GREAT SOUTH ROAD

Hokitika Guardian, 30 October 1929, Page 3

GREAT SOUTH ROAD

WORK OF EXTENSION BEGUN. .Without fuss or oratory the work oh the extension of ' the Great South . rtiad iroin Weheka onward’' was commenced yesterday morning at . 8 / At the time stated, some ten or S dozen men started the formation on- the-: first section of this road : —the extension of which means so much for the future prosperity of the Far Soifthv commenced is a deviation oriudetdur from the present route, in ‘ d£deriit%o reach suitable bridge sites fpjji.crossing the Fox and Cook rivers. T-h& nh-w road starts on the Fox Glacat right angles from the V- existing main south route above the Ebx Glacier Hostel, after the road descends from the Waikukupa Saddle. ■ road as surveyed, is 7 miles 68 chains in length to where it rejoins tlje south road route beyond the present Saltwater Creek (Onietamatea) crossing. The. surveyed lines includes ‘ the three bridges over the Fox and Cook- rivers, and the Saltwater creek. The tiyb former bridges will be designed on' the lines of the Waiho river bridge. The road is being formed 18ft wide, gnd is to be metalled 14ft. wide. ■ At present there are about 15 men on the work, but another batch of ten iyill be added, and more men- will he > piit on as the workmen’s camps arc erected. The first camp is on the Fox Glacier track, and the second camp is across Fox river. The carpenters are erecting comfortable hutments, so'that the men will be housed close to their work. The section in hand is under the charge of Overseer Crompton, who has been sent down from the North Island. It >is exceedingly pleasing to the settlers in the south to find this long hoped-for and much advocated work in hand. When the present section is through, motor access as far as the Karangarua, some thirteen miles beyond Weheka, will be possible. This , will Be a great boon, and will mean motor vehicle access will he possible all the year round to within 10 Hfjles of Jacob’s River Settlement (Rrnce Bay), or 20 miles only from iifahitahi. The possibilities of speedier. transport mean much to the southern- settlements referred to. and will firing the folk much nearer the centres and "the markets. This pleasing prospect will he a great : encouragement to •those in. the Far South, and will open fhe way to more substantial progress.