ROAD REPAIRS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 19889, 28 March 1930, Page 9

ROAD REPAIRS.

WARNING LAMPS STOLEN. A DANGEROUS PRACTICE. According to an official of the Public Works Department, it is no uncommon practice for people to Remove without authority lamps erected oil public highways to indicate a danger point, the people concerned for the sake of obtaining such lamps without paying not caring whether their action results in a fatal accident. Recently work has been proceeding on the road which turns off from the main road to Lake Coleridge and leads to the Bakaia Gorge bridge, part of the job consisting in restoring the ford over Camping Gully Creek, which was washed out by a flood. The ford has always given a certain amount of trouble owing to the unstable nature of the creek bed. While repairing this crossing lamps were placed on either side at night so that motorists might not plunge into the declivity and thus come to grief, but in the morning the lamps were missing.

The official referred to said that tho Department was continually being put to expense in restoring such lamps in that district, the practice showing no signs of being stoppe<J. In the case of the Camping Gnlly Creek crossing the removal of the lamps was a particularly bad offence, as if a motorist approaching the ford at night failed to notice tho washout he could quite easily smash up his car or motor-cycle and lose his life. A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ? Claims have very often been made that this, that, or the other successful road racer is surely the world's "champion." It may bo argued that the winner of the T.T. is most certainly the one properly to be credited with the title, since the T.T. is an international event —in intention if not in actual fact —and it is indubitably the most important road race in the world. In the fact that the T.T. is not as international as its full title and its status infer lies (says a writer in "The Motor Cycle") the reason why even the T.T. winner need not necessarily bo the champion, nor even tho best, road racer of the year. The T.T. is not international in aetual fact. It has never been really well supported by other countries. Italy has tried, certainly, but France, Germany, or Belgium have seldom been induced to take part. The U.S.A. has long abandoned any evidence of intention to compete, while only a few direct representatives of South Africa have appeared, and resident Canadians never.

Expense, time, and the difficulty of reaching the Isle of Man from the Continent all militate against that international support which would make the event truly one in which a world champion might bo decided. Therefore, in eold truth, the T.T. winder is not . the world's champion, because the nations' champions are never all gathered together in this one most important race. This writer suggests that the F.I.G.M. should star as fixtures for championship purposes certain of the year's most important national road races, with a scale of marks for "places." In this way international rivalry wonld be stimulated, and at the end of tho year the honour of the title of world champion in road racing would go to the man with the highest number of points.