Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1908-06-05


NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. NOW UNDER
WAY WILL SHOW TO WHAT EXTENT
THE PUBLIC HIGHWAYS ARE sUF-
FERING FROM THEM.
Automobiles are road destrOyers says
a Washington correspondent of the
Richmond News-Leader. He says this
is the conclusion reached by experts of
the good roads department of agricul-
ture and of highway experts in practi
cally every country of the civilized
world. The net results of the cOnclu-
sion eventually will be that every own
er of an automobile will have to pay
tax on his machine, the proceeds of
which shall go to the repairing of dam
a ses done to roads by the horseless We
hicles.
1t is not known generally, but never
the less it is a fact, that the good roads
department is conducting a series of
experiments to determine just what
amount of damage is done to highways
by automobiles. The experiments are
being made under the direction of l..
w. Page, director of public roads, and
he expects to submit an elaborate re-
port to the International road congress,
which is to be held next October in
Paris In preliminary report on the
subject, Director Page says:
"While the racing car and others of
various weights and types made many
trips over the selected stretch of mile
and half at varying rates of speed,
from five to siXty-five miles an hour, a
corps of skilled photographers, equip
ped with the most modern devices for
photOgraphing vehicles at very high
speeds, made accurate records of the
various tests. 1t has long been known
to highway engineers that automobiles
were rapidly shortening the lives of the
rock-surface roads of the world, and
many experiments have been made in
the past six or seven years to determine
the actual cause of the damage done
''Those who witness our experiments |
could not doubt for a moment that the |
various road experts all over the world |
are correct in the opinion that very
rapidly driven automobiles are tearing |
up the surface of the macadam road,
for not only were huge clouds of dust |
lifted into the air and blown off the
road, but careful examination showed |
that the material under the wheel |
tracks of the machine was distinctly |
short period of these tests. No such
effects were noticeable after the pass
ing Of iron trOd vehicles, the series of
tests beginning with the passing of a
horse-drawn vehicle. This was photo
graphed as it moved along and also as
the wagon tires passed given mark.
Then the automobiles were sent over
the course The first was a heavy
weight touring Car, moving at five
miles an hour. A series of pictures was
made of that car on its many journeys
at varying rates of speed until its max
imum of fortylive miles an hour was
attained Then the work was taken
up by the huge racer, which tore down
the road first at a speed of ififty miles
an hour, then at tifty-ive, sixty and |
finally at siXty-tive. 1t fairly lifted |
the road-surfacing material rs it sped |
along, regular ridges of rock dust rising |
in front of the rear wheels and floating
away in binding clouds. 1t was plain
ly noticeable and was commented on
that the automobiles, when moving at |
the slow rates of speed, equal to the
speed made by horse-drawn vehicles,
made very little dust, tht theory that |
fast-speeding automobiles are response
BILE for road-surface destruction being
pretty thoroughly substantiated by |
these means"
1t is expected that within few |
years the statements of Director Page |
will be so well recognized that counties
and municipalities throughout the
country will levy a tax on fast-speeding
automobiles and perhaps on all horse
less machines.