Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-29
National Highway System Sur
passes Any Yet Devised by
Other Governments.
CONNECT THE CAPITAL
WITH ALL BIG CITIES
Adoption Of Similar Plan by U. S.
Would Prove Tremendous Benefit,
Says Lewis r. Speare.

IF France with about four times the
area and four times the population of New
York state. can adequately and econom-
ically provide and maintain from a Gen.
tralized source a national roads system
Of A.O0O miles. 1t is not unreasonable to
contend that the same thing can be &C.
complished for the whole United States. -
asserts Lewis r. Speare OF Massachusetts,
who served as chairman of the resolu-
tions committee of the second federal aid
good roads convention called by the
American Automobile Association.
France admittedly has the best roads
system SO far devised continued Mr.
Speare. and its national roads consti-
tute about 81 per cent of the 36o.Oo1
miles in the whole country.
Frances Road System.
THE national roads. maintained en-
tirely by the government are constructed
forty-two feet wide between bitches, and
lead from the capital to the principal
cities, ports and commercial centers and
between the principal cities. With the
departmental or state roads and COM
mercial roads of different classes. the
national government has nothing to do
except to determine their width, which
is fixed by general laws according to their
classification.
The United States has two and a half
times the population OF France. and
about six times the road mileage. To bar-
ance this difference, a series Of national
roads which would connect our capitals
and principal cities would duly amount
to about ~ per cent Of the 100000 miles
of roads in this country, as compared
with the 81 per cent in France, bringing
the mileage Of national roads per person
In the United States about the same as
in France.
/. With our enormous resources awaiting
development by the extension Of our road
systems, there seems no reason why We
should not proceed with the work of
building national roads National roads
building did not ruin France; 1t made
France great.
Politics We. Good Roads.
The idea of building up a political
machine out Of road construction bu-
reau does not deserve consideration. In
all of the important governmental work
being carried on it seems the policy of
all parties to see that it is conducted
economically and honestly, whatever
party chances be In power. A fair in
stance of that Is the valuation OF the
railroads Of the country which Is just
bout to begin. in which civil service en-
amjnations will soon be held for the Sc
lection Of several thousand civil and me-
chanical engineers.
M Fornand Bordas. a leading French
engineer, writing for the third 1nterna-
tional Road Congress, now in session In
London. says: The national roads, which
connect the capital to the frontiers and to
the large towns, or else form a connect
ing link between the more densely popu-
lated centers, are of the greatest inter-
est to the country as a whole. not only
from an economic point OF view, but also
from a strategic one. as assuring COM
between points at long dis
tances apart. It is therefore essential
that their general trend. general plan and
width should be settled unfettered by 10
cal Influences
This is the idea that the A. A. A. ma
tional good roads board has been and is
endeavoring to impress upon the law
makers Of this country. II seems as
though plans which have been so emf
nently successful in other countries. and
productive Of such excellent results, are
worthy Of a trial here.
II believe the newly created committee
on public roads will be Of the greatest
value In the adoption of legislation
worthy of the bigness of the subject"