The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-05-21
Road Machinery and Width
of Roads.
What Highway Committee Found and
What Is Preferred.
The Condition of Things In the State
and Improvement.

The highway committee have the following
to say in their report to the Assembly as to
important factors In highway work:
The steam roller and steam crusher are al
most as essential TO modern road building as
the proper materials themselves Where
broken stone or gravel are to be used, the
cost of rolling with steam roller is Ger
tainly less than that OF the wear and tear on
vehicles and horses. If the compacting is left
TO be accomplished by the traffic, and the
taxpayers must pay for one or the other.
Modern builders OF stone crushing plants
have greatly improved tho methods of setting,
SO as TO mako the handling OF stone for crush
ing much more economical. Who're stone
crushing plant is TO be set for any length Of
time it adds greatly to the economy Of tho
work to erect bins into which the stone, as
crushed, is elevated by suitable machinery.
by power from the engine which drives the
crusher. The screen which separates tho
various sizes OF stone is erected at the top OF
these bins. and is connected by shutes with
the bins, so that each size OF stone occupies
its separate bin. These bins are raised above
the ground TO q sufficient height, so that a
cart can be driven under them, and the stone
is drawn through properly constructed gates
or valves into the carts. An arrangement of
this kind does away with all shoveIing OF the
crushed stone. from the time IL leaves the
crusher until IL is deposited upon the road
where it is to be used. Some of tho best mod
erD crushers are also set flush with the sur
face of the ground. or platform, on which
the material to be crushed can bo dumped
directly over the mouth Of the orusher. thus
avoiding great deal Of handling.
In the course of the examination of the
roads Of the State the committee saw many
places where portable stone crusher could
be used to great advantage, there being guam
titles Of suitable rock and boulders along the
sides Of the roads, which could be utilized
for road metal. These portable crushers are
mounted upon wheels and are practical and
satisfactory working machines, their great
advantage, of course, being in the fact that
they can be set up just at The point where tho
material is 1t may happen, also that they
may be furated within short distance from
the read which it is proposed to build, thus
effecting a great saving in the cost of cartage.
The road scraper is IA popular machine in
this State, and is useful and valuable II intol.
ligently used. "Tho use OF the scraper is to
remove from the road surfaco the weather
and traffic worn material which no longer
possesses Conference, and which, no matter
how well rounded mp and rolled, will be con.
verted into mud after the first shower Of rain"
rather than put 1t back into the road.
This material, together with the mud from
the cutters, has some value as a fertilizer,
but none whatever as road making material.
In other words, the proper use Of a scraper is
to scrape from the center TO the outside, not
from the outside to the center, as Is com
monty done.
Stone crushers and steam rollers are, of
course. expensive machines, and the large
outlay necessary for a town to equip itself
with them will probably deter many from
doing so. but IL seems perfectly feasible for
two or more towns 20 Jointly purchase a com
plote outfit of road-makng machinery. TO use
the apparatus in common, and TO agree to
bear their proper share of the expense Of con.
struction and repairs.
WIDTH OF COUNTRY ROADS.
Although the first cost Of road is practi-
cally in direct proportion to its width, the |
cost for maintenance and repairs is gov
erned largely by the amount of traffic. II the |
traffic Is at all severe IL will bo cheaper TO |
maintain moderately wide road than mar. |
row one, on which, being confined TO one |
track, the traffic Will wear more severely |
than IL spread over wider surfcae.
The average width macadamized varies as /
follows: In the United States, 10 feet: in |
France, between 10 and 22 feet; in Belgium
"a feet, and in Austria. from 141S to 2G1i feet
On many OF tho roads of this State. where
the traffic is moving mainly in one direction
at a time. macadamized or eravelod width of
eight feet would be amply sufficient on
roads OF more importance, where Ii IL neces.
sary to provide for the frequent passing Of
vehicles,a stoned width Of 10 feet is necessary.
1t is probable, however, that a minimum
Width of 10 or II feet would DO better than
eight feet, as the traffic would not be 40
closely confined TO one track, and the edges OF
the road bed would be less likely TO DO
pushed out. Drivers should DO better in.
formed as 70 the Importance Of not constantly
following one line in using a road, and should
be instructed 10 drive over all parts TO pre-.
vent the formation OF ruts, which are great
destroyers OF roads.