Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-12-28
HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENTS
Review Of Work Done during
Season of 1911.
Main Ronds Leading Out of Burling'
ton and in Five Surrounding
Towns Now in Better Condi-
ton Than Ever Before.

The roads of Chittenden county at the
present time. when work for the season
of 1911 has Just been completed, are I'M
doubtcdly in the best shape they have
been since trails we're first made through
the wilderness. State Road Commissioner
g. w. Gates mas been liberal in his appro-
priation of money for the betterment Of
road conditions in this, the most Travelled
county of the State. and the results are
apparent to any one who does any travel
ing outside of the city limits. This is al.
of considerable Importance to burlington
and is moreover in one sense the citys
due, since it's contribution to the State
road fund is more than $1,000, far in ex-
cess of any other city or town. This
money consists of five per cent of the
tax on the grand list. and as Burlington
leads the State in that particular It CON
sequently lends in the amount paid .nto
the road fund.
South Burlington. Essex, Bolton. Col
chester and Milton are the towns In
which the greatest improvements have
been made. all OF which are oe per1na-
nent nature, a traveller along the Willis
ton ard liinesburg road would hardly
recognize some of the bad places which
formerly tormented him The State MAJ
put III 500 near the Eldridge schoolhousc
and made l,so0 feet of crushed stone road
/ way, Much has also been done there in
reducing the grade by cutting down the
! hill and filing in. On Iiinesburg road. or
| Fourth street. the State expended $1,000
| in putting in crushed stone, and effectu-
ally wiped out nearly a quarter of a mile
| of very sandy road
| The road between Burlington and Mont
pelier has been greatly strengthened in
Bolton. where $500 was spent I: mile and
half above the village in what was CON
sidored by Automobiles about the worst
place between here and Boston There
was Il stiff hill at that point with a num-
Der Of bad turns which made passing dan
Eerous. The turns were largely taken
away and a large difference made in the
grade. number of rocks formerly jut-
ted out to the roads edge so that the
passing of two teams was an impossible
tY and the road was little more than a
trail. These were blasted away, about 500
being spent in this task alone
The sum of 5000 was spent in the town
of ESSEX. but the work was more scat.
tered and confined mostly to Kidding the
highways of several sandy stretches
Crushed stone and gravel We're put In
large quantities on the main road between
the junction and Colchester and the work
carried right up to the Colchester line
About $500 was spent near the old Buell.
place above Essex junction and mucr
was accomplished in cutting down the
hill east of the Essex Classical Institute
and other hills at various points
Only the regular appropriation was cx-
pended in the town of Shelburne and this
was nearly all used in building a new
bridge over a brook on the main road be
tween Burlington and that village, Just
south OF the road that skirts the head OF
Shelburne bay. Much trouble has beer
experienced at this point with high water
which swept parts of the road bed away
II is now believed that this trouble has
been lone away with. In Milton, the
road. = short distance south OF Sandbal
bridge, as bettered by lenEthening the
approach to the iron bridge 80 feet and ir
lessening the grade six feet. Other i'm
portant steps in the direction OF good
roads We're taken all over the country
and If the same progress is made mex
year practically all of the main roads ii
, the county will be In good condition.