NORTHERN ROADS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 908, 27 February 1930, Page 8

NORTHERN ROADS

COUNCILS WANT LARGER SUBSIDY INSPECTION BY MINISTER *From Our Own Correspondent HELENSVILLE, Today. In reply to a deputation yesterday afternoon, the Minister of Public Works, the Hon. E. A. Raneom, said the country had “gone a little bit wild on the highways system.” He was inspecting the main highways in. Waitemata County, and was met by a roadside deputation, which asked for a higher rate of Government subsidy for the formation and bitumen-surfacing of seven and a-lialf miles of the Lincoln Road. This section has now been adopted as the main highway to the North, between Henderson and Kumeu. In his reply Mr. Ransom said the time was approaching when settlers in the back areas would begin to derive a direct benefit from the highways system. Mr. L. E. Kerr Taylor, chairman of the Waitemata County Council, was supported by several other speakers. They explained that a maintenance subsidy of £2 for £1 was being received, but the ratepayers of the Waitakere Riding, through which the road ran, had rejected a proposal to raise a loan to enable the road to be reconstructed and bitumen surfaced with a £3 for £1 subsidy, and free formation. Not more than 10 per cent, of the settlers used the road because of water and rail communication. * RATES INCREASING Rates were increasing every year/ and practically all the revenue from the riding had to be spent in maintaining this road. Only about 20 miles of the 70 or 80 miles through the riding had been metalled. As member for the district, the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates supported the deputation, and stated that the Highways Act Avas intended to meet conditions of this kind. The roads were becoming an impossible burden, and settlers who did not use them were having their rates forced up to meet the requirements of tiie main highways. Although the land was not of good quality, the farmers were making wonderful headway by hard labour and the constant use of fertilisers. Mr. Coates said later that he was opposed to the principle of any highways money being distributed at the will of the Minister, and also to the handling of highways funds by the Minister or the Public Works Department. BURDEN ON SETTLERS Mr. Ransom gave the deputation a sympathetic reply, and said that in many cases the standard of the roads had to be raised to an extent which it had not been intended should fall on the settlers. Too much progress had been made to stop at any one stage. He was of the opinion that a luxurious habit of expenditure had developed. Several other deputations were met along the road. The Minister inspected the Waimauku-Muriwai Road, where the County Council, after spending £2,500 of its loan money, is requesting the Highways Board to metal the remainder free. At White Hills a request was made to metal three miles of the road link between Dairy Flat and Wainui. The council desires a free grant, and also a better Highways Board subsidy than £3 for £l. The Minister agreed to pay for metalling on the Motutara Road, near Muriwai until the end of the financial year. This will come out of the backblocks vote. He also promised to consider the metalling of the road from Parkliurst to South Head, in the Mairetahi Riding. The council states that it io spending practically the whole of the £1,700 collected in rates on this road. NEW ZEALAND MATERIALS After inspecting 22 chains of concrete penetration roadway laid down by the Waitemata County Council at Albany, the Minister said He was opposed to so much money going to America for bitumen if it could be avoided. He said he was very interested in this particular experiment, but he'kne the Public Works engineers were no satisfied. However, if the council could make a satisfactory road at a cost equal to or slightly more than that of bitumen, he would support it. He approved the use of New Zealand materials for road-making. Mr. Furkert said tjie road had withstood the tests made on it, but he did not consider the surface satisfactory.