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Hokitika Guardian, 15 February 1928, Page 2

Tiik n mount ol consideration to bo mctetl Oilt to Bl'nUlgh i’otlntils under ilk‘ moSit highways system Is likely to be wry fully t'ohsldered liy the I bodies ooUcefnetl iit l.lb l Mltuiciiinl Coillerenee shortly to sit :it. X'elsoh. Tin* position of the sin'aller boroughs is by no .means clear, mid llie Green Island Borough Council has taken the matter up. In tlie course of a letter hearing "ii the subject it was stated that after careful cou.sidoraion the Green Island Council had come to the conclusion that coping with preseiiUiliiy traffic was no longer ii problem fob individual local hollies, lint was essentially a nat'onal one. This question applied inori larticularly to smaller ii’bboligh.s, i;i which the reconstruction and mainton■nice was becoming a burden which was increasing year by yrtiv. despite the assistance which some received in the khu)K> of subsidies from the Higl ways Board. With the passing of the Main Highways Act and the selling up of flic hoard it was anticipated !hat the harden of reconstructing and amintaining nibiii highways would he liftf<l h l qhi local antliohities. The policy ol the board, however, had been merely to subsidise reconstruction and maintenance work, and it was stated that this involved considerable expenditure il any permanent success was t > be achieved. The letter Went on to say that members of councils were reluctant, to saddle their ratepayers with an expenditure which went towards maintaining national highways, therefore support lot - the following remit was requested : —“That the present htw relating to tht> construction, reconstruction and iiiamtonance of high ways in the Dominion lie amended so ns to enable the Main Highways Board to take over and he wholly responsible for the main roads in the Dominion with a view to coping with present and future traffic requirements.” Members of a North Island Council, which considered the matter, were unanimously in agreement With the proposal, and it was explained in I answer to a question that road hoards | received much more assistance in the matter of road construction than borough councils. Tt was decided to support the remit at the conference. The Hokitika Borough Council proposes discussing the matter with the Main Highways Board when visiting Hokitika next month. It was pointed out at the recent meeting that the streets generally are being used for traffic off the recognised main highways, and now that money is being raised bv the petrol tax a proportion of that sum should go direct to the borough, irrespective of any subsidy, because in towns all streets are in general use by motorists, and the motor traffic is not confined to a single route. The Boroiighs have certainly a very good case for special consideration, and it would be wfcH to talk over the pros j

and cons with the members of the Board, and see exactly what the policy is to he,