Evening star., 1907-11-16
DUST ON THE ROADS
MOTOR CARS HAVE INCREASED
THE NUISANCE.



Dust prevention and road destruction
in and about Boston have been receiving
the attention of the Massachusetts, high
way commission. the metropolitan park
commission and the Boston park commits
sion, and so many experiments are being
made on large scale that before long 1t
is reasonable to expect some valua--e
information will be obtained. The work
is particularly interesting account of
the extensive use of automobiles in the
Boston district and the consequent de-
structive travel on most Of the good roads
in that vicinity. One of the most thor
ough tests Is being made by the metropol-
itan park commission on the Revere
Beach parkway. portion of this we'll
known roadway was treated with tarvia
last year and another portion has been
similarly treated this year.-The process
sion of motor cars along this parkway
is close one at certain times of every
pleasant day. and the effect of the treat
ment in preventing dust and the destruc-
ton of the road is consequently being de-
termined with unusual thoroughness. In
places the roadway which was treated
last year has gone to pieces, rayeling
out somewhat like ordinary broken
stone road in very dry and windy wealth
(
quantity of loosened stones. but even
there the road is practically dustless. The
latter condition has been obtained without
any watering. which shows the value of
such application in preventing dust and
indicates that while the first cost of an
application may be large, the saving due
to the omission of watering may largely
counterbalance the expense of applying
the tarvia.
1t is believed that these badly worn
places are due to the effect of the heavy
motor-car travel; but there are other
places where holes occur which are be-
lieved to be due to the presence of too
much clay or loan in the binding mate
rial used in making the road OF to the
application of the tarvia when the road
bed contained considerable moisture. In
this connection it might be stated that
there is a marked difference between the
methods of applying tar preparations in
the vicinity of Boston and the methods
which are considered most satisfactory
in France. In France never more than
thin coat of grit. amounting TO little
more than a mere sprinkling, is applied
to the treated roadway. while about Bos-
ton a heavy coat Of screenings seems to
be considered necessary. This and some
other differences in methods result in an
average cost of about y cents per square
yard for tarring some Of the Massachu-
setts roads, as compared with about
cents in France.
While tarvia has been used extensively,
other preparations are being employed
and some of them have already had con-
siderable use. An experience with one of
these a preparation of Kentucky oil, in
which some asphalt is dissolved. at Re
we're Beach indicates that where the sur
rouudineS of the road have to be kept as
clean as practicable. it is necessary to
take special precautions to prevent their
staining from the spreading of the prepa-
ration beyond the surfaces to which 1t is
applied In this particular case concrete
care was taken to prevent the llquld from
reaching them. This liquid leaves the
roadway almost black and an attempt
consequently made to keep any of 1t
| from the Light gray cutters. This was
successfully done While the material was
being APPLIED. but during the night follow
ing its application a rain occurred which
washed some of ii into the cutters. which
We're badly Stained in consequence, there
by injuring one of the particularly at
tractive features of the roadway. An at
tempt will be made to restore the appear
ance of these cutters by cleaning. An
other interesting experiment with this
preparation Of Kentucky oil and asphalt
is being made by the metropolitan park
commission in Watertown, where a long
stretch of gravel road is being treated
with 1t. If a gravel road can be made
more durable and its dust reduced by
| such an application, the result will De
decidedly important, particularly in
those districts where good roads gravel
| is aDunQdnI anu broken stone is COStly.-
The state highway commission Is pro-
ceeding in a conservative way to test the
various methods of reducing the wear on
roads, and expects to spend about S20,r NJ
| this year in the work. For the present
! its experiments are confined to the use
| of tarvia, as it seems to give a more dur
| able surface than other preparations
| which the commission has observed in
| service While the latter may be success
| full in laying dust. the commission de-
| sires to obtain some material which wnl
| actually improve the surface of the road
or at least reduce the rate of its de-
| terioration. An interesting fact which
| has been brought out by the experience
to date is that the application of pre-
| ventives of dust and wear to new
road is of little value. The surface of
the new road is open, and until it has
| been subjected to enough traffic to become
| consolidated and to permit the cementing
| action of the aerials to form a COM
pact mass the application of tarvia and
! other preparations seems to be Of little
use.