GERALDINE COUNTY COUNCIL.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18259, 8 May 1929, Page 6

GERALDINE COUNTY COUNCIL.

CHAIRMAN’S ANNUAL REPORT. The following is the annual report of the chairman of the Geraldine County Council (Mr K. Mackenzie), which he submitted at the last meeting of the Council: — Mr Mackenzie stated that there hao been a noticeable growth of the programme in the several branches of the Council’s activities, and this, it was obvious, was likely to be maintained owing to the ever increasing favour of motor traffic for every description of carriage, for the Council’s principal affair was that connected with the problem of transport. Better bridges, improved road construction and a higher standard of surfacing was what was demanded for the convenience and safety of the general travelling public as well as for the more economical handling of goods and produce, which now form so large a feature in the maintenance costs of all the roads, especially so of the main and secondary highways of the county. The extraordinary increase of traffic of motor vehicles was probably a result of the better road surfaces provided by the financial assistance of the Main Highways Boards subsidies, without which it would be impossible to keep pace with the requirements of the times. Within the past year there had been no increase made in the mileage of the Main Highways, in the County, but an additional length of of 311 miles of secondary highways had been created, and proposals were recently submitted that the Board would favfurably entertain the creation of an additional ten miles, partly in the Temuka, and partly in the Geraldine Ridings, and also an exchange of one route for another in two of the County Highways. During the year the Council held twelve monthly meetings, and dealt with 113 applications for special works, and also let 17 contracts of an aggregate value of £7629 11s Bd. Of this £4466 5s 6d was for bitumen surfacing treatment of the Main North Highway between Temuka and Geraldine Borough boundaries. This was later extended under the authority of the Highways Board, and arrangement with the Geraldine Borough Council to cover untarred lengths of the line through the borough of Geraldine. The subsidy contributed by the Board was at the rate of £3 for £1 in the county, and £2 for £1 in the borough, payment of the local bodies shares being, if so desired, extended over a period of five years. This later work was perhaps the outstanding feature of the Councils developmental work during the year. Proposals were also submitted for rebuilding the Winchester Bridge and Cooper’s Creek Crossing, and these works would probably form part of the Main Highways operations in the near future. The Council had also taken advantage of the hire-purchase system of the Main Highways Act Amendment, 1925, to secure a tractor-grader plant, which had proved of great assistance in the maintenance problem tt- < ughout the County, and had proved a most useful and helpful addition to the County’s equipment in the preparation of road surfaces for tar selling and general all round present ana prospective traffic requirements. The Council was to be congratulated upon the results of its operations under the Main Highways Act, since its inception, and the treatment accorded to it by the Main Highways Boara had been of a sympathetic and cordial character at all times, and it was gratifying to realise the progress that was being made to attain the

higher standard of efficiency in County road work, which was the aim of the Board and the object for which it was constituted. Proposals submitted to and accepted by the District Highways Council at its last meeting dealt with a further length of seven miles of bitumen surfacing from Geraldine to Arundel, and if approved by the Highways Board, could be dealt with next season, and would complete the whole length of the Christ-church-Dunedin Highway within the County from the Opihi to the Rangitata Rivers, a length of 191 miles The Council had been fortunate in the allocation of considerable sums for expenditure by way of relief work for unemployment, and long stretches of expensive road construction had been made out of funds voted by Parliament for this purpose. By means of this expenditure, important improvements had been effected in modifying sharp curves and reducing gradients and malting the old roads more accessible for motor lorry transportation, which was now capable of handling freights formerly only possible with traction engines. In addition, the back roads had been made much safer for general traffic, and could still be materially improved, by a better class of maintenance with the use of the Council’s new plant, and which it was hoped to have available for the back blocks work, when tar sealing, upon which it was now chiefly employed, had been completed. The following table compiled from the Main Highways Board's figures, showed the subsidies paid to the County to 31st March. 1929, and thp appropriations authorised for the same year on the several Highways in the County. Christchurch-Dunedin maintenance, authorised £1635 8s 7d, received £1275 8s 7d; bitumen surfacing £760 15s lid —£76o 15s lid. Geraldine-Pairlie maintenance £389 —£3so Os 4d. Geraldine-Orari via Packhams £lll Temuka-Pleasant Point £427—£84 19s Gd. Arundel-Cooper's Creek £ss—£B 11s 4d. Geraldine-Orari, via Raukapuka £95 I —£B6 9s 3d. Gapes Valley £2Ol 9s 9d—£2ol 9s 9d. Temuka-Clandeboye £93— £ll 0s lid. Arundel-Peel Forest £90 —£22 Is 4d. Temuka-Upper Stumps £6l—£4o 2s 3d. The above statement did not Include the Council's share of the reconditioning of the Arundel Rangitata River Traffic Bridge towards which a sum of £210,000 was paid to the Ashburton County Council during the year, and the Council had been advised by the Highways Board, of a further necessary expenditure of £BOO to overhaul and renovate the steel portion of the structure, provision for the Council's share of which would have to be made in this year’s County estimates. The Council’s maintenance staff had been the same as in the previous year, l.e. two foremen, six drivers one engine driver and fifteen surfacemen. Casual labour had also been employed as necessity had arisen during the year. Under the Council's planting scheme, it had laid down 41J acres o, land in various forest trees of a total number of between 36,000 and 40,000 mostly Pinus and Oregon varieties, and the Council contemplated planting 220 acres during this planting season. RIVER BOARD. Dealing with the River Board's operations the report stated that the Board's operations had been of a less costly character than for some yean, past, due to the absence of any extensive flood damages in this period. I The Waihi River improvement loan , expenditure was now finished, and the ; various statements of accounts showed the respective financial positions of ' the seperate River District areas, Before the Council dissolved he : would like to express the Council's appreciation of the work done and the services rendered by the members of the staff, both outside and inside, for all had given of their best. The engineer. Mr Bremner, had had a par- , ticularly hard year. Government Relief ] works and bitumen contracts, necessi-

tating a considerable amount of extra work, while in the office, Mr Rr-addie’s work had not eased up. Thanks were due to Councillors for the care and attention they had given the business of the County Council during the last three years, and for their kindness and consideration shown to the chairman. Thanks were also due to Mr Flatman, chairman of the Finance Committee, for his watchfulness over the County finances.