The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1913-10-02
Some Road Problems.

Working toward our aim or max
ing the highways of Iowa safe, we
have taken up with the several rail-
road companies operating in the
state, making Of safe crossings.
Ihe railroad companies indicate a
willingness to do their part, but the
part of the railroads is only a lesser
part, the boards of supervisors, the
county engineers, the township trus-
tees and the public in general have
a greater part in this problem, the
boards of supervisors, engineers and
trustees have the duty of making
the entire approach to the railroad
crossing safe, while the railroad
company has the duty of that part
of the approach which is in their
right-of-way, and the owner OF the
land adjoining the right-Of-Way owes
a duty to the public and the railroad
company to remove timber, hedges,
brush, weeds and all other obstruc-
tons that make the approach to the
railroad crossings dangerous, and
the public in general should furnish
a public sentiment that would see
that all these duties are performed.
There is no time of the year more
important than this for the repairing
of the highways. The commission
recently ordered the county engin-
GERS of the several counties to take
up the responsibilities upon them by
the new law for repairing of the
county highways and we expect to
enforce this order, and if the county
highways are not repaired we would
like to have complaint made to us of
this fact.
Newspapers of the state the last
few weeks have made many COM
plants because the county road sys-
TENS have not been dragged by the
boards of supervisors this year
The new law makes it the duty of
the boards of supervisors and the
engineers to contract for the drag
ging of the county roads and see that
dragging is done under the contract,
and in the communication spoken Of
above to engineers we have called
their attention to the fact they must
make contracts for dragging county
roads and the roads are to be drag
ged in the fall and winter, there is
no season of the year when drag
cling is more important and more
effective.
The commission hope that public
sentiment will help them get the
county roads repaired and dragged.
Under the new law the township
trustees have as great or greater
duty to drag the township roads as
they had under the old law.
The commission started out in
May to make the bridges of Iowa
safe, and in this undertaking we
have had the assistance of many
boards of supervisors and most coun-
ty engineers, and we claim to have
accomplished great deal in this
undertaking and by the time the con-
tracts awarded are carried out and
the work undertaken is completed
there will be more than 100000
worth of safe new bridges in Iowa,
nearly all of them permanent
bridges. But this task is only be-
gun and it is time for every one in
terested to plan work for next year.
The taxes available next year will
NOT make all the bridges the boards
Of supervisors might wish to build,
and commercial clubs, business men,
organized farmers clubs, individual
good road boosters should chip in
some money for this great cause, any,
way without the cost of any money
you can say a good word for what
has been done this year and give en-
couragement for doing more next
year.
Talking good roads does not al
ways make the roads better but we
find it to be the usual things that
better roads follow free discussion
about that job.
The commission has good roads
takers and boosters of character
and experience that are available for
good road speeches this winter with
out cost to the community, and if
you want to hold good roads meet
ing write our Highway Engineer,
Mr.. T. H. Macdonald, at Ames, for
a speaker.
Yours truly,
II. T.. BEARD,
Member State HIGHWAY Commission.