FOXTON-LEVIN HIGHWAY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume L, Issue 3979, 3 August 1929, Page 2

FOXTON-LEVIN HIGHWAY.

RAISING OF THE WHIROKINO ROAD. At the conclusion of his address tfi the Foxton Lunch Club on Thursday, Mr. H. Y. Bond, Engineer to the Manawatu County Council, was asked if he thought there would be. any great difficulty in raising the AA’hirokino portion of the Wellington-Auckland highway to make it safe from flooding. Mir. Bond said the matter was receiving a good deal of consideration both at \\ r ellington and by the Manawatu County Council, and before long some scheme would be submitted in connection with this matter. Something would be done, he could assure the meeting of that, hut whether the road would he raised or a deviation .made he was not in a .position to say. Rev. Walton said that in England .thefre was a similar strip of highway leadiug into Yarmouth, which for many years had been subjected to. regular flooding by the sea. The road was 8A miles long as against about half a mile at Whiro- • kino. There (the trouble had been successfully overcome by the raising of the road and placing culverts at regular intervals along it. The protecting of the Whirokino road was of paramount importance to ,th,e whole of the North Island and almost a matter of National importance. If it was effectively protected it would he the means of saving a great deal of money to the •Manawatu County Council. Mr. Bond said that the method adopted in England would be ve-ry expensive and England was a. country that could stand such expense. Last year over £61,006,000 was spent on roading works in the United Kingdom. New Zealand was a young country and could not stand anywhere near ‘ such expenditure. He assumed his audience however, that the matter was receiving very serious consideration by both the Main Highways Board and the Manawatu County Council.