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Hokitika Guardian, 29 October 1929, Page 4

IHE big figures published in respect to the Main Highways Board expenditure for the Dominion, indicate that the general improvement to the arterial roads is to go on, and the fact that some £25,060 of Highways funds are earmarked for local district road maintenance, shows Westland will participate in that general ex. penditure, The of expenditure suggests that Die main roads specially ear-manted lor the expenditure, should soon be in first-class, not to say, superfine order, and that the time is arriving when from these Highway funds something substantial should be spared for the back' block and by-roads. These latter serve tne settlers who provide the produce and create the traffic for the main loads. Many of these district roads are direct feeders to the railway, carrying freight all the year round lor the benefit of the working railways. It would not be difficult to pick out these roads of such national value, and though they do. not come under the category of Main Highways, might be included in a special class of their own, and subsidised as are other roads out of the Highways funds. The funds are augmented largely by benzine, tyre tax and the petrol tax, and it is the motor traffic which is the special feeder of the railway. On that account all such roads carrying traffic to the State railways should be scheduled for special treatment. Such roads are subejet to considerable wear and tear, and- their upkeep’ fails oh • the local revenue, of which the settlers' rates! are a substantial proportion, indeed, settlers’ roads generally should li£ recognised as worthy'of special help from the large fund collected for 1 highway maintenance. Folloiving the large programme of works set down for this year by the Highways Board all over New Zealand,, there should be a margin next year ,to devqte to the secondary roads. In Westland, for instance, with the building of bridges on the main highway and the special attention to the surface and other improvements, the genera]"condition should be so satisfactory that when the next, s hednle of works is being prepared, something should be set down for the district roads, which though not declared main highways, are the special feeders for the arterial traffic, and carry a large proportion of the industrial products of the countryside. These roads, too, are ind'spensible to the motorists, who as a body contribute so greatly to the funds for road works in Now Zealand.