(PUBLISHED DAILY.) WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8. 1893 THE REGULATION OP TRAFFIC ON ROADS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XX, Issue 2347, 8 February 1893, Page 2

(PUBLISHED DAILY.) WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8. 1893 THE REGULATION OP TRAFFIC ON ROADS.

This question will come up again at the County Council meeting, and it is perhaps as well that the public should know what is proposed. It is one of those matters to which there are not only two, but many Bides. The ratepayers generally have a very distinct interest in seeing that the roads are not U6ed in such a manner as to be unduly or unnecessarily out up by carelessness or a lack of prevision on the part of individuals. On the other hand, carriers and carters complain of interference ; and again, farmers who use the roads but occasionally are restive under regulations intended rcainly to apply to the former class. The Council has already deait with the f uestion by a set of by-laws regulating the width of tires and loads to be carried on them, and, so far as the gravelled roads are concerned, the by-laws are understood to work fairly well ; at anyrate there are few complaints of the roads being unduly cut up, and there has been no harrying done. We do not ac the moment remember any instance of a prosecution. But ihe regulations already made do not appear to cover the case of bush roads which in late autumn and winter months are terribly out k up and made almost impassable. The^ cause of this is, we believe, the carting w of firewood. A number of bullocks are put on and the drays are piled up with huge loads, and in a very short time, especially as soon as the weather breaks, the roads are cut up into such a condition that ordinary settlers' traffio is put a stop to. The Coudcil desires to prevent this, aod it is proposed' to specially limit the loads to be carried on ungravelled roads during a cer- '■ tain period of the year. The motion of the Chairman of the County is- that during the wet months of the yea^^e weights shall not exceed \ a ton for iwo- wheeled vehicles, and 15cwt. for four-wheelec vehicles; A committee representative of three ridings — Waimate, Hawera, and Mokoia — has had the matter under consideration, and will probably report in favor of the proposal, and suggest that the limitations should be imposed from Ist May to Ist September in each year. If there is agy objection to these proposals objectors should make themselves heard at the committee meeting on Friday. We have, no doubt, the Council will be ready fa> pay attention to any representation. While on this subject we may mention that in Victoria there is considerable agitation going on to get legislation on the matter. There appears to be no enactment in Victoria as there is here enabling local bodies to deal with the question; and an article in the Australasian refers incidentally to the bush road question. The writer says : — " Nearly four years ago I paid a visit to Mr. K. Anderson, of Baragunda. near Cape Schanok |a district very similar to tbis country in respect; of being made up partly of open and partly of bush land] , and here, to my surprise, I found that • ,every vehicle used in farm work had abroad tires. Mr. Anderson bad been •induced to use them some time before, and he was so much impressed with their excellence that he did away with all the narrow tires on his- waggons, bullockdrays, and horse carts. He told me that for Dush tracks the broad tires were far '>

better than the narrow ores. He waJs able to eead a large waggon with 'broad tires into the forest and bring out a load of timber in winter, when no one with a a waggon having the ordinary tires wonld attempt it. The broad tires were, he said, as easy of draught on good roads, and they never cut up either a bush or a macadamised road. The horses seemed to do tbeir work quite as well on firm roads, while on soft roads there was no donbt as to the immense superiority of the broad tires. At first he had a difficulty with the felloes, but this was overcome by bolting two ordinary felloes together. This plan Mr. Anderson thought was quite as good as having solid felloes. The width of lire for waggons was 6in.. and for horse-carts sin. The carts were made light in the body, with etrong axles." \