TENGAWAI BRIDGE.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18452, 19 December 1929, Page 10

TENGAWAI BRIDGE.

NO INCREASE IN SUBSIDY. At a special meeting of the Levels County Council yesterday, a letter was received from Mr F. Langbein <chairman of District Highways Council, No. 15) stating that th'' Council’s application for a greater subsidy than £1 for £2 towards the cost of erecting the proposed Tengawai river bridge near Pleasant Feint had been referred to the Minister of Public Works, and he had directed that the subsidy of £1 for £2. as appearing on the estimates, was to stand. As Mr Langbein was in attendance at the meeting, opportunity was taken to discuss the matter with him. The chairman (Mr T. B. Garrick) asked Mr Langbein what the position was. as the Highways Board had refused to take the bridge over. Something had to be done, as the bridge would carry only about 20 bags of wheat. Mr Langbein considered tlial the Council should get a greater subsidy than £2 for £l. The reason why the Highways Board had not taken the bridge over was because there was a grant on the Public Works Estimates. The chairman said that ho had thought that they would do better by not going to the Board until after the bridge was up. Mr Langbein remarked *hat the Board had created a precedent. “We have a read from Christchurch to New Brighton, which is a secondary highway, and it is in concrete. Tliat is not a bad precedent.” Mr Langbein added that the trouble was that the particular stretch of road was not a highway, end it was illegal for the Government to make any contribution to roads outside the statutory highways. The chairman: “ The Arst tiling we have to do is to get it declared a highway.” It was decided to refer the matter to the members of the Highways Board when they visited Timaru in January.