£50,000 WANTED

Waikato Times, Volume 121, Issue 20274, 17 August 1937, Page 8

£50,000 WANTED

ROADING SUBSIDY. WAIPA FIVE-YEAR PLAN. FULL AMOUNT NOT AVAILABLE. (Times Special Reporter.) TE AWAMUTU, Monday. Further efforts have been made by the Waipa County Council to obtain a pound for pound subsidy from the Main Highways Board to the extent of about £50,000 so that the council might proceed with the first year’s schedule of its five-year-plan for main highway construction, but at the monthly meeting of the council, to-day, it was learned by the members that the full subsidy for the year will not be available. With reference to main highways construction, the Hon. W. Lee Martin forwarded for the information of the council, a copy of a letter he had received from the Acting Minister of Public Works concerning the council’s main highway proposals for the current year. Mr Lee Martin said that the position was that under the State Highways system, the completion of the principal arterial highway through the Waipa County was now the responsibility of the State and not the county and the council was desirous of carrying out a substantial programme on the remaining highways. The proposal to expend a gross amount of £67,500 during the current year, would involve a subsidy from highways funds of approximately £50,000. The Minister was sure that the council would appreciate the position when he pointed out that the amount of subsidy represented more than onetenth of the total allocation for the whole of the No. 2 District. This allocation related not only to Improvement works such as was proposed by the Waipa County Council, but also to bridge renewals and regular maintenance work throughout the entire district. The council's representations would receive every consideration when the estimates for the current year were being finalised but owing to heavy commitments Mr Lee Martin did not think it was at all likely that the council would be able to secure the whole of the amount it had applied for this year. In a second letter to the council, Mr Lee Martin outlined his further enquiries Into the matter of sealing main highways in the Waipa County. He understood that the council had applied for a substantial allocation on the current yearfs estimates, but that the District Highways 'Council had found it necessary to reduce the amount so as to keep within the finances available. Fair Allocation Necessary. He said that highways funds required to be distributed with some regard to the relative requirements of the various districts and it would have been inequitable to favour one local body with a large allocation to the detriment of other bodies which also had urgent and desirable works requiring attention. The usual procedure was for detailed engineering proposals to be submitted for approval before monetary authority could be granted, and apparently no such proposals had been received from the Waipa Council in respect of items which had actually been recommended by the District. Council, considered the Minister. If the usual procedure was followed, the Minister did not anticipate that the council would have any difficulty in obtaining authority to proceed this year, with portion of its major programme. Reply to Criticism. Commenting on the criticism of the Highways Board’s policy from the last meeting of the council, Mr Martin said he understood the board had been criticised for making super-highways and was failing to make provision for secondary highways. The Minister stated that the council should have been aware that such was not the actual position. The main arterial highway through the Waipa County was now part of the State arterial highway on which construction had been in progress for some time, but tho Minister did not know of any objection having been made regarding the standard of the work. “ It should be evident that when an arterial road through a county is completed it does not necessarily follow that the same rate of expenditure can he applied to secondary highways, because arterial sections in other places have to he dealt with in a progressive manner,” said Mr Lee Martin. “ Notwithstanding the fact that an active programme on arterial routes is now necessary, due largely to the inactivity of some local bodies in the past, funds are being made available for secondary highways in such a way as to enable improvements to he affected from time to time. It is obvious that all work requiring attention cannot he carried out concurrently and I have reason to believe that the policy of the Main Highways Board, based on the recommendations of the various district councils, in regulating work throughout the highways system, is producing general satisfaction.” continued the Minister. £278,000 Too Much. As the major reconstruction works on the Important arterial highways were completed, it was anticipated that more attention to secondary highways would he possible, but, in the meantime, the Minister considered that, it was hardly reasonable of one local body to expect to be able to undertake a programme involving a expenditure of £278.000 within only a few years, when this would, in ‘his opinion, be sacrificing urgent and important works where perhaps traffic and safety considerations were greater. Mr Lee Martin, in conclusion, assured the council that there was no lack of sympathy on the part of the highways authorities regarding improvements on main highways, but it. was necessary in the public interests lor State funds fo he expended with due regard to the relative merits of the various works requiring attention. “ Tho fact remains that the board ran make provision for grants to provide for the construction of roads where there are no ratepayers and which are used for tourists only. The populated areas are not so well provided for," said Mr D. H. Livingstone, referring to the expenditure on the (Continued In neat column.)

new Walkaremoana Road. “We have an important five-year scheme to put into operation and we cannot get the required money,” said the chairman, Mr S. C. B. Macky, who added that he had not anticipated that the Main Highways Board would be able to provide all the money the council required. “ We should he reasonably satisfied, but, it. is a pity we could not receive the full grant,” said Mr G. S. Clarke. Minister’s Opinions Vary. “ On the one hand we have a Minister saying that the county Is selfish in wanting money to launch a progressive policy, while on the other hand another Minister of the Crown urges us to amalgamate so as to obtain more efficient working and °ncourage more progressive policies. The whole matter is contradictory. Most counties are efficient enough now, as they are. hut few can obtain the money to carry out that efficiency fo the best advantage,” commented Mr F. L. Onion. The majority of the members considered that the council would be fortunate if it received a portion of the requested grant, for the scheme for road Improvement could he commenced, at least, and it was thought likely that greater financial assistance might be obtained next year. Ordinary Road Work. With the resident engineer of Public Works. Hamilton, the county engineer has prepared a five-year schedule of the proposed works throughout the county for taking up the usual Government grants subsidy for construction and metalling. The schedule was approved bv the meeting and will he forwarded to the Public Works Department this week. Plans have been completed for 4* miles of the Te Awamutu-Cambridge main highway, from Te Awamutu to Story’s Road. The engineer considered that the reforming and sealing of the Te Awamutu-Cambridge main highway would bo started within two months. The chairman regretted that the Main Highways Board - cation for highway construction had been less than the amount anticipated. This would curtail some of the council’s work in the entity. Banish colds quickly and economically—Heenzo (Heau’s Essence). (4)