Imperial Valley press., 1913-11-25

Z
Feasibility of various routes from
Yuma through Imperial Valley, report
by O. K. Parker, chief engineer, auto
mobile club of Southern California.
Data presented at Imperial Valley
Good Roads Convention, at Theatre
Tulane, Ell Centre, Cal, November
24th, 1913.
A discussion of the possibility and
feasibility of road from Imperial
Valley to Yuma is of decided interest
not alone to the people of the Valley,
but in reality to every thinking busi-
ness man in southern California.
The interest in road construction
has spread to every corner of the
United States; every state is actively
developing good roads system and
all are planning to connect their main
highways with the principal through
route just across the line.
Kansas has already accomplished
this with Colorado; so has Colorado
with New Mexico and that state is
working in harmony with Arizona in
a road to Springville and so west along
the Santa Fe to Needles.
San Bernardino county in the past
year has spent over $4,000 under the
direction of George Butler, supervisor
of the Needles district, on the i'm
provement of the road between San
Bernardino and the Colorado river,
and same district has $115,000 in its
treasury to continue work next year.
This activity in northern Arizona in
its efforts to get good road to south
ern California is produced by two in
centives: First, the desire for ready
outlet locally, and second, because
they hope to be one of the first and
most favored of trans-continental, or
national routes.
All Southern Route.
A. L. Westgard, vice president of
the National Highway Association is
now travelling an all southern route;
borderland rouse, if you please,
through Texas, southern Arizona and
into southern California. In southern
Texas Mr.. Westgard has been met
with great enthusiasm and he is right
now organizing a good roads assocla-
ton to build the road from FL Paso to
Fort Worth.
From Ell Paso the all southern route
will proceed to Douglas, Bisbee, Tue
son and Phoenix. Southern AriZonans
are in favor of the route continuing
to Yuma and across the Colorado on
the new bridge which you of Imperial
county arranged for on September IS,
when the Automobile Club of Southern
California took pleasure through its
special representative, Mr.. Carl e..
McStay in joining with San Diego in
providing $4,000 out of the $25,00O
needed to guarantee the bridge.
All of this enthusiasm and effort
can be productive of but one result,
and that is the general advancement of
commercial prosperity to the district
through which the. national high
ways pass.
Let thousand influential business
men with their families and friends
pass through this wonderful valley
next year and a greater number the
year after, and let them see and know
of the great possibilities for develop
ment and investment which your if
rigation systems are producing, and
can there be any doubt as to the re-
suits?
To bring about this desired influx
of new blood we must have good
motor road to the Colorado from
Phoenix and at the Yuma bridge we
must meet them with an improved
road into and through Imperial valley
and on to the Pacific coast.
Arizona is preparing to do her
share toward this result in voting state
bonds for a new highway system, one
branch of which will extend from
Phoenix to Yuma, but on our side of
the river we have as yet accomplished
but little.
1t is the urgent necessity for some
steps along these lines which has
been productive of this convention.
There have been efforts in the past;
but why dig into past history; we are
to look the future squarely in the eye,
and get busy on some one route, a
route which will serve Imperial valley
as a unit; not one section, or one fac
ton, but the entire valley.
How best can this be done? Let us
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