Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-01-26
Will STIMULATE
CITY PAVING.
Good Roads Question VIII
Give Impetus to City
improvements
Beauty Of City Would Be En-
HANGED By PavementS

Since the state has practically de-
cided to go into the road building
business, it is believed that Bismarck
and many other cities in North Da-
ance OF building more city pavements
and inaiugnrate a general movement
for the laying ont of boulevard sys-
tens.
Bismarck is sadly in need Of clean
and dGstlesS pavementS and while
there has been a general desire on
the part Of the property owners to
have them. the city funds for this
work have been low. With the money
at hand, the street department has
done good work in the way of grading
and leveling, and while this has help
ed, it has not accomplished the de-
sired purpose Of q majority OF the
people.
During rainy weather the downtown
streets are sometimes in a deplorable
condition and the crossWalks are gen
orally muddy. This mud IS tracked
onto the sidewalks by pedestrians and
later into homes and stores. The ap-
pearance OF the streets during periods
like these detracts from the beauty OF
the city and gives visitors a bad i'm
preston. City street paving is not a
luxury: 1t is a necessity. and it has
been proven that 1t is one of the best
investments any city can make.
Good roads and good %pavenents go
hand in hand. The taxpayers are the
ones who in some form pay the bills
for both, and as the state and many
cities are about to engage upon an
era OF highway and street improve
ments, a close study of the situation
should be made by the engineers and
only the best materials selected for
such work.
Experiments Were Costly.
III has been found that brick pave
ments prove satisfactory on streets
where there is light traffic. On streets
which are heavily traversed it has
been found that brick chips, very Of
ten expands and makes an Uneven
ness which produces a loud noise
when a vehicle passes owe it. The
principal reason for the building Of
brick pavements is their low cost, yet
the maintenance charges on brick are
greater than on asphalt, wood blocks
or bithulthic.
Many cities have sent engineers
east to make a study Of the various
kinds OF pavements which are being
laid on streets where the travel is
heavy. The majority of eastern cities
have a greater yardage in natural
sheet asphalt than in any other kind
OF material. Thousands Of dollars
were wasted In the east from expert
menting with various materials. The
solution Of the paving problem was
finally reached in the adoption OF a
standard specification calling for the
construction OF a pavement properly
mixed with natural lake asphalt. Ev-
cry man who owns a hit Of real es-
tate on a street, whether used for bus
mess or residence purposes, should
apply to the selection Of pavement in
front of his property the same tests
that he would apply to any article he
would buy for personal use. The idea
of a pavement is to benefit a property.
1t is an improvement. IA brick block
pavement is an improvement in the
sense that any pavement is an i'm
pr0vement over a dirt road, but in
only few instances Is it an improve.
ment in the sense that it increases
the money value of the abutting prop