UNDERCURRENTS.

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17221, 3 October 1927, Page 6

UNDERCURRENTS.

IN THE DRIFT OF LIFE,

(By "Seeker."]'

MOTOR ROADS AND THE FARMER. A new phase of the question of \ motor roads and their cost was put to me by Mr M. E. Fitzgerald, engineer of the Matamata County Council. I had heard of him as a man of exceptional knowledge on the subject of country roading and went out to Tirau to see him. While he supported in a measure the farmers' claim that as ratepayers they had to contribute too heavily to roading costs, he said that the farmers' motor traffic was itself one of the most serious problems of the roading authorities. On the question of the method of obtaining a larger contribution from motorists to roading costs he favoured national taxes, on petrol, tyres and cars, rather* than local taxes, as suggested by Mr F. A, Snell of Hamilton.

Road Versus Ra^way. Mr Fitzgerald also had something to say on the competition between the railways and motor transport. If the motor vehicles could not pay their fair share towards roading costs and then compete with the railways', it was only, fair that they should have to give up their business. They should not be subsidised by being provided with roads while. the railway had to pay all the cost of its permanent way. At the same time he had long been of the opinion that as roads had existed before railways so they would continue to exist when railways were no more. In view of ready availability of motors, which would run to everyone's back door, it was foolish, as the Prime Minister, Mr Coates, has pointed out, to build new branch railways. In England some of the great industrial concerns were delivering their goods by motor-lorry hundreds of miles from the factory. Huntley and Palmer, the biscuit manufacturers, for instance, sent nothing by railway, he understood. Is Local Control Best? I put to Mr Fitzgerald Mr Snell's opinion that taxes on cars and petrol would be better collected by the local bodies, who would then hand over a proportion to the central Government for the main highways. Mr Snell's argument was that the local body exercised a more thorough control and economy and that under this plan the use of the full funds for roading would be assured.

"Why not collect through the Customs, without any further cost?" asked Mr Fitzgerald. "Collection by local bodies would involve many inequalities. Where the garage is, is a poor indication of where the work is done. Most of the garages are in the towns, and they would get the revenue while the counties would have to pay for the roads the motors were using. The same with the bowsers. They are mostly in the towns."

He preferred indirect to direct taxation. It was easier for the motorist to pay a higher price for bis petrol or tyres or car than to pay a very high, annual license fee.

Problem of the Back Roads. "You hear a lot of talk about the farmers having to pay to make roads for the motorists," said Mr Fitzgerald. "That is true to some 'extent, but you should make a qualification. The farmers ' themselves are using motors in a way that is sometimes wasteful. I know" of one length of road, about five miles, on which three cream lorries from three factories run to collect the cream of only six farmers. Do you call that co-operation?" He went on to show how difficult it was to satisfy the farmers, each of whom wanted his mile or two of road improved when it was plainly necessary to spend available funds first on the making of arterial roads. He had mapped out a scheme for the development of the roads of Matamata County. A loan had been raised, involving a fairly heavy addition of ljd to the rates. But then- calculations had been put out by the increasing use of the back roads by motors. Another grave difficulty was that the increase of tralfic had raised enormously the cost of maintaining the roads that were metalled but not bitumenised. A waterbound metal road was useless for motor traffic. It cost £2OOO a year to maintain the 14 miles of road through the Mamaku Bush, whereas the cost of keeping the old clay road in condition for summer use was only £l5O a year. The money was going in maintenance instead of construction of bitumenised roads. "We have about 550 miles of road in this county. A few year 3 ago it was mostly regarded as being on the map, but now motors use almost every mile of it." Farmers who had to "plug through" only a mile or two of mud felt their position worse than those fifteen miles back. They objected to putting on chains for so short a distance. The car was, of course, the best means of transport for many farms, but Mr Fitzgerald agreed with Mr Worley (Hamilton Borough Engineer) that if leading costs were fully realised, many farmers would go back to horses, despite the fact that, horses had to be fed whether they worked or not. New Zealand, in her'present state of development, with one car to every 11 people, had far more than her share of motor traffic.

Speed Restriction. Mr Fitzgerald said he did not believe in restricting speed for the sake of roads except in the case of the heavy traffic. For ordinary cars the only restriction should be what was necessary for safety. The by-law of a neighbouring county restricting the speed of all cars to 25 miles an hour was ridiculous; probably it was not obeyed even by the county officials themselves. Bitumen roads, he added, would stand any speed in the case of the ordinary car. The difficulty was in carrying on while these roads were being made. If there were any special limit on speed on metal roads it should be recognised as only a temporary measure.

The Hamiiton-Auckland Road. Mention was made of the HamiltonAuckland road. Mr Fitzgerald said he considered if very improbable that, the whole length would be concreted, nifumen should suffice. The average bitumen road cost about half as much as concrete; tar-scaling was, of course, much cheaper than bilumenised concrete.

Sizing up the problem, Mr Fitzgerald said, "The local body rating for road work is much too high, and it is getting higher, and you can't stop it. I think there is an undue burden on the farmer, but that argument will fall Jlat when we get a petrol tax. Mr Goates is strong for a petrol fax, and I think if is coming."

NOT ALONE. Not alone, not alone would I go to my rest in the heart of the love: Were. 1 tranced in the innermost beauty^ the flame of its tenderest breath, , I would still hear the cry of the fallen' recalling me back from above. To go down to' the side of the people who weep in the shadow of death. —George Russell.