DOMINION HIGHWAYS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 16 April 1938, Page 9

DOMINION HIGHWAYS

TWO HUNDRED MILES OF NEW PAVING EACH YEAR. IMPROVEMENTS FOR ROAD SAFETY. (By Mr J. Wood, Engineer-in-Chief, Public Works Department; chairman, New Zealand Main Highways Board; member, Road Safety Council). Do you know how many miles of roadway there are in New Zealand and what proportion of it is first class, according to modern standards? We have over 40,000 miles of road that can be used by a motor-car with a reasonable degree of safety, and approximately one-tenth of this has been paved. This tenth can be assumed to be entirely adequate for two-way traffic. Of the remaining 36,000 miles, a fair proportion is wide enough for two-way traffic, but in country districts particularly, many roads vary considerably in width and are lacking in good visibility. Under che Main Highways Board’s road improvement programme approximately 200 miles of new paving is being completed every year, and improvement in the alignment of highways is being extensively carried out.

Such works are constantly increasing the safety of our roads for modern high speed traffic. It must be remembered that the nature of our country does not permit of uniform road conditions everywhere, and to provide roads with easy curvature and standard width in every district would not only' be impracticable, but prohibitive in cost. The Main Highways Board believes, however, that its present and proposed expenditure on highway improvement is quite sufficient to keep pace with the needs of the fast-growing traffic in this country, and that nothing more is at present economically justifiable. Every road user must, therefore, take into account the fact that he cannot for many years to come expect universally good road conditions, and should learn to practice road safety commensurate with the type of road upon which he travels. A motorist familiar with paved roads will encounter quite different conditions on a road surface with a loose coating of metal or grave, and he must watch carefully to drive so as to conform to the altered conditions of road surface. A loose gravel road surface requires particular care when travelling round bends, or when braking, in order to prevent skidding. Where a road is narrow or the view ahead is obstructed, the best precaution is to reduce speed. Every driver .is required by law to drive at such a speed that the vehicle can be brought to a standstill within half the length of the clear roadway which is visible immediately in front of the vehicle. The speed of driving on a winding road should be strictly in accordance with this requirement. Great care should be exercised in driving on a wet pavement. The Main Highways Board is trying to build non-skid paved surfaces, but untill all paved roads can be so constructed skidding will take place if due consideration is not given to the state of the road. There is undoubtedly a duty placed upon reading authorities to make roads' as safe as possible, but road users can contribute much themselves. The presence of warning signs indicating sharp bends, road intersections, narrow bridges, or railway crossings are for the guidance and safety of motorists, and should be a constant reminder to the public that a road is only as safe as the individual road user makes it. If Easter is fine, New Zealand roads will be carrying record traffic. It is up to road users to see that there is not a record death roll.