Mulcting a Motor.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 42, 19 February 1914, Page 5

Mulcting a Motor.

CIRCLE OF TOLL-GATES. COUNTY COUNCIL'S ATTITUDE At yesterday's nr.ftehng of the County Council Ci\ Cfiistoffel up the question of toll-£\ces. gi> : ::g notice to move at next meeting that the whole question he gone into. There were nine miles and a half of the main road in the County, and if the revenue was on the same scale as at tln> Eltham County's gate there would be enough money to tar the whole of th length, of road. Cr. Smith said ho had come to the conclusion that the toll-gate was the only solution of the problem of making motor cars stand their share of the cost of the upkeep of the roads. Motor traffic had created a new condition of affairs. Everybody had to get out of the road of motors—the man who paid general and special rates and everybody else—and ieven if qnly tor that reason he favlored motor cars being specially taxled. Cr. Young also favored the gate. Cr. Walter said that if anything was done they should go further than suggested. Motor traf|fic would increase by leaps and bounds. The proposed gate at Waipuku would catch only the through traffic to Xew Plymouth, and he would favor a gate which would catch the numbers of cars in Stratford kept for pleasure. He suggested that Stratford should be circled—there should be a gate on each of the main roads. Motorists should welcome the gate. At the present there was much big stock traffic on the main roads and if there was a toll-gate, this would force all the cattle on the side roads. The chairman said he had changed his opinion as to where the gates should be placed. He now suggest-

ed that gates should be erected a little north of Midhirst, on Beaconsfield Road and west of Kaliouri Bridge. Gates so placed would catch the whole of the traffic going past St rat lord. He had found out that milk-carting could he exempted, and therefore it was not necessary to have a gate at Waipuku. The gates would do a lot to stop the traffic in cattle, which were driven from sale to sale, until there was hardly any life left in them.

Cr. Christoffel suggested that of the revenue from the gates seventy per cent, should go to the North Riding and ten per cent, to each of the other ridings.

Cr. Thomson stated that in Scotland the license fee for motor cars varied from £2 2s for a car not exceeding 12 horse-power to £42 for a car of 60 horse-power.

Cr. Walter quoted from a newspaper, showing that the Rowan roads in England, the formation of which was up to ton feet deep, and which had stood the traffic for centuries, wore beginning to break up as a result of motor Traffic.

The Chairman suggested that a resid nee for the north gate should bo so erected that it could easily be

'•hifted it' it was found advisable to alter the site. Tt would be necessary io have a legal opinion on the question whether or not local milk traffic could h« exempted 'from toll.

rt was decided on the motion of Cr. Christoffel that the principle of + i!!-ga + e>, he affirmed, that a tally be k°pt in the North Riding and that a committee consisting of the chair-

man and Crs Walter, Anderson and Christoffel, if the tally justifies it, he empowered to call a meeting of North Riding ratepayers to consider the matter; on Tuesday, February 21th, at 1 p.m.