VALUE OF GOOD ROADS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16120, 8 July 1914, Page 4

VALUE OF GOOD ROADS

PAPER 11V Aill ANSCOM.BK. Tin) following paper oil "The, Value <it Oood Hiwils," 'which -was' Written by Mr K. Auseotiifoc, was rend beloie tin- Dtayj Motor <.!ui> lust owning, ami excited ;i gr<ut; dc-al ot lnlcieut, t,.-f\iii)r, it.s it did, t.) show what iti being done Hi o'.lht |wil« ol tho world in connection with that important nuiUor. 'J 'liu pa[)er reads as ioliuu.s: — ■'Tile present i.s Uii.lolibf.edly a very opportune time iur tin; Olago Motor Ciul) u> give some iisbiftM.iK.o Unloads improving the. load conditions which exist all aiouiul iiu. i\ovv thai our City Council has decided to expend large cimis ol money upon such work within our city, we should endeavour to create an oiit'h-u.sJii.srtL among all classed of society tor good roads. Nothing speaJiH better lor a community, or draws people u> it more irresistibly, ll»at well-kept, roadsides and at tractive iioino surroiiudmgn. 'J lie.se tilings jn-obably enhance tho valuo of properly as luuuh as the excellence of t" 0 road iu-Wf. The work of bcautihcatioii can rarelv be do/io with public funds, and it lig-htiy belongs to abutting property-owners, it is "a task that shoulii niUTCst all sclfmspectujg and public-spirited citizens, particularly the women; who could be of great service in this way.. The risisoiki why good roads aro of i>aianiouut iniportancv) aro ulmost too numerous to bo dealt with here. .Brkljy, they may be summed up under tho heading's ol business and social advancement. We f*> often find apparently wellntado roads lasting but a short time, and one wonders if our methods of doing the .work are tho best, or whether the fault lies in tho nature of the material used. I venture- to say that many thousands of pounds would be saved to this country every year if our Government could be induced to secure tho service* o£ an engineer or engineero who are trained specialists in road construction, aud whose services and advice, would \w given free to all counties and camtniiinitie.3 to help them solve their itxid problems. There is no doubt that tho public desires good roads fi-om one end of tho country to the other. An understanding of mainteiam'o is aliso a great problem, aji understanding not only among road builders but among all taxpayers, for once they soo the saving of proper maintenance they will seo that their roads are profitable.

'"It is not only -with city strcctu that we should interest ourselves, but .with the roads throughout the- country districts. Such roads as wo find in many outlying districts positively prevent adequate communication boween the farm and the city, and consequently discourage all elt'orts at better living. The farmer knows good roads will decrease his cost of transportation, increase the value of his farm, and odd much to tho comfoat of his home. His wifo and family can reach tho church, tho school, and their neighbours at all times, and in consequence will be content to remain on the farm. The resident of the city realises that improved roade will give him a tetter and more uniform supply of farm products, open to him a formerly closed pleasure ground, and will lead to a closer relation between town and farm, and to greater business activity everywhere. So shrewd a judge of investments as General du Pont, of Delaware, U.S.A., believes in the paying qualities of a good road. He plane to build a highway the length of Delaware, and earn tho interest on it by exploiting tho 160 ft of the right of way not actually used by tho road. Ho believes that the increased earning power of the 80£t strips on both sides of the road will pay tho interest on the cost of its construction. So much for a bueiaess man's judgment on the value of a good road. And notwithstanding that ho is right, many and many a community that build good roads is disappointed iu the results. The reason is ■undoubtedly a kick of knowledge of how to build and the lack of a system of maintenance. Even a good road gone to ruin is a burden to a taxpayer. A good road well maintained is a great benefit. Intrinsically, the road is of fnr greater potential value as a public property than as a private property, but it is only by good management that the potential value may become real. How close is the wrong way to tho right way, and how widely they diverge after tho start has been made is best known by cases. SAVING A COUNTY THOUSAND'S. " Piko County, Ala., U.is.A., in 1904, ccmo to a realisation that its bad roads could no longer bo endured. Tho first thought of the people was of the macadim road, and they had visions of ' smooth ribbons of stone stretching from tho county scat to the, boundaries oi the county.' llondbuildinij rock was not available in the county, and they expected to haul it by rail. Tho bond issue had already been arranged for on this basis, when it occurred to Judge A. C. Edinunson that it might bo well to seek the advice of an engineer from tho United States Office of Public Roada before beginning construction. He knew that the Government maintained a corps of the best-informed highway engineers in the United States, whose services arc given free. The request was made, and Mi' W. L. Spoon, a trained specialist on road conditions in the south, was sent to Piko County. Ho carefully inspected tho roads, the materials at hand, and specimens o£ the materials proposed to be used. He studied transportation rates, weather conditions, traffic (both actual and possible), and tho finances of the county. His report was substantially as follows: —' Your roads should cost you from £00 dollars to 1000 dollars a milo instead of from 5000 to 6000 dollars a mile, which will bo the cast if you undertake to build macadam roads, tfou have in unlimited quantity along your roadsides an ideal mixture of sand and clay for road-building. Tho sand-clay road, under the conditions which exist in thia county would be equal to or better than a macadam road, while the materials for maintenance of your sand-clay road will always bo at hand and ready to bo applied at slight cost.' Mr Spoon's advice was' taken. On July 13, 1907, Judge Edmonson wrote to him that 143,000 dollars in bonds had been authorised, of which 100,000 dollars had been sold. With tho proceeds 115 miles of splendid road had been built at a cost of about 868 dollars per milo. If the county had made the mistake of building macadam loads it would have paid for tho mistake 500,000 dollars in the beginning, representing the difference in cost, and from 10,000 dollars to 15,000 dollars a year hereafter, representing tho difference in the cost of maintenance. If all counties and communities mado suro that the typo of road selected was the type best adapted to the conditions to be met thoueands of pounds would surely be saved every year. Pike County's example docs not mean that the cheapest type of road should bo selected regardless of other conditions. There are hundreds of examples of cheap roads constructed to withstand exceptionally heavy traffic which are rapidly going to pieces, and will have to he rebuilt. A COSTLY EXPERIMENT. " In Texas a few years ago a prosperous and progressive county built a system of macadam roads. There was no difficulty in iinancing it; there was no doubt that the traffic was heavy enough to justify a hard road, iind there seemed to bo no fault in the method of construction; but something was wrong with the roads: after a few days of j traffic they were no more than stretches of loose stones. After the damage was done a specimen of tho material w.as sent to tho United States Office of Public Roads. A few tests showed that the stone was almost entirely lacking in cementing value, and would not bind sufficiently to form the monolithic crust eo essential to tho macadam road. The county had built several miles of road with this material, and had contracted for large quantities. The experience cost thousands of dollars. I believe that experiences .similar to the above could bo found in many oai'ts.ot' this dominion, and to save just sueli waste to givo expert advice to all would lx> the object of the suggested office of public roads. Now that Dunedin has decided to put its roads in order, perhaps the following will be of intcrest:—There seems to bo littlo doubt that the motor traction is fust supplanting tho horse, and the probiem which confronts our road-builders is to construct roads to withstand these new conditions. Tho motor will go wherever tho road:= permit it. One of tho recent types of road is well adapted to this new traffic. It is the concrete road which is coming into general- use in the southern part of Michigan. Highway committees front many parts of the country go to Detroit constantly to see County Commissioner Hines, of Wayne County, and to visit hie roads .So impressed are tlie people of Wayne County with the value of 1 his new and massive form of road that during the present; season they have entirely removed the .old 9ft concrete roid on the highway from Detroit to Bedford, and nro busily engaged in replacing it with a new 16ft roadway of solid concrete 7in thiol;. The possibilities of this new highway for heavy motor traffic and commercial truck transportation are immense. Who can say that the people of Wayne C-ounfy have not lake*:, the first step in the direction of ultimate wonorny in service and maintenance

for the highways of the twentieth oenturv? We might go on at length the varions pha-sos of both the Business nnd eneial aspect of this question, but enough Ipis been said to show tho thoughtful person that, the question of good roads is not our- solely for tho tourist, but is one which should vitally interest every patriotic citizen of our country, and, above all, the farmers."