OAKLEIGH-WAIPU ROAD

Northern Advocate, 22 February 1926, Page 2

OAKLEIGH-WAIPU ROAD

PUBLIC WORKS UNDERTAKING.

PROGRESSING SATISFACTORILY,

Work is progressing satisfactorily on the Oakleigh to Waipu road under construction by the Public Works Department. If the weather remains as at present it is probable that the metal road will be almost completed over the whole 17 miles by the time winter arrives. This is probably the biggest metalling programme undertaken in one season in New Zealand.

Questioned by. a “Northern Advocate” reporter this morning, Mr. J. McEnuis, district engineer of the department, stated that there were about a dozen lorries engaged at Waipu, where 10 or 12 chains a day were being done. The metal is obtained from Alison’s quarry and a good deal of it was crushed during the winter. It is loaded into lorries by steam shovel—one of the department’s lab-our-saving devices which loads 12 lorries in 20 minutes. Ou the Euakaka section loads were laid for eight miles and a big lot of metal was carried there. > Two miles of metalling from there on was done to join on to Allison’s quarry.

The rails have been lifted from about five miles down beyond Mata and dumps have been left at every mile. Prom these dumps the metalling is proceeding. Here again labour is saved with the use of two loaders which load the metal into drays which are-used to ensure shorter runs.

All the metal will be dumped within the next three weeks and the temporary tracks will be gradually lifted up back to Oakleigh. The metal from Oakleigh to Euakaka is being obtained from the Tauraroa quarry where the output from all crushers exceeds 12,000 yards per month.