OUR NORTHERN HIGHWAY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 15366, 10 November 1920, Page 5

OUR NORTHERN HIGHWAY.

WHAT ARK THE AUTHORITIES DOING? VIGOROUS POLICY WASTED. 7ori3 iiir-t-hnnd ir.vcf^iatic'n rc.ipc^tvriir.tkc present.. pettier., cfths Gisbcfn?xoiagri BrtT road vras placed bet'oro -" Herald representative to-day by a gentleman , closely associated with county affairs for many years past. Travelling over the road repeatedly, he is thoroughly familiar with, the existing conditions, and his severe ei ; iticism of the Government and the Cook County authorities comes at; a- juncture when the main arterial road question is prominently before the public. The very large amount of work which he indicates still remains to bo done to provide a decent highway between Qisborne and its rich coastal hinterland only goes to emphasise the frrave injustice that is being done to the East Coast district by the action of the present Governments in failing to provide adeqtiate of money. The" apparent inaction of the Cook County Council also calls for some measure of explanation. . .' 16 MIMES OF METALLING. "I should like to ask what attempt is bcinsr made to carry out the metalling of the new Crisborne-Tolaga road from the Pakarae bridge to town," remarked out .". informant. ''What is the Cook County Council doing? I would be glad,, if you '.would" call public attention .to the position, as it appears as if they will be missing . all the present summer months and practically nothino: will be done. , Between the Pakarae bridge oh the new road "and Qisborne, he went on to say, there was a distance of about 23 mil.es. The ..bulk of this road, all but say seven, miles, . i.e. about 16 miles, , badly required: metalling. :Tn fact, mefcal--1 l>n£ throughout : from end- to end '-was ! essential -to proridn reasonable travelj ling facilities between Gisborne and the Coast district. A good metalled arterial road-, was absolutely iridispensiblo to keep pace with, the growing needs and development of thia. district. Thia. sure-: ly was -acknowledged ' by . all. .Arid yet' what was being done?.* . Coming down from Tolaga Bay yesterday, for instance, he saw only two men on the Cook County section of the road between .Pakarae, river and town-*— one surfaceman oh. the PanikaU section and another in the ' PouaWa Valley and 16 miles of urgent metalling • staring the county in the face. In a few weeks we would be into Chi'istmas. When was it intended to make a start? .Hie plant for the Uawa County section was under order and. oil the way, and livork would be. commenced in real earnest ' in putting down a good metalled road ; from the Pakarae bridge to Tolaga Bay ; township, and in fact to tho coiin-ty boundary at Mangatuna. A' special loin of £50.000 had been raised by the new county for this purpose, in-. dependent of Government sjisbidy, which would give a metalled main road right through Uawa from the Cook Oounty to, the Waiapu boundary. Naturally enough people, were asking, "What is the Cook Comity Council doing?*". Where is the Government's promised assistance .for the East Coast's main, arterial highway?. . ' ■;..'■ NO TIME TO BE XOST. Our informant said he raised the question, not with any idea of carping criticism, but from a ,senso of ptiblic duty. He trusted that his remarks would be accepted in that spirit and that the Cook County Council would lose no""' time'' in., making a definite public announce.ment on the subject, > which, was one that so' vitally affected the progress -and welfare of the whole district. With the advent' of . the new council, following ■ to-day's election, our infor-, mant inid hd hoped the Gfcok Oounty Council would lose no time .in deciding upon an act ivr and vigorous policy in respect of ihis- and . all its main, arterial' roads: . With conunendahlo enterprise" they, had .sent the county engineer to America to investigate the methods of modern road construction, but so far the council hnd given tho engineer no scope for putting this valuable information into practical effect. Tf was an urgent matter. No time should be lost. The Uawa County, if he might .be permitted to make a . comparison, had taken the step of declaring certain roads main, county roads ,to be made and. maintained by the wholo county. • That,; he thoaght-^apart . from the "'Government's long-promised scheme for; taking, over the arterial roads of th^ Dominion' just shelved again for' ftnother;.; yeaV— . was the only way to tackle the 'prpbienx .and get the; main . roads through. On*, coiuld not expect .the .smaller central riflings to bear the" expense of making; and maintaining the main... - highways usod. by the traffic of. the whole county: Then, again., he wished toi ca)K(atteii-!* tion "to what hoamderstood Svßve;:th^ un- 1 expended balances of the QoVel-rrtnent grants in hand. Every effort %ou|d ;be; niade... especially •by the local .'Tfo3i<& . o£ the East .Coast".; to spend every ppijpy oft GovemmQrft subsidy alloo^ted. • ''/i'v ".', If the Government, the .Coplc ooiinty, or any other local body. \intfln/s|fl to got work- done .at this juncture,' ; "thw had to rocognise-tlie facfc f .that inducements must ' be : made .to's. Attract the -necessary labor. Men'-couldV^ot be expected to go' on. these i'obs 16s ?a day, for instance, when . they icqmid) read-? ily earn £1 a day;, elsewhere;' t These mnin arterial; road works -must be> treated as works vof^urgent •importarice. MeiV must be paid the .ruling rate of wKge'and up-to-date ' labor-saving appliances must be employed. ■''•■•' . AN< EXPRESSION OF SURPRLSE. Without . wishing to descend into personalities,' our informant ., said he regretted to snote that the present county chairman, had expressed satisfaction with the Government's , allocations this session for' the county's requiremonta, .and ; had stated that., they" had' received /all" they had askod^for.. It 'was tia!pable ; ; that Cook County had hot asked for' crfoueh. The chairman had pointed to the fact . that the Minister of Public, Works, ha#> 'allocated . £3000 for., the Gisborne-Toliga road . (Cook;. County" section). . ..... i .. >m How far, he .would, like. to^. know, did? the council expect;; this -.£3OOO would'- po in metalung those ■: 16j "miles of uranetal- ■ led road betweerf Qisborne and the' Uawa County boundary^Long ;stretch6s' of those 16 miles of I'ond boWSqn tqw^n i and the Takarae bridge w.ere. }mpasßable,;| ; to motor traffic, for .\weeks. and morifclis.v Motor cars were able, to use tho.Wa.iapu> } County section.. mor e or less, through theS'*<vin,jter. Uawa County was about to embark upon a • metalling programme from tho Pakaraejbridge to Tolaga Bay. Hero was the "'seorind week of Nov'em- , ber, and there were twrt^surf acorn en on those 23 miles of rbad TnV Cook County i to^ the Uawa boundary. Sui%]y., something was coing to bo donc'-to^o'ver-' come tliis bar to • Waffle f ••■!'•■ '•■X > >' ! -- What about the' Minister's promise-' tcigive the East Coast , a decont -'arterial* road? And what about the . assurances, of his predecessor, Sir* Win. •Fraser'.T.he: Uawa. Council was spondincr .£50,000: upon its section of ninocmilesi as :• its: metalling programme.* The : Ctook Coun.ty' was allocated £3000 free grhnt by the'" <G<>vernmenfe for 16 miles 'of metalling,and yet the chairman assures the ; : dhV tvict that this was satisfactory. Surely he had not gone carefully into the', question or he would not have said that? The Cook County Council's present policy, he wn* afraid, appeared to be--ene of. indifference and -inactivity J Realism? aa one must that the Govern- 1 " ment had allocated no leßs thnn £16%.---805 on roads and bridges in the vßofldless^ Nhrth"— the^ favored North Auckland district— apart from nearly £250 - 000 onvrnilways ; in that district, therV was a public obligation devolving upon,

the- local bodies of the Gisborne district to demand that a much fairer allocation of the Public Works Fund should be made to provide travelling facilities ,in this richer but neglected East Coast district. A farther .section -of tho iiit.-?rrir,7 drcii?:? '^i.-h tno .. CcjF«"JvrJ^9«ptv -v^vPi!! <:-i tho xs»it Co.?.sf -T3.a^ "J; - :u forir. '■ thn .rabject qC aTivthorr.rvrticls..^