VERY SATISFACTORY

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 94, 22 April 1931, Page 11

VERY SATISFACTORY

WOftK OF HIGHWAYS BOARD

PROGRAMME COMPLETED

Considerable satisfaction on. the completion of the board's programme and the manner in which the members had worked in together was expressed by tho-Mayor (Mr. G. A. Troup)_at the last meeting of the present City and Suburban Highways Board to-day. , The whole of the board's paving sehcDie had been completed,. said Mr. Troup, with the exception of the small section at Tawa Flat. Since 1937, -when the board first took office, ten arid a half miles of1 new construction lifid been laid down in various districts, and in addition it had been decided to •widen the Hutt road between Thorndon and Ngahauranga, as well as construct Seavicw road in concrete. One aspect of the work which must bo particularly pleasing to the board was that the whole of the work had been carried out under the estimated cost, so that when.the work was completed the board had not had to meet payments for extras. That was most satisfactory. In the maintenance -estimates provision had been made for unforeseen circumstances, such as slips. That was also a wise move, and tho maintenance had reached the estimated amount, although there were one or two little matters that they were now inquiring into.

"Now that we have got so far,'* said Mr. Troup, "I think that the Main Highways Board could extend our field of operations to Paekakariki on tho Manawatii side. We have got as far as Upper Hutt on the, other side,, and I do not think it would, be -wise to go .any further from there, but I think the highways Board could, relieve, themselves of some responsibility. It is.all to tho good for local bodies to make 'themselves responsible for urban roads adjacent to the main centres." Mr. Troup thanked the members for the assistance they had given him in his worlc as chairman, and said that the -work -was: perhaps not so easy as . ordinary local body work, for the - reason that the members, of the board represented different interests which sometimes came into conflict. Members at times had had differences of- opinion and had expressed themselves strongly, as they had a right to do, but even out of chaos at times, he might say, they had generally found a way of solution and accomplished good,' work. It would be necessary in the years to come to consider whether they should hot come closer-and closer to-r gcthor, for he was sure somo time in ;tho future they would all bo' together under the one; body. "

"I Mr. J. M'Kerizio paid a tribute to the Mayor; as chairman, saying that they could not have got anyone better than Mr. Troup. He had given a very gratifying statement of the position,and it was most creditable to the board as a whole. '

Other members spoke in -a similar strain; and votes of thanks wore passed to the Mayor and also to the retiring members of the board.