Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1914-02-27
A Bill To License Traction Engines.
The Montgomery Delegation,
House of Delegates,

The Montgomery Delegation,
House of Delegates,
Annapolis, Maryland.
Gentlemen The traction engine ques
ton is not understood or has been misrep
resented to the public in this county.
The running of traction engines owe
improved roads with rough corrugated
wheels does serious injury, shaking thu
foundations of the road and breaking the
bond by the pressure of the corrugated
wheels on the macadam; also by lifting
up the tarred surfaces and dropping the
tar in irregular humps. The injury is often
done when there is nothing on the surface
to show the harm below. The weight Of
these engines is great-eight, ten and
twelve tons-and the tendency is to in
crease their weight The pressure from
these corrugated wheels is more than dou-
BILE that of the pressure from the same
weight on smooth wheels.
The statement being made that unpro-
tected corrugations are necessary to get
these engines around to thresh the wheat
crop is incorrect. The wheels of those en-
gines which have corrugation can be easily
and cheaply changed by the use of filler
blocks, made of metal and fitted in between
the corrugations so that they will not in
jure the road.
These filler blocks cost $40 a set and can
be put on by any well-equipped blacksmith
at cost of $50. When once fitted they
can be taken off and put on without cost.
1t would very seldom be necessary to re-
move the filler blocks from the traction en-
gines, and only then for passing over some
very slippery places not on an improved
road.
1t is estimated that there are thirty or
forty of these engines used in the county,
and if it is thought hardship upon the own
ers to equip them with filler blocks, the
county might levy tax and pay for half
the expense. which would be in the neigh
borhood of $780,
The seriousness of the situation from the
standpoint of the improved road is not
understood by the county at large. All of
the improved roads are being injured. Some
of the tar surfaces used have been too hard
and have become slippery and dangerous
for horses The kind of tar surfaces that
must be used in the future will be softer
and, therefore, subject to greater injury
by corrugated wheels on traction engines.
AS an illustration of what it will cost
this county unless something is done. one
instance alone should be sufficient. The
United States Office of Public Roads has
undertaken to keep the surface of about
eleven miles of road in repair for period
of ten years as experimental work Their
first cost for tar surfacing those roads and
their annual maintenance charge in that
period will amount to about $4,000.
They have notified the County Commits
sioners that unless traction engines with
unprotected corrugated wheels are kept off
of these experimental roads, the federal
maintenance will be withdrawn and the
burden thrown upon the county. 1t will
be far cheaper for the county to pay the
entire cost of equipment of filler-block pro-
lection for traction engines than to lose
this aid from the federal government And
this is altogether aside from the amount
of injury that is being done to all the other
improved roads in the county.
In respect to federal road building. it
must be further understood that additional
federal road construction is possible and
that the continuation of the traction en-
CINE injury would naturally tend to prevent
such construction in this county.
After the engines now being operated with
corrugated wheels are protected. whether
it is done in part or in whole at the ex-
pense of the county or not, no new engines
should be allowed to come into the county
without being protected at the cost of the
owner.
There are also new engines being made
with removable plates or corrugatiOns and
these do not need filler blocks, as they can
be run most of the time with the cleats off.
The county has used one of these engines
of the improved kind, which weighs twelve
tons and which has been used to pull ten
ton loads 1t was not found necessary to
put any of the cleats on this engine except
when pulling a crusher. which weighed
eight tons, up the Middlebrook hill At
that point it was found necessary to put
half of the cleats on the drive wheels, and
with this help the engine easily pulled the
hill, which is one of the heaviest in this
county.
This simple statement of the actual facts
should disabuse the public mind of the al
legged difficulties in the situation and show
how easy it will be and how important it
is that some legislative action should be
taken in the interest of the county
Respectfully yours.
M. D. KNIGHT.
Road Superintendent.
p. 81 am enclosing herewith two pro-
posed amendments to the present road
laws which would seem to cover the
situation
The County Commissioners Of MontgOm-
cry county shall require the owners Of all
traction engines owned and operated in
Montgomery county to register the same in
their Office on or before May in each year.
giving description thereof showing make.
width between wheels and tread Of tires.