East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-10-22
METHOD OF BUILDING
SANTA MONICA ROAD.

SANTA MONICA ROAD.
The Santa Monica Land and Water
company and the Alta Santa Monica
company, Of Los Angeles, have a new
system in road construction and the
successful results of their new meth
cd is greatly appreciated by all mo-
tourists who journeyed to the beach
y piece of oiled road has just been
completed from the Soldiers Home
toward the Pacific ocean, north of
Santa Monica that has in the Judgment
of experienced road builders, an inn
portant bearing on road development
in California. 1t differs from the or
binary street or road oiling that it
is verltable construction of n street
out Of natural soil with the use of oil.
The resultant product is in fact very
like an asphalt-lies as smooth, and it
is believed will last nearly AS long.
While more expensive than careless
"oil sprihkling," which experience has
determined is practically useless. 1t is
SO inexpensive as TO be practical for
use in cities and upon the main coun-
try thoroughfares.
This new road is l3O-foot boule-
ward. with car tracks along the CEN
ter ana the width from curb to curb
| is 60 feet.
The road is a sandy loan, with some
aGmiNture of blue and red clay, slate
and gravel; is graded and plowed six
inches deep, and is pulverized with
harrows. 1t is very dry, small
amount of water is sprinkled on and
mixed in so as to make it workable.
OIL is then applied at the rate of one
| gallon to the square yard, and culti-
vators mix it into the depth of four
Inches; second gallon of oil to the
| square yard is then applied and cul-
| tivated down to six inches. The oiled
surface is then turned under four
| inches with a turning plow.
Up to this point the process does
net materially differ from that in
general use where careful work is done
| in mixing the oil with the soil. But
! the next step is radical departure,
and marks the beginning of a new era
| in road construction.
The process next succeeding this in
| the common practice of road oilng
is the rolling of the road, which
crushes down a thin scum on the sur
| face that later scales off and leaves
( tn road full of chuck holes. But with
| this new system the next process is one
of tamping.
A cylinder about 10 feet long and six
| feet in diameter, weighing about 5000
| pounds, and furnished with rows of
| tlat-headed teeth. Is hauled back and
forth slowly tamping the oiled earth
up from the bottom to within two
inches of the top.
| When the tamper first goes over the
road it sinks the teeth, which are six
| inches long, their whole length in the
soft oily earth; but by each rolling
\ or tamping a new layer of solid as
| phalt is plastered on the bottom. and
/ the cylinder rises a little out of the
mass until, when the tamping is COM
pleted, the mixture is so solid that
the teeth no longer sink in.
There is q vast difference between
| merely crushing the surface of an
oiled road with roller and tamping
six inches of oil from the bottom up.
That difference means greater en-
durance for. the tamped road.
When the tamping is brought to
within two inches of the top, the road
is regarded, and the last two inches of
| loose surface soil are cultivated and
given another gallon of oil to the
square yard. This makes three gal
| Ions to the square yard, all applied
warm, so as to sprinkle freely. Again
the cultivtor and then the tamper,
this time worked until it reaches the
surface. When the tamping is done,
the surface is a little uneven from
the marks of the teeth, but that Is
taken out by a roller weighing two
tons per IL inches of tire. A more
perfect surface can be obtained by
slight sprinkling of gravel before the
roller is used.
This work costs about 16 cents per
square yard. The cost on the ordinary
street where no grading is needed
WOulu amount u dDOul oU CelltS u
running foot of frontage. In other
words, If done under the Vrooman
act city street could be paved for
| about $40 to the lot of average size,
provided that curb, sidewalk and gut
| ter we're already in place.
The oil used is of 1875 gravity,
Baume, containing 50 per cent of soft
d grade asphaltum, free from sedi-
ment and gravel. The time required
for this work is about 20 days to the
mile.
! Several streets in Santa Monica,
Cal, have been constructed by the
tamping system, and they nave shown
almost perfect endurance. One in
particular has borne heavy traffic
for over two years, and is now prac-
tically as it was when originally laid.
The Santa Monica system seems to
supply an ideal plan; for, to have at
reasonable cost what is practically
an asphalt pavement but quiet and
free from dust, is about as advantage
Gus a thing as one could desire In
| roads or streets