Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1912-02-02
HIGHWAY DRAINAGE.
(By E. F. Ayres, Highway Engineer,
Oregon Agricultural College.)


Oregon Agricultural College.)
Oregon Agricultural College, Cor
vallis.-It has been said that one of
the saddest sights in Nature is af-
forded by the man who gets stalled"
in a mudhole with his load Of pro-
duce, and wears out his whip, his
temper, his vocabulary, his religion
and his team in a vain attempt to
get to market. And yet this same
gentleman will probably oppose any
suggestion that the road should be
improved on the plea that the cost
would be excessive. Overzealous
friends of the Good Roads move
ment are largely responsible for the
idea that no road can be called i'm
proved without the use of some eX-
pensive surfacing, and this concep-
ton must be corrected before Ore
gon will fix her earth roads suffi-
ciently to sustain the traffic. AS long
as this doctrine is confined to those
who openly oppose any attempt to
better our primary transportation
system, very little harm is done, but
when it is found to be the accepted
faith of many road supervisors, it
assumes serious proportions.
In the construction of the most ex-
pensive pavement, not one ounce of
road metal can be spread until proper
drainage has been provided, or Z in
other words, until first class earth
road has been built to sustain the
surfacing. If this work is essential
few days before the stone is ap.
piled, why not try it a few years
ahead and save time and money when
the increased traffic warrants the
larger expenditure. Many of our coun-
try roads will need no surfacing for
many years if they are given little
attention now.
There are three rules which must
be remembered in the building of
any road, from the mountain trail to
the city street. 1st, get the water
off the road; End, get the water out
from under the road 3rd, get the
water away from the road If these
rules are followed you will have a
pretty fair road in any country, un.
less you happen to be building
through a sandy country, in which
case all rules should be reversed.
To get the water off the road, it
is simply necessary to keep the ruts
well filled, and provide sufficient
crown to carry the water to the side
bitches. In the heavier soils of the
willamette Valley a crown of l inch
to " inches to the foot will be am
pie. On very wide roads this can be
reduced slightly, but it is rarely ne
cessary to build road over 80 feet
wide between ditch lines On narrow
roads, such as are sometimes una
voidable in the mountains, the dis
tance from top of crown to bottom OF
ditch should be at least IL inches
in this case, the extra depth being
furnished at the ditch line.
Everyone knows that the grade oi
a hill limits the load which can be
hauled over it, but few realize the
effect these excessive grades have or
maintenance and drainage. All grades
over 5 per cent should be reduced
J if possible, for on sleeper slopes the
J water will be very apt to cut its
own channel in the center of the
travelled way instead of going tc
the bitches. If the crown is increased
to point where the water will shet
quickly, the road is dangerous fol
traffic. The road will not rut badly
but the top layer of earth will bt
very slippery, and large crown will
be likely to slide wagons into the
ditch. The old road builders tool
care of the problem by building
thank-you-marms, or water breaks
and while these had their use a
. one time, they should no longer bt
tolerated in civilized community
If the same energy expended in tn,
construction of these abomination.
is used in reducing grades and crown
ing the road, there will be no furthe
use for their existence.
Not only must the steep grade b,
avoided in highway construction, bu
care must be taken that the road il
not too level. Water must have
slope of at least inches in 100 fee
to flow freely in the bitches, an,
no road should be built with les
grade, but in such cases the ditcl
must be given the minimum slope
] and the water taken away at fire
quent intervals The better plan i
to raise the road above the surround
ing country, and then build to tn
l minimum grade in even undulation
l of about 500 feet.
1t is a comparatively easy matte
to get the water off the road, tn
real trouble beginning when we tr
to get the water out from under tn
road. In this respect the road builde
in a sandy country has the advant
age, for he Is never troubled wit
either springs or seepage. The heay
Ter soils will develop soft spots an
holes which seem to be bottomless
even after the surface has been thol
oughly drained. The road drag fail
to remedy conditions, and all grave
stone, brush or other material dunn
ed in the holes is soon lost.
III 1t is very probable that this diff
Guilty is caused by the undergroun