Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1907-11-20
TRAINED SUPERVISION
IT'S NECESSITY In BRIDGE AND CULvERT
WORK FOR COUNTRY ROADS.
Paper Read Before Iewa Goad Roods School
at Council Bluffs by Seth Dean, Civil
Engineer. Glenwood, Iowa.


| By proper organization of the force!
we now have a nd by proper use of the
materials to be found in most counties
of the state, very effective results
would be produced. For construction
and maintenance purposes the county
should be the unit and the Board OF
Supervisors, who are elected by the
people at short intervals Of time
should represent their interests. This
Board, which is now charged with
the duty of providing the necessary
funds by making the tax levy, should
have general supervision of the
work, should approve the contracts
and decide on the final acceptance OF
the work after the contract is com.
pleted
The working out of the details in
the field, such as determining when
and where, and the amount of work
to be done, the kind and size of
bridges and culverts and other water
ways, should be under the direction
of an engineer. The engineer should
be selected by the Board and employed
under contract by the year He should
be required to possess a certificate
from some state board of examiners or
a diploma from recognized engineer
ing school as proof of his COM
potency. He should furnish bond
running to the county as do other
county officers A suitable Office and
the necessary assistants should be
furnished. The engineer should have
in his office complete records of the
location of all roads in the county.
the width Of the right of way, a
record of the number and location of
all bridges and culverts or other
waterways, their length, kind of
material used in their construction,
and the cost, so far as he can get it,.
should also be kept on file. IT he is
located in one of the average counties
of the state for size and mileage. he
will have 1895 miles of road to look
after. He will find according to the
1905 census) that his combined county
and township road fund will be about
$31 $50. so and the county bridge fund
about $19, ,0lS SO as resources to carry
on his work. His county is already
divided into sixteen townships wit h
GA. SO miles Of road in each. This
will be about enough mileage for one
contract for year.
The engineer should first divide his
road into three classes. In the first
class are the roads that carry the most
travel and receive the heaviest loads.
These are generally the main roads
leading into and between the market
towns. The second class are the
neighborhood roads that lead into, OF
connect as feeders to he first class
roads. The third class roads are such
as connect individual farms or that
exist for school purposes alone.
| 1t is of course not necessary for me
to suggest that the heavier and better
bridges should be put on the first
class roads, and those that have begun
to show signs of weakness to be taken
out or removed to the second or third
class roads and that wherever con-
crete eulvert can be economically SUBJ
stituted for an iron or wooden bridge.
| it should be DONE The culvert il
properly built, is the most durable,
and being covered with cushion OF
earth, makes uniform road surface
to drive over.
In bridge work it is generally econ
omy for the county to buy the iron
spans from reputable bridge companies
on specifications Of what is required
at the place the bridge is to be used.
Let the county bridge gang put them
up. The bridge gang can also put in
the culverts, the county buying the
cement in car lots and the sand ac.
cording to local circumstances. This
crew works usually by the day, but il
considerable cement work is required
during the season it is fully as cheaI
to contract bv the cubic yard. Cement
work should be put in under proper
supervision as much of the success OF
it lies in the proper mixing and plac
ing of the materials.
The engineer should keep in close
touch with the county board and
make reports of the amount of work
done by the various contractors
monthly in order that the Board may
know how the financial part is com.
ing out, and whether the contractors
are meeting the requirements At the
end of the year he should tile with
the auditor report of the year
work, the amount of money expended
for the maintenance of the road bed,
the amount of grading done and the
amount paid out for bridges. This
report should include estimates of the
work required for the next year.
| Under this system it would be pos
sible to tell at any time where the
money was being spent and whether
the work in one township was costing
more proportionately than in another.
There would also appear in time q
sort of rivalry or personal pride
among the different contractors as tC
who was maintaining the neatest anC
best road district in the county. This
spirit might be further encouraged by
the offer of substantial premium fol
high class work.