CITY STREETS

Dominion, Volume 18, Issue 117, 9 February 1924, Page 6

CITY STREETS

CRITICISM OF COUNCIL’S METHODS IMMEDIATE IMPROVEMENT ADVOCATED A deputation representing the Civic League waited on the -Mayor yesterday morning to urge upon him the ’’e® oB " sity of doing something to improve the condition ol the cty streets. The president (Air. D. J. McGowan) said that the league was •.isturbed to learn that tlie council did not intend to do anything immediately to .mprove the streets. He urged that the .council should push on with the tarring and sanding of the wood-blocks in tboso streets not yet treated this summer. The dust nuisance, he said, was causing heavy loss to wholesale merchants in Wakefield and Victoria Streets. If it was a question of money, he there was not a motorist in the city who would object to paying £1 or 30s. a year to have the streets unproved. Mr. lan Duncan stressed the reed of good roads, as a saving to the c ty, and entered a strong protest against the council not dealing with the loading question as it should have cone. It was difficult for ratepayers to arrive at any other conclusion than that the road control of the f'tiy Council had broken down. A direct sating might be made to the city by employing the. whole of the staff on the Hutt road, but the view was widely held gjat the neglect of the other roads in th*e’meantime would cost the. city many thousands of pounds, as the foundation of some of the roads were being destroyed. He urged the council to imprbve the streets by the application or a thin motor-resisting surface and so avoid the wastage of tho money already expended. Mr. P. Barcham spoke of the dust nuisance in some of the main t .oroughfares, which ho said was responsible for merchants having to write down their stocks by 20 per cent. Mr AV S Wilson, on behalf of the Motor Trade Association, endorsed Mr. Duncan’s remarks, but advised that before a thin surface was laid, as he had suggested, a report should be obtained from some competent expert He thought that tho Mayor should call a meeting of citizens to discuss the financial aspect. .. , The Mayor, in his reply, said lie would look into the matter of tarring and sanding the wood-blocks It was unfortunate that no sooner did the Council embark on some enterprise than it was stampeded by another section of ratepayers in another direction. That had been the case with the Hutt Road, and now the Council had decided to improve Thoindon Quay an agitation was being, raised lor the straightening of that thoroughfare. Such a scheme would be a heavy undertaking, and would take years to give effect to because of the necessity of. securing private property. J.aranaki Street would bo dealt with as soon as the plant was available after the completion of the Hutt Road. He approved of Mr. McGowan’s suggestion that motor-car owners, who derived the greatest benefit out of the roads, should pay more for their maintenance The whdle question was whether'the people who wanted a certain kind of street provided should not pay f°Mr! Wilson stated that the whole community would benefit by better Io The Mayor said that already this year the Council i.ad spent more than the average. amount on roads. in 1919- £50,549 was ■’’Pont; _’ n 1920- £61,255; m__ 1921-22, £83,680; in 1922-23, £00,»C9; and at January 31 this .year (with two months to go) the total was £68,298. He also pointed out that last year tno Council had to raise the rates 18 per cent., and stressed the need for caution on account of iecent Idan commitments. He would, however, be pleased to discuss the league’s representations with the Council’s officers.