The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1913-04-24
Chairman Of State Highway
Commission Outlines the
Road Work for Year.
CONCRETE ROADS PLANNED
Kenosha County is to be One Of the
Leaders in the Building of Perma-
nent Roadway Chairman of Com
mission Says State Will do its Part.

John A. Hardwood, chairman of the
Wisconsin State Highway Commission,
has sent out an address to the people
Of the state dealing with the question
of road building in which he outlines
the policy Of the state commission in
regard to the, work to be done in this
and succeeding years. The address is
of great interest in all counties where
roads are being built under the state
aid law. Mr. Hardwood says In part:
wisconsin will expend this year
under the state aid policy nearly 212
million dollars in sixty-nine out of the
seventy-one counties. Owing to the
fact that the present Legislature has
passed the deficit bill appropriating
$3.50, 900, the state is now in a posi-
tion to pay its proportionate share,
third total cost, for every piece of
highway to be improved.
There will be road Improvement UNI
der the Wisconsin Highway Commits
sion is about two-thirds of the towns
of the state. This necessitates dis
tribution of the work throughout the
state which is not what the commission
would like to see done, although it is
believed the samples of work will help
to bring about general improvement
Of all kinds of road work, and will
eventually lead to centering the work
in the future more and more lon con-
tinuous important avenues of travel
Last year work was carried on in only
one-third of the towns of the state,
and although in some cases the work
did not reach the high standard de-
sired by our highway commission,
there appeared to be such general
satisfaction that far more work is be-
ing demanded this year than ever was
. sticipated by the most sanguine.
Judging from reports now received on
actions taken in the several towns on
April LIST, there seems to be no ques-
tion but that full three millions will
be spent for highway improvement in
1918 under the state aid policy.
In the eight hundred towns in the
state there will be built many different
types of highway. In the northern
counties the work will be largely dirt
road work. A large number of cuts
and fills will be made Grading will
be one Of the largest elements-of cost
in northern highway work. However,
many of the northern counties are to
do considerable amount of stone road
work. All over the state there will be
bulls a lot of good gravel roads. The
greater part of the money expended
this year will be for stone or concrete
road work, Of course Milwaukee
county will lead with an expenditure
reaching nearly 100000. Dane county
will come next, with Sank county a
close third in the matter of money ex-
pended. Milwaukee, Kenosha and
Fond du Lac counties will spend a
large part of their money for concrete
road work. Water bound macadam
will be the principal type of highway
in counties constructing stone roads
this year.
Wisconsin has about six thousand
miles of wagon roads, one-sixtieth of.
which mileage will receive attention
through the state highway commission
this year, It is expected to build
nearly a thousand miles this summer at
an average cost of $4,000 per mile.
The bridges and culverts are to cost
on an average of about $500 per mile
in the state this year. 1t is fact
that eighty-fve per cent of the traffic
goes over about fifteen per cent of the
highways of the state and in Justice
to the cause these fifteen per cent
should first receive attention. This is
hardly the case In large number of
the counties in the state. The piece
meal, scattered, detached good roads
work does not meet the commendation
of the commission and for that reason
the commission has laid down this
rule: No state and county money can
be expended on any road where there
is less than $1,000 to spend. The rule
is based on economy and good iudg-
ment, and is receiving the approval of
road officials all over the state.
Last year Wisconsin undertook high
way Improvement work under the state
aid policy for the first time. Some
sixty odd new county officers, known
as county highway commissioners,
were selected to have personal charge
of the work in The different counties.
The new work had to be organized for
by many men not at all accustomed
to road construction work. Most all
of the county highway commissioners
proved up very we'll. The season of
1912 was wet and much difficulty was
experienced in getting the work under
way and completed before winter stop.