A CONCRETE SPEEDWAY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 35, 5 November 1917, Page 6

A CONCRETE SPEEDWAY

THE NEW HUTT MOTOR EOAD. The passing of the Hutt Eoad Amendment Bill by the. House last week is more than likely to bo the beginning of a .new departure in the form of co/1■struction of arterial highways as far as New Zealand'is concerned. It provides for between five and sii miles of wellfounded concrete Toad, 25ft. in w.dtn (with possibly a resilient surface), connecting Wellington with Petone, to be laid down along the centre of the existing 100 ft. macadam road. The history of the road, which has brought about the new Act, is too recent to go into details over. Suffice it to say that the now Hutt Eoad, built by the Government' at the time of its widening, has, not shown the wearing qualities expected of it, and ,what was a line road five years ago is dow very patchy, and in places is nearly as corrugated, as it was in the old days ■before the road was widened. This is largely due to the heavy and increasing motor traffic. When the City Engineers estimate for +.ho repairs and maintenance nf the n.ad .•were presented for approval to the Hutt Eoad Board, the representatives of Petone and t\e Hutt Boroughs (Messrs. J. <W. MUwan and H. Baldwin) moved to reduce the same by half, ns a protest against the policy of repairing a macadem road in the old ineffective way. They intimated that it would be much more economical for everyone concerned if the road surface wero made permnn. cnt, and advocated tho engineer's scheme of laying down a concrete track 23ft. wide, between Wellington and Petone. This idea grew in strength, with consideration of its advantages, and finally Mr. John O'Shea (City Solicitor) was instructed to draft a Bill, giving powct to borrow the Bum of <£30,000 for the construction of the track. This Bill provides that all owners of cars in Wellington, Miramar, Karori, Onslow, Petone, and tho Hutt Boroughs shall pay an annual road license fee of iil 10s., n,nd ownera of motor-cycles 10s., the money so derived to be used for the payment of the interest on the loan and the cost of the maintenance of the (rack, whilst the contributing bodies will still have to maintain the rest of the road out of rates, as at present. This charge,■ however, will be a much reduced one, as it is well known that the motlor traffic is the great disintegrator of road surfaces, and with tho placing of that traffic en a concrete Toad the chief agent of destruction is being disposed of. Ordinary wheeled traffic will not be allowed to use the concrete track. The concrete road for motor traffic has conie to itß own in America, and is rapidly linking up the great centres, reducing tyre expense and road upkeep costs, and the opinion of motorists here is that, the said problem will have to be faced in the arterial roading of this country. _ The Hutt i motor road marks a beginning.