EGMONT COUNTY AFFAIRS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 15 August 1928, Page 12

EGMONT COUNTY AFFAIRS.

AJXVfI NiISTRIATLVB WORK

MEETING OF THE COUNCIL.

The monthly meeting of the Egrnont Couinty .Council, held .at Opuinake yesterday, was presided over by the chairman, Ctr W. O. Gireen. 'J(here were also 'present: Councillors R. O. Watson, J. 1«\ Shepherd, B. A. Cbfliins, G. Gibson, J. S, Tbsland, A, J. Lilley, J. Hickey, and J. Young. WORK FOR THE MONTH. The engineer (Air F. M. Conk il l ) reported as follows on the work of the staffs for the past month: Main Roaidis Reoonsti notion. At Pihama, 32 ehaiims Jrad 'been re-metalled and wiateiilbound. to: the end of July. The excellent weather has allowed splendid progress on this work and three-quar-ters' of a mile i» now completed. The earthwork for the Rlautim deviation is all hut completed and the Pungarehu deviation is in use. A recommendation is made tluat the question, of the proposed deviation at Oaouui river be now reopened. Bridges.—iWaitalia bridge : The south abutment is complete and the falsework for the main 'beams is being erected. Heinratna bridge: The old bridge has been removed and traffic is using the new bridge. Rant ini bridge: The footing of the north abutment, with one wing wall, has been concreted, almost up to 'water levels. _ Maintenance. —< Alain South .Road : The repairs to the . Wadauia and Waiteika stream bridges have been completed. The wiaftenbound length has been patched. A good deal of patching of fhe first bituminous work done, near Opuia, has been required where Join id •mingle was used. The edges have been banked in the Rahotai aiding and 1 2 chains of drains' have (been cleared at Puniilho. H., thorn Road: The chief work done this month has been the improvement of the sidetrack at the T'aungata:i*a Ihill, aud lit/blie- patching ot tho bitumen; 43 chains of drains vere cleared. liiara, Road lias been patched. Skeet Road: 16 chains have been remetalled and vvaterbound from the Yv aimate West County boundary not thw ards, using up all the stone, which was short in quantity delivered. U ork< iis now in hand, on the Pa.tiki Road, near the Skeet Road junction. Oeo Riding: The Gpunake-Sitratford Road has been patched and the obstruction to tihe O'nri bridge Iras been removed. One hundred .and forty-three yards were crushed and distributed for patching on the Nop era. Road ujkl brushed metal for patching has been put out on the Wati.no and Raf iki Roads. Op ua ]{liding: The Pipper and Lower Kina, Namu” and Otpna Roads have been patched, and 3.J- chains of drains cleared on the Lower Kina. Drains have been cleared on the Upper Waiteika and a new 36in. culvert Jaiid to replace an old culvert that plowed inadequate tor a local cloudburst. 'Drains on the Alatai’kaha war Road were and a. little work wins done on the Ivaweora Itoad. Rialiotu Riding: A further 24 chains of odd lengths of pit-me tailing have been dome on the Upper Kahui, making 61 chains. A mile at the low ei end was graded and rounded up, and the balance was patched. The whole of this road up to the Okalhu Road is in lair order, but .above that,it is bad. liie Ngariki Road has been graded, the • grasis ridges having been cut off. Ibis road will be rolled down shortly. lne Riabotu Road has been patched and tine T.ipoka Road graded. A further nine chains on the Lower Pariliaka Road (making 21 Chains) have been re-metal-led and rolled, using crushed metal and a mile has had the shoulders scarified and re-shaped. The Harvey Road was patched with the rolled ,ancl the Upper Parihaka has been patched. Ihe Opuraipa Xvoad luts foec>n patched aiiid rc- ■ metalling with nit metal is in prog iess. Me wall Riding :* The Mirikau Road has been trimmed up and the R.uakere Road has been patched and 12 chains oi draiins- were cleared. The Stent and Warea Roads were patched and the Pungarehu Road graded. General. —About ten chains of drains have been dug on the Hitona Road. Good progress continues to be made on the Upper Arauhata Road, and slower progress on the Ngairik'i. 1 inspected the I*ower Punibo Road with Mr Roll, but the pit proposed to be used is valueless and the proposals made by the Taranaki County Council for the work seem to me to be hard to improve upon. A large number of lorries which are used pitimiairily by farmers to cart miilk are also being largely used to carry firewood and other freight. It .requires to be pointed out that When they cany more than two tons, including the weight of the lorry they render them(selves liaiblo tjo the motor lorry regulations iand require to take out heavy traffic licenses. , , . , It was unanimously resolved that members of the council avail themselves of out-of-pocket expenses in connection with committee meetings, as provided for by the Act. ' On the motion of Crs. Lillev arid Hickey it was resolved that the council metal the approach to the Pihama church, conditionally on had the cost being contributed. it was decided to advise Mr. J. D. I onaglen (chairman of the Pihama Cemetery hoard) that the engineer had been instructed to carry out, when convenient, necessary worn asaed ior, consisting of a culvert on the road near the cemetery gate the lull width of the road and grading the road sides near the culvert. Drivers at present, as pointed out by Mr. Conaglen. have great di.iicultv in parking and turnAn application from Air. H. V. Field, Arawhata Road, that the council should metal ICO vards of the Ngariki Road, was referred to the riding members for a report The Main Highways Board authorised payment'of subsidies for maintenance on a £3 to £2 basis as fotows: Jhaia Road (Opunake to Wireinu Road), j-141 and £189; Elthain Road (vlpunakeAwatuna). £1080; Main South Road (Runiho-t.eoj, £3460; Skeet Road (Oeo lo Pihama), £270. Cr. Collins reported that an amicable, arrangement had been arrived at between the council and the Awatuna l.niry Company in connection with the company’s entraca and exit roads and concrete slab at the Taungatara factory. The chairman (Cr. \V. C. Green, was appointed to represent the eoun.il at the quarterly meeting of the raranaki l.oeal Bodies’ Association, to he held at Kit ham on August 29. IJTUMEN TESTS BY HIGHWAYS BOARD. The secretary of the Taranaki Local Bodies' Association (Mr. W. J. Tristram) forwarded a letter from Air. T. j M. Ball, the, board’s representative on the District Highways Council, advising that Plie No. 7 District Council's proposal to lay short lengths of road with the various brands of bitumen was , considered by the Alain Highways Board, by whom a doubt was expressed that the" results attained by such an experiment would really be of material 1 benefit. It would probably be a con- ■ siderable, time before any difference between the various materials would bej. e.’imed On the other band, standard I , specifications for bituminous rnateri als l were' in use,, and any particular bitu- < men could be either adopted or reject-

ed. The Main Highways Hoard had already announced its preparedness to carry out, at any time, all standard physi.nl and chemical tests of bituminous material free of charge, and the board was at a 'loss to understand why the Taranaki .Local Bodies’ Association did not call upon the board to make these tests and lor advice before accepting a tender substantially higher than the lowest tender, more especially so when it was remembered that the board would pay tiie greater part or the purchase price of the bitumen. In this case the matter having been concluded, the board would not lodge any objection, out it must Ive distinctly understood that the board would not in any future case subsidise the higher amounts unless the bitumen had been tested and the board’s advice obtained.

In a covering letter Mr. Tristram point id out that the board’s attitude uas cli.iic-nlt to* understand in view of the I act that an acknowledgment of the association’s letter of June 26, .1923, to tiie board, was received. This letter conveyed the following resolution : “That as the standardisation of road-making materials and the guarantee of their quality and suitability for road work, particularly in the case of oitumiuous tenders, is of first importance to local authorities, and the necessary research wor.c can be best and most e onomically carried out by a single central authority, it be a recommendation that the Main Highways board undertake this work without delay and maae suen information availa el to all lo.al authorities in the Dominion.”

Tiie letter also asked that the matter be laid before the Highways Board as early as possible, and that the association be acquainted with its views thereon.

The chairman agreed that it was well to ventilate this matter, although the .ouncil was not materially concerned, not be in _r a party to the pooling system of bitumen purchase. KAHIT I ROAD. _ Councillors Tolland, Jalley, Gibson, \ Oiling and thie Chairman reported having nice to discuss the general expenditure. particularly in regard to the Raliotu riding It had been ■resolved, on the motion of (Vs. Tosland and Ltllcv. that it he a recommendation to the emmeil that the Kahui Road, from the sea. to the Wireniu Road, he declared a main road.— A motion that the recommendation that 7J miles of the Kah.ui Road he declared a. main load was countered by an amendment moved b.v Cr. Gibson that 9* unites l>? suhstituted for '7l miles, thus giving Lho Raliotu riding 3(>i miles of main highways. The amendment was defeated and the sub-commit tee’s rvecnimendation adopted.

MOTORS VERSUS HOUSES. A .suggestion to replace two horses and dravs with a motor truck lor general' work throughout the county was productive of much discussion. C"r Tcsland said that the lorry slioukli he used exclusively in the Onua. - Oeo riding, although •on the whole he preferred that the county work in that riding /should he done bv horses and drays. It was possible, ho said, to asserts the probable upkeep of bores and drays for a year but this wa.s impossible in the ease of motor lorries. The chairmen moved that a sub-com-mittee lie set up, with power to act, to go into the matter of procuring a suitable truck. Cr. Tosla.nd moved by way of amend-