The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1891-07-10
: PRACTICAL ROAD BUILDING.


Thomas Nevins, OF East Orange, N. u.
thinks about the effect Of improved
roads on land values. Mr.. Nevins is q
practical builder Of roads as well as q
man who knows how to turn them tc
account, and the facts which follow are
gathered from conversation with him,
'New Jersey has about as fine sys'
lem Of broken stone roads rs there is in
the United States-in all, about 80C
miles. The Telford plan has been
adopted and. l think, has proved it,
superiority over the Macadam system.
The latter, you know, consists of merely
spreading broken stone on an eArth
foundation. This would be all rig Il
It were not for frost and rain. But
when the road has been well soaked by
. heavy rain, or when a lively thaw
follows heavy frost, the foundation Is
sure to soften and let the surface stones
sink into it. Then repairs have to be
made by putting on more broken stone.
The next year the frost and rain do their
work again and more broken stone must
be applied This is kept up until enough
stone has been sunk in the road to make
firm foundation, when good road is
obtained. The Telford system includes
q solid stone foundation in the first place
and thus requires fewer repairs and
really costs less in the end.
"What is the average cost of well
built Telford road? Well, say from 90
cents to $1.25 per square yard. The cost
depends, of course, largely upon how
near the building materials are to the
scene Of operations. M&#
"a road sixteen feet wide is about
right for most farming communities.
That allows plenty of room for big loads
ct hay, etc, to pass each other and allows
for the increased traffic which is sure to
come with the added prosperity brought
t@A community by road improvement.
A voad sixteen feet wide and twelve
inches deep costs on the average about
f12, 900 mile. A road six inches deep
can be ,huilt for $4,000 a mile, but the
$4,000 mile saved in first cost is more
han made up for by added cost for re-
ltirs and the great difference in en-
dtrance.
''This question of repairs, by the
way, is one that ought never to be over
looked. 1t should be considered as care
fully as the building of the roads in the
first place. No matter how well you
build your roads, they will go to pieces
in comparatively short time if left to
take care Of themselves. On the other
hand, if they are intelligently cared for
they will last pretty nearly forever. The
best way to do this, it seems to me, is
for community to advertise for bids
for repairing its roads for long term of
years-ten anyway. The contract should
be carefully drawn up, with explicit
ecifcations, and awarded, of course, to !
lie lowest bidder. Among the provis-
ps should be one providing that in case
be contractor fails at any time to keep
by given mile of road in good condi-
Zopa as per contract, he shall forfeit
The pay forrepairing that mile for the
entire quarter during which the offense
occurs. Then inspectors should be ap-
pointed to carefully examine the roads
,very month or two. These inspectors
should have no regular time of visitation,
but should visit different sections of the
roads at irregular and unexpected times
;hus acting as a wholesome check on the
contractor. These inspectors should, in
my opinion, be in the pay of the state.
The importance of making long repair
contracts is easily explained. The say
ng "A stitch in time saves nine ap-
plies to roads as well as to anything
Else. One load of stone, if put on the
road as soon as the need for it becomes
apparent, will go further than six loads
would after few months delay Con-
;ractors will recognize this fact and see
20 it that the roads are kept in first class
condition all the time, providing their
contracts run long enough to make them
;he losers from delay.
'It is fair to estimate the cost of re-
pairs on a good Telford road at about
300 mile per year. And 800 couldn't
De BETTER invested than in keeping mile
If good road in repair. Union county,
Y. j has sixty-six miles of Telford and
t costs $4,000 year to keep it in repair.
IN Summit, N. j., there are twenty-five
niles Of dirt road and it costs $1,000 q
year to throw dirt on them and keep
hem in state of sticky, rutty, muddy
md dusty impassableness. Summit could
put down eight-foot wide macadam and
xeep it in repair for twenty-five years
'or what she pays for keeping up her dis.
equitable dirt roads. This will apply
more or less exactly to every other place
hat clings to the old mud holes and
yrayel ridges and calls them roads,
Yes, lam in favor of convict labor
N the roads, but it must be well direct
ID. have had men working as fore
men for me for twenty years whom !
wouldn't trust to take charge of build
ng road. It's better to get high
riced man to direct operations and
ave good road as the result than it is
D get a cheap man and have poor
Dad
Briefly, my idea of how to build
BOD Telford road is about this. The :
should be eight inches deep
Id should consist of well sledged and
int broken stone, set on edge, with the
vt edge down to give good bearing
rface. On this should come three
ches of three inch broken stone Of
4 u - =.