CLASSIFIED ROADS.

Shannon News, 14 August 1925, Page 3

CLASSIFIED ROADS.

NEW CHECK QN \IEAVY. TRAFFIC. From correspondence received at Saturday’s meeting of the Honowheiiut County Council, it appears that local bodies, under the new Mam Highways regulations, will have effective powers of dealing with heavy traffic. They will be entitled to limit Loads to the strength of'the roads by. a system of classification. The Ho-roi-whenua County has decided to adopt tills classification immediately.. A circular letter was received from the Main Highways Board in respect of regulations as. to the use of motor lorries on highways mot classified under the Public Works Amendment Act, and asking whether the. Council desired a temporary classification (such as closing a road during the winter months) or one of a permanent nature, wherein the weight of any motor lorry .would he restricted on certain highways for any or all of its roads. The regulations showed the classification to be as follows: First class roads, any lorry. Second class roads, any lorry which with load does not exceed 8 tons. Third class roiad, any lorry and load up to 4 tons.. Fourth class road, any lorry and load up to 24 tons. Cr. Harkness; Those are about pur roads—fourth class. The chairman said -that at present any lorry could go ton any road. If the roads were classified into first, second, third and fourth class, they, could prevent loads ‘that were too heavy going on unsuitable roads. If they found that undue damage was being done to a road, they could classify it. The Engineer instanced the Arawhata Road which was. nearing completion, but had been cut to. pieces by flaxcart-ers. As much as four tons of fibre on a 3$ ton lorry had been taken out at a time. Cr. Gatley said a payment towards maintenance had been promised in this case. ' ' , Cr. Broad-belt urged that they should classify the. roads at once. There were very few roads, in the County that diu not suffer at one time or another during the year as a result of excessive traffic. 'Hie flaxmillers had promised not to cart more than one-ton loads on Arawhata road and put it on to a big lorry at the end of the road and they also promised 25 per cent, of the year’s, maintenance. The Paiaka road was in exactly the same condition. Cr Bryant said the same thing applied to the North Manakau road, where timber was carted. The chairman said any road w-itn a. sawmill or flaxmjll at the end ol it was in the same position. It was proposed by Cr. Rroadbelt, seconded by Cr. Bryant, that immediate steps be taken to have all the roads i*n the Hoxowhenua County classified according to the strength of the roads. , . In answer to Cr. Barber, the chairman said permission could be given to anyone wanting a load of metal over a road to got it. The motion was carried.