HIGHWAY WORKS

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 June 1943, Page 3

HIGHWAY WORKS

GREY COUNTY REVIEW Indications of the manner in which money was expended during the year ended March 31 on road and 'highway maintenance were afforded in the annual report presented to the .Grey County Council recently by the Engineer (Mr J. Higgins). A feature of the year’s operations was the shortage of labour, with a consequent restriction of works.' Greymouith-Punakaikfc.—'The total expenditure on this section on ordinary maintenance was £2,770, and on flood . damage £1,703, a total of £4,473. Of this amount £3,466 was provided by the Main Highways Board and £1,107 by the Council. Though the scarcity of casual labour the maintenance staff was employed so long on reinstatement and protection work that the ordinary maintenance had to be neglected to some extent. Considerable metalling will be required in the current year, and provision for this is made in the estimates. The Council’s contribution towards maintenance for the current year is estimated at £1,300, and towards flood damage £l5O. To tins must be added £330, being the third instalment of your subsidy towards the cost of the Barrytown deviation, or a total contribution from County funds of £1,780. Considerable protection work was done at the north abutment of the Seven Mile Creek bridge, and at the south end of Canoe Creek bridge; the former with rock from the Cobden quarry and the latter with wire cratework. A concrete sea wall was built where the highway was damaged by sea erosion near Kararoa Creek, and a halfbridge where the outside of the highway slipped into the Ten Mile Creek, this will be replaced by a concrete retaining wall later on. Ngahere- Haupiri Junction. —lhe expenditure on maintenance was £879, of which £652 was found by the Main Highways Board and £227 by the Council. The estimate for the current year calls for £4OO from the County funds and £l,OOO from the Main Highways Board. The average cost of maintenance per mile was £59.92. For the preceding year the average cost per mile was £95.27. This highway is not subject to flood damage to the same extent as others. Kumara-Mitchells.—The cost! of ordinary maintenance was £ 1,082 and flood damage £663, making a total of £1,745, of which £5BO was provided by your Council and £ 1,265 by the Main Highways Board, lor the current year the estimate for ordinary maintenance is £1,600 and flood damage £250. This calls for £545 from County funds and £1,305 from the Main Highways Board. The average maintenance cost per mile was £140.44. For the previous year the average was £148.25. Eighteen reinforced concrete pipe culverts were constructed. The reconstruction of the Three Mile Creek bridge cannot be deferred much longer. The present structure was erected m

1893. Ngahere-Blackball. —The amount payable to the Railways Department for the use of the Grey River rail- i way bridge for ordinary traffic—£l6B per annum— is now paid direct by the Main Highways Board to the Department, and the Council pays one-fourth of this amount to the Board. Hitherto the Council paid the whole sum and obtained a refund of three-fourths from the Board. General maintenance costs were £l6O, of which £5l was paid by the Council and £lO9 by the Board. The estimate for the current year is £450, of which £3OO will be obtained from the Board and £l5O from County funds. .

Subsidised Works. —The bridge over Pigeon Creek was finished during the year. The Mines Department made a grant of £250 for footpath kerbing and channelling in Blackball. The Public Works Department refused the usual subsidies for bridge works, which had to be left undone. For flood damage, subsidies at the rate of £1 for £1 were given. The total amount of subsidies received for the year was £ll5B. County Roads.—The amount provided on the estimates for ordinary maintenance was £7,906 and the actual expenditure was £7,022. The reinstatement of flood damage cost £2,285, of which £BO3 was contributed by the Public Works Department and £1,482 by the Council. Thus the cost to the Council of maintenance and flood damage was £8,504. Other subsidised works cost £467, of which £355 was received from the Government and £ll2 paid by the Council. Road maintenance proved difficult through the scarcity of casual labour, and consequent employment of maintenance staff on protection work and other flood damage. Considerable deferred metalling and cleaning of drains and other maintenance work will have to be carried out this year. The Haupiri River bridge, which was built in 1933, will have to be redecked at a cost of £3OO.