COUNCIL PLANS FOR STREET IMPROVEMENT

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28372, 3 September 1957, Page 7

COUNCIL PLANS FOR STREET IMPROVEMENT

In anticipation of finance being available for the City Council’s street improvements loan, every endeavour was being made to proceed with the work as quickly as possible, the works committee reported to the council last evening.

No trouble was anticipated in finding labour to build up the gangs at present engaged on footpath work, the committee said. There was a length of footways where concrete kerbs had been in existence for some time, and footpath formation could be commenced in those streets almost immediately. In many cases footpath construction .would be carried out ahead of sewer construction, but in areas where sewerage work was imminent, such as north New Brighton, it would be advisable to await completion and consolidation of the . trenches. The Local Authorities’ Loans Board had appiftffrg’d less than half of the proposed loan, and a list of priorities for footpath work was being prepared. In preparing it, the committee took into consideration the density of housing, the time houses had been built, high volumes of pedestrian traffic through schools, halls, and parks, the amount and

speed of vehicular traffic—on arterial roads even with few houses footways were more necessary than on small residential cul-de-sacs—and the economy of completing the work in definite areas at one time. “It will be realised that to the individual home builder the path in front of his own property is the most desirable, but very often residents in the most deserving streets are less vocal,’’ the committee said. Tenders were accepted by the council for construction of concrete kerbing and channels in Shortland street and Lenton street; Hoon Hay road; Marshland road; and Downing street.