WHAT THE COUNTIES ARE DOING.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2196, 8 July 1914, Page 17

WHAT THE COUNTIES ARE DOING.

ROAD-MAKING PROBLEMS.

ENGINEERS TELL OF THEIR WORK.

AN INTERESTING REVIEW.

New methods of road-making are rapidly being adopted- throughout New Zealand. In order to provide its readers; with somo accurate conception of what is being done in the southern part of the North' Island The Dominion recently sent; a circular letter to the county engineers throughout the provinces of Wellington, Hawke's ;Bay, and. Taranaki. The replies aro printed- bolow, and will bo found to contain matter, of exceptional interest. . The questions submitted to each engineer were as follow. — 1-. —What is the -country's general policy regarding roads? 2.—What. special. difficulties have '' been met with and how. .have , they been overcome ? 3. —What . experiments • <haye been tried? 4.—Has burnt papa been used for metal, and how, does it work out as regards cost and durability? 5. —Has the county a road roller or other machinery ? .' Taranaki. ' The' Taranaki County Council is watching .the results or experiments elsewhero, before undertaking any tairiug work. The County Clerk, Mr.. K. Ellis, says;.— . _ ■ 1. This council are carrying on maintenance work only on the main Toads, and metalling and constructing the'other roads. . :2. ,We have had no special difficulties .other than- heavy traffic to deal with. 3. This' council have not .tried any experiments in with tar sealing of roads, but are watching some of our neighbours who have undertaken this'class of work: ' 4.' No burnt papa has been used; we have plenty of metal .throughout the county. '. . ■ 5. Wo have our'own'traction engine,' crusher, two rollers, and two water carts, which travel all over the county repairing and reconstructing our roads. Eitham. . The, reply of Mr. F. Basham, ■of Elth'am . County, is brief and to the point:-— ' _ _ ' 1. A generally progressive policy with the free uso of-'tar and its compounds. ■ 2. No special difficulties outside the inferior quality of the local stone. 3. Tar and sanding,! sand and pitch"", grout, tar macadam and tar compounds. 4. Burnt papa has not been'.used. . 5. Two rollers and scarifier, crusher, tar sprayer, tar preparing plant and concrete reservoir, street sweeper, portable tar boiler,,, scoops and grader, and bridge-building plant. Walmate West. Waimate Wesi has a £60,000 loan scheme for roading now before its ratepayers. Mr. W. G. Lopdell, the county engineer, writes:— 1. Our general policy is tho upkeep of roads out of general rates. Have also raised several special loans from time to time. 2. Special Difficulties.—Under this heading, l perhaps, our special trouble is want of railway, hence the amount of dairy produce on the roads, this being entirely a dairying district. 3. Experiments.—Only on the respective Governments to increase the subsidy on all rates collected and not only on rates up to three-farthings as at present. i. Burnt Papa.—There is no papa in this district. ■ • 5. Machinery and Tarring.—We have ono road roller and another under order; also a traction engine and por- 1 table stone crusher, road gradef, and plough, and all necessary plant for road making. lie' Tarring.—We have experimented with tar to a considerable degree, and though too soon to definitely state how it is going to wear, it has every appearance of fully justifying tho extra cost, 1 besides giving tho pleasantness of a smooth running surface, being both dustless and noiseless. I am a great believer in this class of. work, and am of tho opinion that this is the solution to the roading problem. Hawera. Hiuvera's, good work on its roads is well known. The county clerk, Mr." Geo. Stringer, writes :— 1. With regard to new works serving particular tho ratepayers in- j terested usually raise special loans for the purpose.'- Where, however, a work is for the benefit of the ratepayers generally it is undertaken by the council, and carried out as funds will permit. -■2. .Tho outstanding difficulty with us is the almost total absence of metal.

Tlio only source of supply'being tho! beach, but as this can only bo used for I roads in tho immediate vicinity, its area of usefulness is limited. The council recently raised a loan of £GG,OOO for tho puriwse of metalling, and with tlie exception of . ono or two roads, tho metal was brought by rail from Sentry Hill, soma 40 or 50 miles distant. In ono or two instances it cost 20s. per cubic yard to put on tho road, which will give yon some idea of the difficulties the council is-labouring under. 3. Owing to tho altered conditions of traffic, tlie council is mow faced with the difficulty of making its roads to suit tho altered conditions,' viz., mechanicallypropelled vehicles. Motor lorries and cars travelling at a high rato of speed lift the blinding from the roads, which is in turn crushed b" tho iron-shod vehicles, and then carried away in dust by the wind, for which this district is fairly famous. The council has been experimenting with "soltar," a preparation made in Auckland. Some 60 chains have been laid, and so far appears satisfactory, but costly. The council is now installing a tar-treating plant of its own, 'with a view to tarring generally, as it is plain that, unless tho surface of the roads can ■ in somo way bo bound they will very soon go to pieces, and the greater part of our £66,000 will go in dust. ; 4. Wo have not tried burnt papa. This may bo necessary lateV on in the back-blocks, but at present mud roads seeiu sufficient for the limited traffic, which is chiefly stock. 5. The council's plant at present consists of four four-horse teams, steam road roller, engine and stono crusher, grader, scoops, etc. A second roller has been ordered.. Tlie council has of law done most of the road work itself, and finds it not only much cheaper than tho contract system, but mucli it ore satisfactory. . There , hive been ono or two exceptions in fairlv large works, which havo heon let owing to onv own teams and plant being tooj fully occupied to undertake them. ... . In conclusion, I may say that it is generally admitted that, notwithstanding the difficulties under which tins council' labours, the Hawcra County roads ire superior to any others in raranaKi. ! Patoa. An interesting Teview of conditions in Patoa County is supplied by Mr. A. H. M. Wright, tlio County Engineer. Mr. Wright , says:— 1. Tlio county is the lowest Tated in Taranaki, and probably also in "Wellington as well, tho general rate this year being I'd., and last' year only idCertain portions of the county have, also special rates as well. The Alain. Road (Main Road between Waiiganui and New Plymouth) within the 'county is about 27 miles, and runs parallel with the railway, and so in former years carried very little traffic. Now, however, with the motor traffic, and the dairying industry, tho whole length carries considerable traffic, as many as 200 motoroars being counted at one point during one day (a race day in Wanganui). Tho council, did hot at first realise tho difjferent conditions, and as a consequence almost the whole of the metalling on this road has been almost worn out, and unless considerable greater lengths are metalled annually than has been form-, erly the case, the road will be in a very bad state. Note.—lt is a very difficult matter to mako tho older residents roalise tho different conditions that now prevail. Portions of tho Main Road woro medalled, and though certainly very rough and uneven (being laid in the oldfashioned method of spreading tho metai and allowing the traffic to wear it in) stood for over twenty, years, whereas under present traffic conditions they would be worn out in a fow years. Considering tho ago and sine of the •county, tho proportion of metalled roads ,is very small, out of a total of about 230 miles of dray road, only about 45 miles are metalled. In regard to backblock roads, most of theso are well maintained. . 2. Our main difficulty in regard to the Main Road and metalled by-roads is to obtain metal. Practically tho wholo of tho metal used has to be railed from outside the county', as, - for instance,, last year wo obtained 6000 cubic yards lof pit metal from Ohingaiti, in the Rangitikei County, and about 600' cubic | yards, of crushed river boulders from Midhirst (near Eltham). This naturally makes metalling very expensive, as tho average price of the metal delivered at roadside :b about lis. per yard, not ; including price of spreading and rolling. ' As tho. Railway Department will only carry metal during tho winter months, a great deal of the metal has : to be dumped in station yards, to be carted out. during the ', following summer, though wherever possible it is carted out and put down at once. In regard to back-block roads, our main difficulty appears to be that the most expensive roads to maintain are -those that pass through the poorest country (steep papa . country, very liable to slip), and the values heing low; (the rates are often insufficient to maintain them. Thirds j accruing .from tho .sections adjoining J are then very useful. 3. r have treated the decking for principal' bridges with the tar ■ preparation "Soltar" and shingle, and it appears very satisfactory, preventing all wear on the timber, and presenting a good surface for.traffic. Tho council have authorised me to experiment with different tar preparations on the Main Road,' which experiments will be carried out nfext summer. . Burnt papa has not been used; in, this,county, although I have used, itV elsewhere. ■ Provided tho papa is handy, and plenty of firewood available, it would cost about 6s. per cubio yard. We have not used it here, because on those roads it . was intended to metal ■either the papa or the firewood were not available. Ido not think it would be of much use on roads subjcct to heavy traffic. . . 5. The county possesses a road-roller and scarifier attached, weighing, when working, about 14.} tons. This lias just been purchased, and only in use tor about two months. Other machinery consists of three graders, scopes, etc. The council employ about twenty permanent hands, and generally havo an iavcrage of about thirty to forty casual hands employed as well. The' comity is, I think, the largest in area and capital value in Taranaki. Waltotara. Waitotara, like most West Coast counties, is working on progressive lines. Tho county engineer, Mr. G'. H. Dickson, sends tho following interesting letter:— 1. My council's general policy regarding roads is to expend tho revenuo as near as possible where collected, with tlie; greatest good to tho greatest number, at the same timo doing all it call for the back-block settler. 2. The principal difficulties met with are slips and erosions in the rough country, which in some localities nearly absorb tlio whole of the funds available, leaving very little for general maintenance, and certainly nothing for improver ments in these localities, and since the advent of the inotor-car the cost of general maintenance has.greatly increased, and many of our roads aro not as »ood now as they were prior to that time. Our greatest'difficulty is want of funds to cope with the traffic. 3. i\'o experiments'have been tried, j 4. litirnt papa has not been used for metal, and frojn what I have scon in other counties it is not a success. 5. My county lias a steam road roller and scarifier and road graders, which aro doing highly satisfactory work. As yet we have made no experiments in tarring roads, but will probably do so this coming summer; although I think most of bur roads are not yet sufficiently consolidated for the tarring to give satisfaction for a lengthy period, as the heavy traffic would break the tarred surface, and tho motor-car complete the destruction. If the maximum speed of tho motor-

car was restricted to, say, twenty miles an hour; the cost of the upkeep of many of our roads would thereby l>o reduced fully one-half of what it now is. .Wanganui County. The following reply to tlio questions sent out is to hand' from Mr. A. Manliington, the Wanganui County clerk:— 1. No policy. 2. To keep roads open on a Id. rate; difficulty increasing. 3. None. 4. Not used. 5. No. Kiwitoa. Kiwitea County is at present confining itself to getting its metal well laid and drained. Mr. L. J. Vcrry, tho county clerk, in the absence of tho engineer, sends tho following letter: — 1. The method of maintaining tho present metalled roads is to patch -each road each year according to ovidcnco of wear and tear. Stones up to 6 inches in diameter are carted out, and immediately broken to 24 inches. ■ Screening of metal is dono only in pits where sand and earth form a fair proportion of the material in the pit. Whero theso substances appear in only small quantities they are left for binding purposes. The council has not yet used a stono crusher, but is contemplating tie purchase of a plant. As an experiment, several hundred, yards of stone was brolton in the pit, and carted oil to tho road. This metal sot very quickly and made a harder and cleaner road. This argues u'oll for the crushing plant. Tlio council does not use a road roller. To prevent loose metal working off the road the grader is sent along to scrape in any stones and binding that are on the edge of the road.. This road grader is also used in winter and earlv spring to trim up watertables and. edges of the road. This greatly facilitates drainage of roads; In the hands of a competent man, this grader is a means of considerable saving iiß labour in the work referred to. In the making of new roads, metal is carted and spread between boards. These boards are set up at a width equal to tho width of the metal required, and are of <i height equal to the depth of metal .to be placed on the road.. A top board is also used, and this is cut to the camber of the road to ensure an even deptb of metal. Tho sides of the metal are banked up 'with clay beforo the boards aro removed, tho clay being the height of the .boards and sloping to the ground 18 inches from baso. In culverting, concroto is being used entirely. 2. To cope with damago done to roads by motor traffic and heavy carting is the main difficulty experienced. TJp to tho present the council has done nothing in particular to overcome, the trouble (ex* cept to raise rates and put on mnre\ metal). 3. No experiments other than tho stone-breaking referred to in answer to Question 1. 4. Burnt papa has not been tried. 5. The only madiino'used is tlie road grader, and this is an excellent machine. No tarring has been dono. Pohangina.

•Mr. D. Sinclair, tho; Pohangina County Engineer, gives much interesting information as to tho : conditions in tho county:— 1. Tho greater number of the roads in the Pohangina County havo been constructed and metalled by loans obtained through tho Loans to Local- Bodies Act. By this means about 180 miles of new roads were constructed, also a number of bridges, from money received in the same way. The majortv of these roads cost on an average jbout £6 6s. per chain; 'average width 14ft. Many of these have since been widened and improved, but.this was .the average cost at 'tho 'timo they were made, including: tho culverts. Since their construction they havo been maintained in good order from local taxes, and subsidy from the .Government. . Tho nature of the country roadod is that of valleys and' terraces, low hills, and gullies, all more or less broken, and rather difficult to road, on account of tho many gorges between the terraces and low hills. The general formation of the country is sand, .papa, sea-bed shingle, and more recent river shinglo, and in somo parts a clay surface; aud there are many outcrops of shell rock, indicating a marine 'formation, this formation reaches as high as 1000 ft. on-. the base of. the lluahinb iianpjcs, on their western side. The roads in'tho Pohangina County are metalled with sea-washed shingle, the greater portion of which is fine pebbles, and do not need breaking. It •is very hard, and makes a good road, its only fault is there being a porportion of sand with tho metal, _it does not bind vory- well. Tho river-washed shinglo is obtained either from the river-beds or the terraces along the valley, about one-third of the roads in the county are metalled by this rivor shingle, and about two-thirds of it is broken by hand-hammers. No stonecrusher has been used in the county up to the present time. 2. There have been no special difficulties in forming the roads, althoughmany deviations had to be made in tho line of roadSj from what was defined by the land surveyors who at first located tho road lines.... This shows-the great need there is for a better system of locating road Jines in new blocks of land to bo roadod. Land surveyors make very great blunders in this respect, for want of special knowledge in the art'of roadmaking. Practical road engineers' should locate the roads in every new block of land to be opened up for settlement, after which the land surveyors should sot out the sections from tho best road lines already defined. This would secure the best possible grades, and materially reduce the cost of construction, and at the same timo fix the best sites for bridges over rivers and streams, a thing which undor tho present systom is not the cuse. In many places in tho Pohangina County the roads havo been 'rather expensive, grades have been studied in preference to a little extra cost, seeing that a public road when formed and metalled is virtually fixed there foivall time, moi'o care should bo evinced in tho first placo to secure the best results for so permanent a work, as a. public road.

3. No need for burnt papa. ■ "The littlo experience liad proved very expensive. No need for it in this county. 4. No experiments have been tried. 5. This county has no road-roller, as it is for the most part too hilly. There, is a road-grader' for general use. The system adopted in this country for repairing roads is. as fpllows, and has proved tho most satisfactory. For a number of years tho council has had its own men and teams to do tho repairs. This is a sort of' travelling contingent, and it consists of four permanent men (and other casuals when and where required), four horses, and itwo drays, a road grader, and all necessary tools j also a small house on wheels, fitted up for the men with a stove for cooking, and all other requirements. They work for tho council all tho year round. Starting at one end of the .county, they take each of the ridings in turn, do what is required for the season, and then pass on to the next riding. While at times tho weather may be wot, and not suitable lor carting metal on tho roads, tho men fill in their time in cutting off points and otherwise improving the roads, 'l'bo grader is taken round with the teams and' used where necessary in removing grass and rounding olf the edges of the roads, to allow tlio' water to (lin away. An account is kept of all this work and its eost. At the end of each .year an adjustment is made of the cost in proportion to the time worked in each of/ tho ridings. These men and teams are under the control of the engineer, who gives them instructions from time to time, and arranges matters so that the permanent road men in each of tho ridings work for a time, with the teams until the required work is done, when tile teams puss on lo the next riding, and so on. hi any portion of. tho county where their

teams are not available, private teams are employed in the work of repairs, and carting shingle and cement for use ill the construction of culverts and small bridges, which take the place of the older wood structures as tliey become decayed, and so rendered useless. It should bo mentioned that when the roads were first made in this district the small contract system was adopted, the work was let in lengths ol' 1 0110 milo or under. The engineer graded the road by putting the pegs in at short intervals on the required grade, leaving ,tho top of all pegs tliroo inches above tho finished work. These grado pegs were not allowed to bo altered by the contractor, and bad to remain in position until the work was completed to the satisfaction of tho' engineer. This applied to all sideling formation. On all fillings and breast-cuttings the heights and depths respectively were marked on the plan in the usual manner. Also pegs put into indicato tho break of ground between cuttings and fillings. This system worked very well indeed. The deposits in cash were small. Tbis enabled any one of small moans who understood the work, or two or three mates, to join and complete the work in this way. In nearly every case good valuo was obtained for _ tho money spent. This cannot bo said of the "so-called co-operative system," /which is in many instances a wasto of public money, by tho "go easy" mode iu which the work is done.

Horowhenua. A steam road roller will probably be acquired by Horowhenua County shortly. Tho County Engineer, Mr. J. Malcolm, says:— Tho policy of my council since I joined it botween 13 and 14 years ago has been to keep road construction to tho front with settlement. I may say the county is fairly well provided with metal. This fact, together with the liberal assistance from the Government, lias enabled the necessary roading to he kept up to requirements without unduly loading tho settlers with rates. The expansion of the dairying industry has been responsible for a good deal of subdivision of land, and this has meant more roads, which have mostly been constructed by loans from tho Government, sometimes assist-ed by Government grants. In regard to construction we have been going on in tho old way, as wo had neither tho time nor the money for experiments, but wo liavo been quietly looking on at the experiments of others and picking up a wrinkle now and again. Of course, the advent of the motor-car is changing tilings for us and for all who liavo tho control of roads, and I have no doubt my council will fall into i lino with tho others in making provision for them. I have been recommending tho purchase of a steam road roller for years. My latest recommendation is before my council now, and I havo strong_ hopes that' it will bo adopted I this time. We have a stone-crusher and all up-to-date graders and scoops. We gave the carrying of our metal by | motor wagon'a good trial, but I regret to say we found it unsatisfactory and abandoned it. In regard to bridge and culvert construction, I have been using ja-rrah timber for all bridges for tho last ten years; and for all culverts from Din. up to 42in. cement pipes; but 1 have Tesolved to change my bridge policy, and wherever practicable go for ferro-concrete. I am about to call tenders for two small bridges, and if the results are .satisfactory I think it will be. concrete henceforth. Hawke's Bay County. Mr. C. D. Kennedy, the Hawko's Bay County Enginoer, writes as follows: — Tho Hawke's Bay County Council havo, until the last few years, had little difficulty in maintaining their roads in good order owiiig to the plentiful supply of metal obtained from shingle river beds, tho shhiglo beach, and shinglo and rubble limestone quarries. : This metal, though not first-class, is spread on the surface of tho road and consolidated by traffic —tho result, on tho whole, being satisfactory and meeting the demands. Until the advent of traction engines, motor lorries and fast motor traffic, the roads t'hrohghout tho county ootnpared favourably '.with roads in other parts of tho Dominion.' This cla6s of road is unsuitable.for tho traffic of to-day, as it very soon reduces tc dust' and becomes uneven. Experiments, on a small scale, have been made with tar, which, if applied on an oven and consolidated surface, is successful, and wears satisfactorily. . ~ With a viow to improving tho roads, tho council has. ordered up-to-dato machinery, consisting of a steam roller, scarifiers, wagons, graders, etc., and intends to alter tho present method \of construction and repair. _ My idea of an economic and effective method'of ! road-making in this district is:— 1. Proper drainage and firm foundation. 2. Tho use of machine-broken and screened stone, with tho screenings for a binder. 3. Thorough consolidation with steamroller. 4. The sealing of tho surface with a tar preparation, Waipukurau. Waipukurau County employs no permanent engineer, as it is a very: small county Tiio county clerk states that motor traffic is causing trouble on tho reads, 'but Bo far no tarring or other experiments havo been tried. % Patangata,

Iron) Patangata, ..the' big county . stretching.. up the' east coast from Weber to. near To Aute, comes the following reply .from tho county engineer, Sir. K. Gilbertson; — : 1. Tile county-policy is to have the road formation always 18 feet in width; metal.l 2 feet wide by 9 inchcs deep in first instance, with patching to repair waste- : 2. Tliero Is a great scarcity of stono suitable for. metal. Tim cost of stono quarried and broken by machinery and delivered in part of Wanstead-Pora-ugahau Eoad—on Main Trunk line—is 'lis. Gd. per cubic yard. 3 and 4. Burning papa rock wliero firewood obtainable afr no more than 'Jus. per cord.. Coat ot calcining papa rock .is fivo shillings .per cubic yard, but it is neither a durable, nor satisfactory class of metal. Blows away in dust in summer and will not. stand heavy traffic in winter. 5. No road-roller, but two stono crushing plants." Not sufficient tar available for use on roads. Aro now experimenting with reinforced concrete wheel tracks 3ft. wide, with an intermediate space 2 feet wide between tracks filled with asphalt and tarred shingle, 3 inches thick, well rolled. These tracks arc for uso ot motor-ears only, and are placed on one side of tho toad. , The cost varieo from £2500 to £3500 per mile, according to tho distance from available stone. Tarring \vo>ild bo the cheapest and most suitable of any treatment ot road ourfiicc, but tho quantity available is .much too limited in. tins part of tho country. It is contemplated after duo trial of tho concrete wheel tracks to obtain power to tax motor-cars up to £20 per milium, or induce the Government to institute a petrol tax and nllocate the revenue amongst local bodies, i;i proportion io the amount of traffic they have to deal with %nid the relative cost of constructing the tracks. Paiilntua.

The conditions in I'aliiiitua County ivere thus summarised by .Mr. Dillon, the county engineer:--1. Tho council is doing a grout- deal of road-widening, mid is gradually taking all sharp points off tlio roads. 2. The special difficulties in tlm past have been the groat numbers of slips oil tho roads, the elearbig of tlieso in

the Malawi Gorge costing as much as £1.700 in one year alono. Tho country, however, is now settling, arid slips aio less frequent. Metal is very scarce in the Tiraiunea Valley,, and has had to be carted over distances lip to about eight miles. Shell' rock is now being tried on the road in this valley. A grant is needed for the widening of the Malturi Road, which is too narrow for tho traffic it has to carry. Tho principal difficulty at the present day is to meet the strain motor traffic is putting 011 tho county roads. Roads which formerly lasted ten years after metalling, now requiro patching within two years.

3. The only experiment so far lias (icon for the council tc do its road work with its own teams, instead of by contract. It lias at present 21 horses, divided into seven throe-liorse teams, which are working all the year round. The experiment lias been a great success; and the work lias been done at a third less cost than previously. Last year five teams put down 12,682 yards of metal. 4. No burnt papa has, been used in this county. 5. Tho county has no machinery except a road grader. The purchase of a road-roller is under consideration, hut tho trouble is tho initial outlay. The Act does not seem to provide for tho raising of a loan for tho purchase of machinery. Eketaliuna. Mr. Allen 1 Beiiham, the Eketahuna County engineer, writes: — 1. Thoro being a plentiful supply . of metal in this comity, the roads at present are ill a fairly satisfactory condition, but my council realise that with tho increasing motor traffic a different method of roadmaking and maintenance is required, and they have not taken any definite . steps, they are watching with interest any new method that tends to make better roads. 2. We have had no special difficulty, excepting that of heavy traffic, hut that is now practically ended. 3. None. 4. AVe have plenty of metal, so hare not needed to burn papa. 5. Wo have only a road grader. Ponsaroa, ' Pongaroa's road problems are thoso of tho back country,, with a limited supply of metal. A bridging and mtealling loan of £28,000 is being spent, with' a Government £ for £ subsidy on all bridges and some metalling. The county clerk, Mr. H. R. Robinson, states that a lot of.burnt papa has been used on roads' 1 at & cost : of about 6s. or 7s. a yard, but has been found to be of no use at all. The ,roadmaking plant consists of a crusher and engine Masterton. Masterton County's main roads are well known" for their excellence. Mr. D. M'Lachlan, County ', Engineer, writes

In. reply to your first question, hitherto it lias been the council's first consideration to ; get along the roads with least possible expenditure. I : think, however, the council are now realising tlio roads are going back; some effort must be made to alter this condition, and have under consideration the advisability of purchasing a _ crushing plant The majority of councillors seem timid'to extract the full rate for even good upkeep. Many of our bridges aro old ana require rebuilding. 2. Our greatest, difficulty is the scarcity of good metal. • It is m some got over by ."the-use; of 'burnt papa. . 3. Practically no experiments; imy council take very, little risk. 4. I constructed sortie small lengths with' burnt papa for metal in the Alfredton Riding some four or fivo yoars ago, some of which has answered very well. It compares favourably with, dirty gravel pits; cost per cubic yard laid, 75.; in this caso the papa and firewood were convenient. ■ 5. The council has in uso a road grader, and has in view the further purchase of a crusher and plant,'My council has not tried experiments with tar or other like composition.'• Castlepolnt. In common with most of the East Coast counties, Castlepoint suffers from a scarcity,of good road metal. Mr. H.. Sutton, the County. Clerh. sends the following roply. ■ s , ' 1. Tho council's general, polioy regarding the county, roads is to keep them m good repair and at the same timo to make steady improvements so that each year shairfind at least an ap-' prcciable improvement on the previous year. .

■ 2. The two great difficulties are scarcity of metal and Tiigh price of labour; The council has found it more economical and efficient to uso a good road grader and their own teams than to depend 011 ■ manual labour. 3. Beyond introducing the road grader no experiments have been tried. 4. No. Papa is available, but most of the district is dostitute of firewood, and coal is out of tho question. 5. Council does not use a roadroller. Most of the metal used is from river beds and' is too soft for heavy roller. What little supply of hard metal is available can only be used for limited distances from sources of supply, owing to heavy cost of haulage. The road grader"gives decided satisfaction both "for crowning the road and clearing 1 water-tables. No experiments ill tarring roads have been made—conditions are unsuitable. Wairarapa south. ' The general policy of the' Wairarapa South Qoufity Council in regard to roads has hitherto been to metal or patch the roads with pit or river metal, as available, break it down to 1\ guage, and leave the traffic to settle, it. Now the traffic has undergone such a radical change, the council is considering othoi' and more up-to-date methods of roadmaking and maintenance. ■ The special difficulty is how to provide a lasting road for motor traffic at a reasonable expense, and so far that difficulty has not been surmounted. The council had tried filling pot-holes with fine metal, but this has not been successful; the motors scoop out the metal before it lvas had time to set. Burnt' papa haß not been tried in this county. The council has not a road roller, but iho purchase of one, with crusher and waggons, etc., is now assured in tho near future. Wlien the actual order for tho machinery is given, the' council intends to thoroughly investigate the road question, and experiment with various methods of roadmaking. Since tho advent of the motor-car it has been found that tho cost of maintenance of roads has increased 30 per cent., and it is practically impossible to keep iv decent surface on them by the use of water-bound macadam. A road just out of the county boundary was laid down not eighteen months ago with crushcd metal, and thoroughly made and rolled with steam roller It is n series of pot-holes now, which seems to prove that however well water-bound macadam is laid it will not stand motor traffic. Featlicrston. The Fentherston County Council has a road roller on order, and is contemplating tho adoption of more modern methodh of roadmakiiig.