BAD ALL THROUGH.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 161, 13 January 1914, Page 3

BAD ALL THROUGH.

The Great South Road. "Worst Main Road in Australasia." Government Should Take it Over. The condition of the Great South "road, which haa just been so unfavourably criticised by the Mayor of Hamilton (Mr A. E. Manning), was referred to in strong tsrms by the Mayor of Auckland (Mr C. J. Parr) on Saturday. Mr Parr, who has just travelled over the road, says that it was never worse than it is at the present time. "There is no doubt," he said, "that the state of the road is a senous handicap to motoring to and from the city, for the whole of the road from Newmarket to Huntly, with the exception of good patches at Olahubu, Papatoetoe and Fapakura, is abominably bad. 1c is prabably the worst main road in Australasia. People from the South who use the road can take away with them only a bad opinion of our main trunk road. 1 am pleased to see that Mr Manning is moving in the matter. He realises that Hamilton and the Waikato are greatly in need of at least fair main road communication with the capital city."

It was pointed out by Mr Parr that it was useless to expect the local bodies, most of whom were small road boards with limited iinances, to undertake the adequate maintenance of the Great South road. The only satisfactory remedy would be for the Government to take over the upkeep of the roar), as he and others had often advocated. The road districts in many ca3es were very sparsely populated, and the rates that were collected were very small. It was, moreover, not to be expected that small, struggling road boards should maintain a main trunk road which was used mote by travellers and tourists than by the local residents. As many as 30 motor cars frequently passed along the road in one day. The Rangiriri Hill, which was about 10 miles'lung, was in a very bad state, and beyond that there was a bad 6tretch of live to seven miles of pumice road.-;, which was full ot holes, many of which were about a foot d2ep. Tha Razorback, which was loosely metalled on the old foundation, was also in a bad condition. The remedy, Mr Parr added, lay with the Govcviment and the travel ling public. The Government Bhould certainly be again asked to take over the maintenance of the mcin trunk roads.