CLIFTON COUNTY WORK

Taranaki Daily News, 3 June 1933, Page 11

CLIFTON COUNTY WORK

CHAIRMAN RE-ELECTED MOHAKATINO ROAD DEBENTURES. SPEEDS ON MAIN NORTH ROAD. At the monthly meeting of the Clifton County Council at Waitara yesterday there were present Councillors H. A. Foreman (chairman), G. W. Rogers, J. F. Phillips, W. ‘H. Watson, E. A. Shaw, C. H. Bamitt and F. Sarten. The Public Works Department notified that £66 17s lid had been placed to the council’s account in respect of the Papatiki Stream bridge work. The county inspector, Mr. G. F. Rowe, reported that most of his time in the latter part of the month was taken up issuing licenses. Inspections of the county roads at night had revealed everything in order except wandering stock, which were becoming numerous. Some road fences were in bad repair. Drivers’ license fees collected were £Bl 15s and dog tax £7 15s, a total of £B9 10s. A ratepayer at Uruti, Mr. Newton P. Jones, wrote asking if the council had decided to remit the penalty on overdue rates. A similar question was asked by a firm of solicitors on behalf of the trustees of Bayly estate and of Messrs Nops and Lange. After it had been pointed out that the council had a resolution to consider each such case on its merits, it was decided to remit the penalty in Mr. Jones’ case. It was also decided that the waiving of the penalty in the case of the Bayly estate should not be acceded to and that in the case of Nops and Lange the case be dealt with when the final payment was made. Mr. P. A. Scrimgeour asked permission to erect a new fence on his Ngatimaru Road boundary, 12 feet from the present boundary. The request was granted. The Manawatu County Council wrote soliciting support for an endeavour to have audit department charges reduced. The engineer read the charges made in past years by the department in connection with the Clifton County. They were: 1928 £24 4s 6d, 1929 £24 12s 9d, 1930 £3l 16s, 1931 £2B 16s, 1932 £3l 5s 6d, 1933 £29 18s id. The council decided to support an agistation for a reduction, the chairman pointing out that there had been reductions in everything else. SPEED LIMIT QUESTION. The Transport Department asked if the council thought the Waitara-Mokau section of the Main North Road should be exempt - from the proposed 40-mile an hour speed limit. Cr. Bamitt thought 40 miles was quite fast enough. Other councillors thought that speed should be governed by varying road conditions. Cr. Bamitt moved that the council suggest that the limit be left at 40 miles an hour . , Cr. Sarten moved as an amendment that the highway be exempted. The amendment was carried. The Commissioner of Crown Lands wrote in reference to the council’s proposal to hand over £3OO accrued “thirds” to the Public Works Department and Unemployment Board for a camp for the metalling of the Moki Saddle and Road as far as the Rerekino Road junction. The proposal was satisfactory to the Lands Department The engineer was instructed to complete the necessary schedule. Concerning the loan from the Unemployment Board of £362 10s for the completion of the Mohakatino Road metalling, the board advised that 10-year debentures would be accepted as security to bear interest at 4J pel" cent. It would be necessary to apply for an Order-in-Council to enable the issue.

A further letter stated it was regretted the board could not advance more than half the £725 which represented the council’s liability. It was decided to issue the debentures, the repayment to be made on the table mortgage system. The Public Works Department to which the council referred a request to be allowed to stack firewood on the main highway at Uruti, notified it had replied to the settler concerned that providing the permission was used reasonably there was no objection.

The Taranaki Automobile Association asked for the council’s co-operation in checking the prevalent habit of many drivers in using cars with improperly focussed headlights. The letter was referred to the inspector. The tender of Mr. W. F. Dowman (Urenui) for labour on the Makino Stream bridge on the Rerekino Road of £l2O 12s lid was accepted. COLLECTION OF CREAM. Discussion ensued over the collection of cream on certain country roads, and the effect of the cream lorries on the side of the road at stands and in the blocking of traffic. Finally it was decided that settlers on all roads should be advised to metal the approaches to their stands.

The engineer, Mr. N. C. Fookes, reported as follows on the month’s operations'in the ridings:— General maintenance work had been attended to on the Tikorangi, Nikorima, Bertrand and Epiha Roads in the Tikorangi riding. The metal on West’s Hill on the Otaraoa Road had been reconditioned and was awaiting favourable weather to complete the top dressing with quartz gravel. The large punga culvert at the junction of the Tikorangi and Waihi Roads, which it was recommended some time ago should be renewed, was becoming increasingly dangerous. The engineer recommended that the council authorise the renewal as a concrete arch culvert in accordance with the draft plans originally submitted. The metalling of the Otaraoa Road ‘was progressing slowly. Metalling at the northern end had to be abandoned, but metalling was being pushed forward from the southern end in two courses in order to keep the men employed. WAIHI RIDING WORK. In the Waihi Riding patching, banking, watertabling and scrub-cutting had been attended to on the Mataro, Hickman, Onaero, Waiau and Ohanga Roads. One new set of 9-inch pipes had been sent up for installatiqp at the Hickman Road junction and one 12in. culvert on the Mataro Road had been lengthened 6ft. The grading of the Waiau Road had been completed and the gravel surfaces on the Waiau Upper, Ohanga, Turangi and Mataro Roads had been graded and shaped up. The reformation and metalling -of the Mataro Road upper was for a time stopped altogether owing to weather conditions, bu> was recommenced about the middle of the 'month and a small amount of work had been done. Additional metal was being stripped at the Onaero pit to provide for next season’s work. The renewal of the Mangapoua stream bridge on the Mataro Road, for which the plans, etc., had been approved, would be placed on this year’s Public Works estimates.

The roads in the Urenui riding suffered a fair amount of damage during the bad weather in May, and the surfacemen, together with casual labourers, had been fully occupied clearing slips on the Okoke, Kaka, Piko, Kaipikari, Mangamaeho and Waikaramarama Roads. The worst damage occurred in the Okoke district, and it would be some little time

before the roads were cleared and back to normal. The grader was employed on the Okoke, Kaka, Piko, Kaipikari and Beach Roads, grading up the gravel surfaces and cutting back grass edges. The repairs to the Urenui cottage had been completed. The roads in the Uruti Riding had also been badly blocked up with slips, and the surfaceman and a number of casual labourers, had been employed full time in opening up the roads for ordinary traffic. The Uruti, Moki, Rerekino, Ngatoto and Puke Roads received the worst damage, and it would take several weeks to completely clear the slips and bring the roads back to normal. The portion of the Uruti Road from the Moki Road junction to the Uruti Road, school was in urgent need of reconditioning and it was recommended that the scarifying, rolling and gravelling of this length be put in hand as soon as possible. The materials for the Makino stream bridge would come to hand early in June, and would be stored at Urenui for the win-! ter pending delivery on the site early in the spring. It had been impossible to get the timber into toe Tangitu for toe repairs to three bridges in that district, and it might be necessary to effect temporary repairs until toe roads were in better shape. The Tupoki stream bridge on toe Tupoki Road required tarring and painting and this work would be put in- hand as soon as possible. FLOOD DAMAGE AT MOKAU. ' Flood damage was most apparent in toe Kotare district in the Mokau riding, and numerous slips and wash-outs had occurred on the Okau Road upper and the Mangaroa Roads. The work of clearing those was steadily proceeding, but like toe other districts would take time. Ordinary maintenance work has been attended to on toe Okau, Mangatoro, Kiwi and Mangaroa Roads. The metalling on toe Mohakatino Road had practically ceased and unless conditions improve will probably be suspended for toe winter. The preparation work at toe Mangatoro Road pit had been practicallycompleted, and it was hoped to commence toe metalling from toe pit outwards in two courses. The Tereinga Stream bridge on toe Okau Road was becoming dangerous through natural decay in toe local tonbars of which it had been built, and its reconstruction should be provided for on toe Public Works estimates.

Work done on toe Auckland-Welling-ton main highway for the month consisted of banking, watertabling and metalling along toe bitumen length and clearing slips, watertables, grading and re-gravelling along toe macadam length. On toe Pukearuhe Road banking, patching, watertabling and grading had been attended to, and on the Ngatimaru and Inland North Roads patching and grading had been attended to at intervals on these two roads.

Mr. B. Sharp waited on toe council to request the opening up of toe top end of Kaipikari Road for stock traffic. He had not used it for seven years, said Mr. Sharp, but had concentrated on toe valley track. Slips had now almost blocked it and further slips were threatening that would effectually bar egress. Most of his stock would be locked in. He asked the council to open up the Kaipikari track which was originally for stock.

The engineer was authorised to clear slips on the track.