MAIN SOUTH ROAD

Gisborne Times, Volume LVIII, Issue 9670, 17 April 1923, Page 6

MAIN SOUTH ROAD

PROGRESS WORK.

Considering the exceptionally bad weather which prevailed at Idle beginning of the present summer, it is gratifying to note that such a large portion of the work required to give Gisborne an all the year round road connection with Wairoa and Napier lias been completed. Although frequently interrupted by rain and hindered by ether vexacious delays, the formation and metalling of the road over the Wharerata and Tarewa hills has been steadily pursued by the Public Works Department and the Cook County Council whenever conditions permitted, until now, the gap in the metalling which remained at the beginning of tho season is already half closed. The District Engineer (Mr. C. E. Armstrong) has just returned from an inspection of this road in common with other portions of his southern district, and informed a Times reporter yesterday that of the 12 miles or so which required re-formation and metalling when the PAV.D. undertook its present operations, a total of six miles had been completed, including 1 those portions which had been done by the Cook County Council. It was not expected that a great deal more could be done in the way of metalling until next season, and it would not be until well into next summer that the work would be finally completed, and a metalled road opened right through. In the meantime, work is being actively continued an the hill as long as the weather permits, and arrangements have been made for the supply of an additional 1500yds of metal, which the lorries will distribute. The metalling, for the present season, will he confined to the ICopua end', and none of the lorries will he transferred to the Tarewa end until after the winter. A considerable number of men will he employed throughout the winter in formation work in connection with deviations to be made in the existing road. An almost immediate start is to he made with, what is known as Tietjen’s deviation, which will take some time to complete, hut which will effect a very great improvement in this portion of the road.