OHINEMURI COUNTY

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 47, Issue 2669, 13 September 1937, Page 5

OHINEMURI COUNTY

REPORT BY ENGINEER THE WHANGAMATA ROAD RECONDITIONING AT ROTOKOHU The report of the Ohinemuri County Council’s engineer, Mi’ L. E. Shaw, to the council on Thursday stated that both lengths of-the Hikutaia-Nether-ton ferry and Hubbard’s roads were in need of surfacing, and metal for this purpose was being obtained from the Thames road quarry, where the crushing plant will be installed next Monday. Other roads in this area requiring attention would be done at the same time.

Under the Government’s full time subsidy scheme the reconditioning of the Rotokohu road had proceeded fairly satisfactorily, but owing to wet weather, and the necessity of using the men to quarry stone for the job, the work had not progressed as fast

as was expected, and although conditions had been very wet, a big improvement had been made by considerably deepening the drains on either side. . Authority had been received from the Railway Department to install a culvert under the Waihi line, and this would be the means of overcoming the present wet conditions.

The repairs to flood damage on Woodlands road was proceeding, and .the filling in of the two main washouts was nearly completed, and these would be metalled as soon as the banks had consolidated. During the time the men had been on the flood damage repairs the crushing plant had not been working and the opportunity had been taken to overhaul the plant which was now in good working order. Further repairs, had been made to the Waitawheta road. At Mangaiti the Top road, Pevreals road, and Station road had received attention, and all were in very fair order. The Waihi-Whangamata road from Bjerring’s to the boundary is cutting up very much, particularly the length from the Waiherekeke to the boundary; this section being for the most part flat required attention to watertables and culverts. Also a good deal of metal was required to put it in reasonable running order. Traffic on this road was increasing every day, and to do this maintenance with the pre- ’ sent organisation was an impossibility, owing to the distance from headquarters and the lack of suitable material for surfacting. On the length mentioned there were only two ratepayers, : the land for the most part being native and forestry reserves.

The eradication of ragwort had continued and-very good progress was being made by the gang at several proing made by the gand. Several properties, mostly Crown and native, had been treated, and at the end of August 23 tons of mixture had been used on approximately 750 acres. The dams and reservoirs of the Karangahake and Waikino water supplies had been cleared. All plant with the exception of several of the older trucks was working satisfactorily.