The Thames Star THURSDAY, JULY 10, 1919. COUNTY ROAD LOAN

Thames Star, Volume LII, Issue 13932, 10 July 1919, Page 2

The Thames Star

THURSDAY, JULY 10, 1919. COUNTY ROAD LOAN

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The depiUitajtion to the Coiumty Council yesterdayi proived that there is a. i strong feelimg1 against a loan' for r ■more -the main iroadj at pre- I sent). The comteatioon is piea-leotly justified. Evidently the ratepayers are impressed' with the need of improviog the main road and) will vote | the momeyi to do "this. This work wiM take, two years and <a half according to isitiatemente .made yester- j day. It- is harplly to be expected | theini that mi present disturbed I staite of things ratepayers will vote ' £40,000 or mare for works which will not even be commenoed for at least two a.nd a half years. It wo^uld . not be good business, and since. the j present Council will not be in office j when the couldi be begiun, j and no roads are named^—etxcep't the main, road- —it wouldl, not -be ian/pos-. siblei for the Coiuncill to apendi the money up on the ranges. The new Council) would! hay the conisenit of the rateipayers ;if the;present .scheme were caa-ried, and coiild deoidei aniic^ig. tlheansiejives* which were the most important "by-roads, and pa*actieally spend" the money wher ; e they Hjikedl. To . .appeal to the irateipayers, who, having been bitten before, are somewha.t shy, birds,' loan pro-J posals shoiuild be as definite as pos-1 sable andl as equitable as -they can! be made. * The present proposal, -mi our opinion, should' !be confined _to , !the main road;, sncei it will absorb aill attention foor a.nd a half yea.rs, and the loan required ior this should fo& spread" over ithe whole area, because it. is' -in; the interests of every farmer thait this main, artery should be made igood in order to. attract settlement) and pxomiat© tirade. The by-roads are differeiiit. Tb!ey concern only these in the vicinity, and it is manifestly unfair to- aslk. .seittlers' fifteen- m^es away who inever use them,' to p;iy anything for these. We woaild suiggest thalt. the by-roads shoi'ld be dealt with mnder riding loans, each area dealt with pacing only for the benentis, it will receive. The main road when completed will be ami object lesson that will convince settitlerg ithat good roada are oheapi at any pflce % and 1 each riding'^ requiremen^is could two years' hence "be formulated), including itiar-igrouitlj ing 'the most imiportanit of the roads, so that the maiaii road p? ant could go I straiprht on to the side l-oads, when. ' the m:a,i'n roadl is. completed. Ttii this ; moinirier those whoi benefit would pa.y for whatl they jgef, while .under tn« i piresent proposal; .i+-' is expected that people should pay for what others i

get. It "would 1 be xmsatisfiaiotory. to place tile main and side roads together dividing them into rid r ing loans, because there would be a danger of ome -riding rejecting its loan and breaking the continuity of the impuwed main road, but we are-of opiaioii that if the side-roads were dealt ■wdtfi. as riding loans, when the main road is nearing completion., each -set of loans, for both main and side-roads, would be carried, whereas -at ; prejsent both are endangered. , ~ : 5 ; " ■ -■ |