ARTERIAL ROADS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 57, 30 November 1917, Page 7

ARTERIAL ROADS

QUESTION OF UPKEEP

RESPONSIBILITY OF THE COV' ERNMENT.

The main arterial roads of New Zealand were one of tho matters discussed <io the conference of the Associated 'Chambers of Commerce yesterday. The following remits were on the orderl>aper;— "That the Government be roquested to solve the difficulty associated with arterial roads, by putting into_ operation a!scheme similar to the Victorian system, or that of the Central Governanent of tho United Statee, which provides tor construction and'maintenance on a basis of 50 per cent. Stato payment, ° and a 6 per cent, timo repayment system for the balance, apportioned among interested local bodies. Such a scheme would be useful in furnishing •employment for Uhskilled returned soldiers.'':—(W'anganui)i "That it be'a recommendation from this chamber to the annual conference, that the great main roads, such as tho Auckland-Wellington- Rond, bo constructed and maintained by the Government, as under the present systom of control the means available are'wholly inadequate in comparison with the supremo importance "■ cf improved aricriai roads."—(Hamilton)/ ' "That the present-..dual control of loads being altogether unsatisfactory, .the Government bo strongly urged to take over the control of-all main arterial 'roads; ,, —(Mangohui). Mr. IV B. Williams (Wanganui), in moving the first remit; said that delogates would readily'call to mind instances of roads which carried voluminous traffic of an'arterial'naturo, the rates from whiclr would bo totally inadequate to. Keep ttam' in anything like the repair which was necessary for safety. As \YoJI-kh6wn - instances of such cases might he mentioned the road through the Mauawatu Gorge, the Jlimutaka Road into the Wairarapa, and tho road ever Paokakariki. Tho first of these carried all the traffic between the West and East Coasts, the second all traffic froni Wellington to iWairarapa and the East Coast districts, and the - last-named nil' : road traffic from Wellington to the ' West Coast'of this-island/ and in each" case; .vice-versa. ■ ■ ■■'

• Softie particulars of the- Victorian ■■system of arterial 'road construction ,3ind. maintenance were given by Mr. AViHianis.' ■ •"" The.' Victorian Country 3lc'ads Act provides for the appointment of a board of three members, in which is vested powers similar in all respects to but wider than those IKisseseed by municipal councils under the Locnl Government Acts, but the jurisdiction and control by the board is confined to such roads as are declared to be main roads under the Act. The first duty of the board is to investigate the road'conditions throughout the whole of the State,' with a view to determining, after'consultation- with the Municipal authorities, what roads are Ad be main roads. The responsibility of determhing. what roads shall be main roads is entrusted to tho board, but the municipal authorities have the right of appealing to the Minister of Publio Works against its decision, and, in the event of such an appeal, the decision of 'the Minister is finaL

As soon as tho routes which arc to be main roads are. determined upon, they are* gazetted, and : tho responsibility for their. construction and continued maintenance then devolves upon •the board conjoiutly with the municipal authorities. Generally speaking, all works, whether of construction, reconstruction, or maintenance, will be carried out by tho municipal councils, but power is reserved to tho Governor-in-Council to direct that any works may be carried out by "the board, 'lhis latter power is intended to be exercised only in cases where tho york is of such magnitude as to bo beyond the capabilities of a municipality, or where several municipalities are concerned in the same work, or where a municipality neglects or to carry out any work. The cost of all works of construction is in the first instance to bo paid by the board, and at the end of each financial year the board is required to apportion half of tho cost amongst the municipalities benefiting by the expenditure, and on this apportionment of cost the instalments of interest and sinking fund payable annually by municipalities will be calculated. For maintenance frorks on the Victorian arterial roads a special fund has been created. It consists principally of fees, for the registration of motorcars and traction engines, as set out in tile second schedule of the Act, all fines und6r the Motor-car Act, rents from ' water frontages and _ unused roads, repayments by municipalities, and such other sums as Parliament may provide. The remits were adopted.