GOOD ROADS.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 February 1919, Page 7

GOOD ROADS.

WHAT IS BEING DONE IN AMERICA. (From Our Own Correspondent.) Wellington, Feb. 15. Good roads are a feature of the American cities, according to Mr J. W. Marchbanks, eugineer to the Wellington Harbor Board. Mr Marchbanks paid attention to this subject during his recent visit to the United States and lie was much impressed by the efforts the Americans have made to create roads that will carry heavy traffic with a maximum of ease and a minimum ot wear and tear. The best of the American roads, says Mr Marchbanks, apepar to have a concrete base, carefully laid down, with a covering of tlfree inches of asphalt. Natural asphalt, or bitumen, is used, and not tar. In some cases the base is put down in two coats, with a fine wearing surface on top. The wearing surface is sometimes of asphaltic concrete, two or three inches thick, with a base of concrete. The asphalt wearing surface is the smoother and gives the finer appearance, but the asphaltic concrete give 9 the better grip for horses and motors. The smooth and fast concrete roads are not without their disadvantages. They are slippery in wet and frosty weather, and the municipal authorities in the American cities find it necessary to put down sand at such times. The roads have to be kept very clean. Some of the cities have used vitrified brick for their roads. This material, says Mr Marchbanks, gives very good results. As Seattle he saw some pavement of vitrified brick said to have been put down twenty years ago and still in fairly good order. He saw at Buffalo asphalt that had been down for twenty years. Tho city of Buffalo has 2SO mile 3 of asphalt roads, 27 miles of stone set roads, 45 miles of other-good roads, and only 14 miles of macadam. The roacadom road, in fact, is regarded there as a pobr road. Nearly all the American towns have now a proportion of asphalt streets.