisfactorily in England to traffic: heavier than will be experienced in New Zealand for many long ycarx. It may bo mentioned that during the last year about f10.000.000 gallons of tar were used in "Great Britain for road purposes. Of course, tar, like any other binding material, to bo a success must be properly prepared, and in the past, little else but raw tar lias been available. To-day. however, flicro are several distillation plants in the country that can turn out tar made to any desired specification to suit various purposes and kinds of stone or other aggre-ato used; so that provided proper mollinrls of construction are used, there is un reason why roads of tarred macadam should not lw constructed in New Zealand, equal to any existing in the Old Country— Yours £'*•., FRANCIS W. J. HELTON. Chrisli'hiirch, February Urd.