Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1915-01-09
Importance of Proper
Road Maintenance


lem mo: important than that of main
tenance. The general impression that
there are certain types of roads that
are permanent is erroneous. No per-
manent road has ever been constructed
or ever will be, according to the road
specialists Of the u. S. Department Of
Agriculture. The only things about a
road that may be considered perma-
nent are the grading, culverts and the
bridges. Roads constructed by the
most skillful highway engineers will
soon be destroyed by the traffic, frost,
rain and wind, unless they are prop
erly maintained. But the life of these
roads may be prolonged by systematic
maintenance. A poor road will not
only be improved by proper mainten-
ance, but may become better in time
than good road without it.
The first and last commandment in
earth road maintenance is to keep the
surface well drained. To insure good
drainage the bitches should be kept
open, all distractions removed and
smooth crown maintained. Except for
scraper NAL be used very effectively
for this work. The machine should
be used once or twice a year, and the
work should be done when the soil is
damp so that it will pack and bake
into hard crust. Wide and shallow
side bitches should be maintained with
sufficient fall and capacity to dispose
of surface water. These bitches can
in most places be constructed and re-
paired with road machine.
All vegetable matter such as sods
and weeds should be kept out of the
Dad, as they make spongy surface
which retains moisture. Clods are
also Objectionable, for they soon turn
to dust or mud, and for that reason
clods should never be worked when
dry or hard. Boulders or loose stones
are equally Objectionable If a smooth
surface is to be secured.
A split-log drag or some similar
device is very useful In maintaining
the surface after suitable bitches and
cross section have once been secured.
This drag can also be used to advan-
tage on gravel road as well as on an
earth road. The principle involved in
dragging is that clays and most heavy
soils will puddle when wet and set
very hard when dry. The little atten-
tion that the earth road needs must be
given promptly and at the proper time
If the best results are to be obtained.
In dragging roads only a small
amount of earth is moved, just enough
to fill the ruts and depressions with
thin layer of plastic clay or earth,
which packs very hard so that the
next rain, instead of finding ruts, de-
pressions and clods in which to collect,
runs off, leaving the surface but little
affected
The drag should be light and should
be drawn over the road at an angle
of about As degrees. The driver should
ride on the drag, and should not drive
faster than walk. One round trip,
each trip straddling a wheel track, is
usually sufficient to fill the ruts and
smooth the surface. If necessary the
road should be dragged after every
bad spell of weather, when the soil
is in proper condition to puddle well
and still not adhere to the drag. If
the roadbed is very bad it may be
dragged when very wet and again
when it begins to dry out. A few trips
over the road will give the operator an
idea as to the best time to drag. Drag
at all seasons, but do not drag a dry
road.
The slope or crown of an earth road
should be about one inch to the foot.
If the crown becomes too high it may
be reduced by dragging toward the
ditch instead of from it. II the drag
cuts too much shorten the hitch and
change your position on the drag. If
it is necessary to protect the face Of
the drag with strip of iron it should
be placed flush with the edge of the
drag, and not projecting. A cutting
edge should be avoided, as the main
object in dragging is to smear the
damp soil into position.