The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1915-04-09
Methods of Maintenance
Of Public Highways

wat one vi you HOulU UuAlU al
expensive house, barn, stable Or
store and proceed to use it, with the
expectation that you would not nave
to paint it occasionally, nor mend its
roof. nor, in fact, make good many
repairs to it of more or less minor
nature from time to time? Even If
you built q cheap structure at the
lowest possible first cost, such as
corn house, would you not expect to
ave to repair or renew it occasional
ly, and at probably greater annual
expense for such repairs and renew
ais than if a more substantial and
expensive structure had been built III
the first place? Then why should so
many people expect roadway or
pavement, no matter Of what type or
of what the first cost in construction,
to take care of itself under traffic and
with the traffic or use Of tie high
way constantly increasing as it is
from year to year? And yet is not
this too often tie situation?
A great deal of money is raised by
direct taxation or by bond issues, and
road is built which is apparently
just what IS wanted for the comfort
and convenience of the community.
Being in most cases better when first
completed than the older Highways
near it, it, in many cases, draws travel
from them. and tne amount of traffic
over it thus becomes greater than ever
! before. Then, irrational as it may
seem in a majority Of cases, this
splendid new roadway, with its heav-
ier traffic is absolutely left to shift
! for itself, while tie attention Of the
road authorities is turned away and
concentrated on some other new piece
oi construction.
The result is, of course, what might
| be expected In short time little
defects appear, and once started, these
rapidly grow serious. If the neglect
continues it may be but short While
before the road surface is entirely
gone to pieces and complaints con-
; cerning it begin to be heard. If the
neglect continues further, the recon-
struction of the road comes to be de-
manded. If some, but still INSULT
cient, attention is raid to the COM
plants and repairs are made to some
extent, but inadequately, then the size
of the repair bill soon becomes an
object of criticism. Generally about
this time criticisms of the original
construction begin to make themselves
heard, and the majority of those inter-
ested perhaps come to believe that the
fault was with the way the road was
originally built rather than with any
thing else. AS matter OF fact, tie
probabilities are that the construction
was too good and too expensive, rather
tan too poor and too cheap for what
the conditions actually demanded.
! This is the history of most of the road
construction in tbs country, strange
as it may seem. Tne rault for the
deterioration of the road, in SO cases
out of 100, lies with the lack Of proper
maintenance accorded the newly-com-
pleted work.
Tie Importance of proper mainten-
ance cannot be oyerestimated 1t is
beginning to be appreciated in this
country. In tie older countries of
Europe, especially those which enjoy
reputation for '1aving good roads,
the Importance of maintenance is full
ly appreciated, and it is upon the
careful and efficient maintenance Of
their roads that the reputation refer
red to rests. /, with number Of
otter American engineers, have made
several trips to England, France, Italy.
Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, ETC.,
inspired with a lively curiosity as to
why the roads of those countries lave
so often been referred to by travellers
from this country of ours as so much
better than our roads We dug into
their roads, we examined their con-
struction and we asked all sorts Of
questions of the road authorities in
our search for the reason. Among US
Investigators t.ere never has been
bat one answer suggested as the re-
suit of our searches, and that answer
has been unanimously agreed to. 1t
was, and is, that the apparent superb
ority Of the foreign roads was due
simply and solely to the better main
tenance accorded them. There can be
no question but what our construction
when newly completed is in every way
equal to or better tan the foreign