The Times. PUBLISHED ON TUESDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOONS. FRIDAY APRIL 20, 1917. ROADS AND MOTORS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 6, Issue 268, 20 April 1917, Page 2

The Times. PUBLISHED ON TUESDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOONS.

FRIDAY APRIL 20, 1917. ROADS AND MOTORS.

" We nothing extenuate, nor set down auaht in malice

Tiie discussion at the last meeting of the Franklin County Council upon the question of toll-gates on roads, though it appears to have ended somewhat inconclusively, has at all events served purpose of again drawing public attention to the unfairness of the system by which public roads are practically entirely made and maintained by rates imposed upon the owners of land. The " Times " has on more than one occasion pointed out the wbsurdily of the users ol the roads escaping in so many eases from any responsibility for their construction and repair, and i| is gratifying to notice that the custodians of our highwavs are at last beginning to have doubts as to whclhei landowners should leinain the sole ami onh contril)iitors to t lift-• i—t ii| our llioioiighfares.

]ll lllis Country WC IlilVc lll'CII -n accustomed for iiiiiny years in seeing the landowner looked nil as llir iinlcli cow of I lit- community, to lie I'uiiikliml up and milked every I ime there is a demainl for e.\|ieii(liture. thai Die popular sense of justice has heroine Iduiiled, and it scarcely occurs to (lie ordinary man to ask himself whether those who make use nf |ii ivilejfes oii»hl not In help to pay for them.

We are not ' -o foolish us io contend I'lir a iiionieiil that the owner* of land do not lienefil, and very largely lienefil. I>\ having yood roads in the \ icinih ol I heir properties. They must alw a\ - he Hie principal conlrilnilors. Hut <ni! contention is that the host of othei

people, .who : often jualfe. pxxtch greater use of the roads and inflict more injury on them-than the. landowners do, should-fee made to contribute at least a moiety of the cost of maintaining them. How great the use of the roads by nouratepayeis may be- we may-gather from the statement of".the chairma of the County Council that- on one county, road two-thirds-of-rthe traffic was motor traffic fronr Vi out-' side," and the upkeep of the road' had cost the council £3,000 in th* last three years. We me in the habit .of-talking loosely about "taxing the land" as if the land was a sentient beingand capable of.paying taxes. Itis, of course, the owner of the land who pays the taxes, and usually lie has to pay them from the profits of (he labour he applies lo"tf*e4fmd. Ji he is not using the land and il is consequently not producing anything, he has to pay tlrenv out of capital, and capital is nothing' more or less than stored labour.

We are thus careful in clearing the ground and making the position as.plain as possible because we shall probably be told that to compel the carter or the shopkeeper or the commercial traveller to contribute to road •maintenance would be to tax his labour. Whatwe hold is that the present system is a tax on labour,.*and Jbe--cause it principally (alls q\\ one class of labour, the farmer, if be-'-? comes that most obnoxious thing,; a class-tax. . But even if we are' told that the people who use the. roads simply in performance of iheir business ought not to be (axed, we have little expectation of. having, the same pl«j ...made on behalf of ..the.many who-mse theloads simply for pleasure, and;who, owing to the speed at w&ieh they travel, .very..often do atfost damageof nil.. ; :" ./'.:,

There appear l<bt be at present only two?, methods* by Vfrieli- the local authorities- t.an compel the users of the roads ; to help to pay for their privileges. The first is the erection of toll-bar%.,'- -.-These, will catch the users of roads-in exactly the proportion in which they use them, and tio. molle .jpist way of raising revenue has everbeen devised, 1 hough they may,bg. an occasional annoyance to fhe' man in a hurry." The other way is by imposing a substantial yearly tax upon the owners of motor-cars, graduated' according to . horsepower. This, would-mean that the owner of a car who nses it seldom would pay.as much as the owner who -was : continually rushingabout, but we suppose it would be a' little, too soon .to suggest-that load mileage should be registered on a locked speedometer and paid. for like-.gas is, though we have no doubt that this system-^Hr J be applied some 'day.' ' One thing art" least is'certain, and that is that the users of roads will have' to reconcile themselves to having to pay at least a trifle towards their maintenance. - ' •'•sif. •• \--*3'-i