The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1915-12-10
SIXTEEN COUNTIES WILL
E EXT END s$5 S. 5 z GGG
Building Better Roads in Tennessee
Department Helps.
(By O. M. West, Assistant Secretary
c44 No. r+roo,,+ ~ IIioI,upa \

OCpdAILlCnt AAC1po'
| (By o. M. West, Assistant Secretary
State Department of Highways.)
Nashville, Tenn, Dec. 4.-Sixteen
counties in Tennessee are now or
soon will begin the expenditure OF a
total of $3,572,OoO in building better
roads in Tennessee. OF these sixteen
counties thirteen are in East Ten
nessee two in Middle Tennessee and
one in West Tennessee.
Five other counties will hold bond
elections this month on the issuance
of total of $1,4O0,000 more which
will, if all carry, make total of $4,-
972, 900 to be spent in Tennessee dur
ing the coming year in building bet
ter roads.
Various counties in the State have
issued approximately $30,00O,OOO in
bonds for roads during the last ten
years. All road work done in the
State is by the counties and the State
does not give any aid to State or
county roads. However, under the
bill creating the State department of
highways and fixing the automobile
tax provision is made whereby the
State will aid in maintaining roads.
This will be done with the automo-
bile tax thru the department of high
ways.
This will be the first State aid
given roads since 1901 when the
Legislature mande an appropriation
to rebuild and complete the old War
ton road from Nashville to Bristol.
This was the old buffalo trail sur
veyed in 1877 by government engi-
neers and built by State aid. The
proposed Bristol-to-M Memphis high
way follows largely this old road.
The law creating the State depart
ment of highways and the tax on
automobile, traction engines, motor
cycles, motor trucks and all motor
driven vehicles, provides that the de-
partment of highways cannot spend
more than ten per cent of the tax in
maintaining the department and that
the remainder shall go back to the
county from which it is collected to
be used in maintaining roads desig-
mated by the department.
This fund will probably not exceed
$4,000 next year, but will give
some counties fairly good sums for
road maintenance while in others it
will only enable the State depart
ment to give practical demonstra-
lions of how to repair roads and in
struct the county road authorities
along these lines.
Under this law all owners of auto
mobiles, motorcycles, traction en-
gines and motor trucks must pay
their State tax January l OF each
year and any sale made during the
year requires the purchaser to pay
the same tax, whether it be new
or second hand car. 1t is made a
misdemeanor, punishable by a fine
of from SIS to $50 for the party SELL
ing a car not to report the sale and
name of the purchaser to the Sec
rotary of State at Nashville within
three days after the sale, and the
same punishment is provided for
those who do not pay the tax
This law was gotten up by auto
mobile owners over the State as an
encouragement to better roads and
officials of the department of high
ways are laying plans for some prac-
tical road work with this fund next |
year. The repair work to be done is
under the supervision of a State
highway engineer
The counties in Tennessee now en-
gagged, or soon to be engaged, in
building pike roads are: Anderson,
$157, 900; Blount, 100000; Carter,
1855, 900; Claiborne, s250,00O; Cum
berland, 100000; Franklin, $780,
900; Granger, 100000; Hamilton,
5000, 900; Hawkins, $500, 900; Hum
phreys, $25O,OOO; Marion, 100000;
Meigs, 100000; Rhea, 100000;
Scott, $3OO,OO0; Sullivan, 100000;
Union, 100000.
Counties to hold bond elections
during December are: Giles, $780,
900; Rutherford, $15O,OOO; Smith,
$50, 900; Stewart, 100000; Wash
ington, $45O,O00.
j. Murray, Secretary of the State
Department of Highways, is investi-
eating the plans being used in many
other States in working State con-
victs on the roads instead of in mines
and factories in competition with
free labor He is also IN correspond
ence with many citizens of the State |
and the plan seems to meet with al
most universal favor. If this plan is
adopted by the Legislature it will
mean that various counties in the
State will get their pro rata of State
convicts to work on their roads at