The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-10-08
THE FEDERAL
 ROAD QUESTION
Two Plans Before House Roads Committee-An Analysis of Them.

| (By Congressman c. H. TaVenner) Washington, Oct. S-When the
 House Roads Committee, of which the | writer is a member, meets next win | ter to formulate and adopt a na- tiona1 policy of good roads, it will
 find two general plans before it. The first will be a plan for the con
 struction of model highways by the ! government. This plan proposes roads
 which will conform to the highest standards of road butlding-macad- | amized turnpikes, foundationed in stone, built up and finished off as carefully as the finest asphalt pave ment, perfectly graded and banked on routes laid out by engin treat ed with 8, top dressing to shed water, in short, city park boulevards stretch ing out over the open country. Great transcontinental systems of such roads
 are planned, the trunk lines probably to be given names that will become as we'll known as the names of the transcontinental railroads.
 The second plan contemplates roads which will not conform to so high a standard. but roads which will be solid and smooth the year round. No particular amount of additional ma
 terial to be placed on the roadbeds, but each road to be the best improve ment possible with economical use of the material at hand.
 The first plan is the one which will appeal to the automobile owners of the country and they are many in number and strong in influence. It is the plan which is talked at all the road congresses which are largely
 made up of automobile owners It is the plan of the American Automobile Association and the National Roads Association.
 The other plan is the one which proposes no new routes or systems, but the improvement of roads already in existence. It is the plan which will appeal to the farmers, for it's prime purpose will be to connect rail the one hand with the farms on the other. It is the plan which has the support of Dorsey M. Shackleford, chairman of the Roads Committee.
 As between the touring roads" plan and the ''business roads plan the country must soon choose. And Con gress is likely to be guided by the sentiment and opinion of the greater number of supporters,
 The touring roads plan is very ex- pensive. MT. Shackleford estimates that the boulevard type road costs $20,oo0 8 mile for construction, and there are 2,26o,0Oo miles in our road system. The most ambitious project for government touring roads, only contemplates the construction of 5O,- 900 miles of them, but even this sys- tenn would cost the people billion dollars and be 40 years in construc- ton.
 '"This plan advocates devoting 40 years to improve two per cent of the roads, leaving the people along the other 9s per cent groping in ignor- ance and poverty says MT ShackIe- ford. Worse than that, the people along the eS percent of the roads who are thus to be left 40 years wander
 ing in the wilderness of poor roads, must help pay the costs of the two percent of the roads which the Am erican Automobile Association and the National Roads Association would build.
 The improvement of 2.25o,0o0 miles of roads Is 8 tremendous problem. It 1 seems to be out of the question to provide the funds for such an under taking out of indirect taxation, as the federal revenues are now raised It must be largely direct taxation, and the taxpayers must not contribute money, but voluntary labor.
 This is the view MT. Shack1eford takes, and he believes this voluntary labor can be secured by encouraging g by federal e-contribution of s15 per mile for every road. inn proved to meet the government re- quirements. At this cost, the gov ernment could maintain 100000 miles of model country roads at an annual expense of 100000 a sum insignificant in comparison to the convenience of good roads and to their effect in cheapening farm trans portation and reducing prices of farm products to the consumers.
 Mir. Shackleford is not without facts to show how such government encouragement might work out in concrete results. The state of Mis- souri tried this plan of contributing to road maintenance, as did the state of Arkansas, and both with remark able results.
 Said MT. shackIe9ord: ssLast win ter the legislature of Missouri pass ed bill providing that every mile of roads in the State leading from coun- ty seat to county seat which should be built up to specified standards should receive aid from the State to the extent of $15 miIe.''
 The state highway commissioner, who was charged with the duty of adm uistering this law, refused to ac- cept any road which was not 40 feet wide between fences, 80 feet vida be- tween side ditches, so graded and crowned as to quickly shed water in- to the side ditches, and provided with, all necessary cuIverts to be of stone or concrete. These are rather hard specifications. Yet that law has been in operation in Missouri only about six months and 5000 miles have been accepted by the state highway com missioner as having been brought within the provisions of the law. In many cases where public funds were not available, money, labor. and ma terial were contributed by private per sons. Within a year this SIS a mile stimulus will have given the people of Missouri 10,0O0 miles of good roads; Had the same thing been done in the other AS states, a single year would have given us 4s.oOO miles of good roads.
 "Recurring to Missouri again. Gov ernor Major by public proclamation set apart August 20 and 21 as Road Days" upon which he requested all able bodied men to work the roads: 250,00O men responded, and 1t is es- tinated that in labor and material +1,a,.a xuas more than CT nan oon 4