Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1901-05-17
STATE ~ROADMAKTNG.
REPORT OF MASSACHUSETTS HIGH
WAY COMMISSION.

Repair Expense.
The report of the Massachusetts
state highway commission for the year
1900 shows that since its organization
In 1898 it has built 296 miles of i'm
proved road, about 46 or which were
completed in 1900. Roads laid out and
nearly completed Mt the close of the
year bring the total up to 31G miles.
which is only "a per cent of the total
of 1884 miles for which petitions have
been filed. The petitions came from
pa towns and 25 cities. From 1891 to
1900, inclusive, the legislature has APP
propriated S3,500,00Q for the construc-
ton and repair of state. highways, but
% per cent of the total cost of new
roads is borne by the counties in which
the roads are located. Beginning with
the year 1900 the cost of repairs up to
$50 per mile per year is assessed upon
the several towns; also beginning with
the anne year the salaries of the COM
missioners, the engineers, clerks and
assistants in their office and travelling
and Office expenses, amounting to
$4,000 in all, were met by n special
appropriation outside the 100000 for
construction and repairs.
AS to the depth of stone employed in
road construction the commission says:
The commission has estimated that nonporous
soils drained Of ground water at their worst will
support a load of about four pounds per square
inch, and, having in mind these figures, the thick
ness of the broken stone has been adjusted to the
traffic. On a road built OF fragments Of broken
stone the downward pressure takes a line at an
angle of As degrees from the horizontal and is dis
tributed over an area equal to the square Of twice
the depth Of the broken stone. If a division Of
the load in pounds at any one point by the square
of twice the depth of the stone give a quotient OF
four or less, then will the road foundation be safe
at all seasons of the year. On sand or gravel the
pressure may safely be placed at 20 pounds per
square inch.
Acting on this theory, the thickness Of stone on
state roads varies from 4 to 10 inches, the lesser
thickness being placed over good gravel or sand,
the greater over heavy clay and varying thick
nesses on other soils. In cases where the surfacing
exceeds six inches in depth the excess may be
broken stone, stony gravel or ledge stone, the ma
terial used depending entirely upon the cost, Ell
ther being equally effective.
Good road building gravel is compar-
atively scarce In Massachusetts. Where
employed it has beer used as it came
from the bank or has been screened, or
In some instances it has been crushed
and screened and then laid like mac
adam. Mr.. Charles Mills, chief en-
gineer of the commission, says:
The screened gravel roads are easily maintained.
but wear rapidly, and as the cost Of resurfacing is
nearly as great as the cost Of resurfacing a mac
adam road it does not seem to be economy to
continue their construction, except in localities
crhera stony gravel is abundant and broken stone
available only at great expense.
Some interesting experimental road
work at Truro, in which stone and
clay were tried. is described as follows
in the report:
Three years ago an experimental ROAD was built
in Truro. This road was of rounded beach stone
and clay. 1t has shown good wearing qualities,
but, owing to the shape and size of the stone used.
its cost was greater than would result from sub
shutting broken stone for the gravel.
The experimental mile of road built two years
ago in Truro has proved a success and is we'll
worth a description. The subgrade is loose sand.
There is practically no surface loan on the land
adjacent to the road. The drainage is perfect.
There is not much snow or frost during winters,
and the traffic is small in volume and light. The
subgrade was shaped to the grade and cross Sec
ton desired, and on this was spread clay, natu-
rally sandy. containing one part Of sand to two
parts of clay to a depth of two inches. Over this
was spread a layer of broken stone three inches in
depth. the fragments varying in sizes from one
half to one and one-half inches in diameter. The
broken stone was then covered with a layer Of
clay one inch in depth. A long toothed spike
harrow was then dragged back and forth until the
clay and broken stone were well mixed, and then
the entire surface was watered and rolled with a
two ton horse roller. An occasional sprinkling Of
sand since its completion has prevented the clay
from becoming muddy, and the surface is reason
ably smooth and free from loose stone.
The average cost of a standard mile
of road in Massachusetts was $S,0J1
for macadam and $7,074 for gravel
during 1900. By a standard mile is
meant one with n stone or gravel road
way 10 feet wide, with shoulders three
feet wide shaped to the same cross
section as the broken stone" 1t should
be noted that these figures include
painted guard rails at steep embank-
ments; also culverts Of vitrified or iron
pipe or of masonry where there is a
large volume of water. The commits
sion says that "there are several rea-
son why the average cost of state
roads in Massachusetts is greater than
1t is in other states" The first one to
be cited is the selection for early con
struction of the most difficult sections
OF long petitioned lines" Another rea-
son is the legislative min hour day in
Massachusetts against ten hours in
New Jersey and a 20 per cent excess
in the cost of labor and teams. In
New Jersey, we may add, culverts and
bridges over permanent streams are
provided at county expense, at least in
the eastern part of the state, while
guard rails are not usually erected on
the state road work.