Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1916-12-01
Rate of Interest

40 5S.28 62.32 60. 10
THE ENGINEERS PLACE IN ROAD
WORK.
By w. S. Keller, State Highway En-
gincer of Alabama.)
Despite the fact that a majority of
county commissioners or district SUI
lie rvisOrs have had no training what
ever in road building. they will con-
oeGe to no one that they are not as
we'll qualified to direct road work as
any engineer they can employ. They
will often admit that an engineer
should locate and stake off a road,
hut they think his duty ends there.
1t is just as necessary that an en-
gineer should supervise construction
work as it is that he should locate
the road. How many commissioners
can tell how much it costs to move
yard of earth, or how much it costs
to install pipe culverts, or how much
cubic yard the concrete in their
culverts is costing them?
The commissioners of a certain
county in Alabama claimed that they
were building roads as cheaply or
more cheaply than any contractor
could do the work. They had an en-
gineer estimate the cubic yards of
earth moved during a certain period
OF time and to their surprice it was
costing 37h cents per cubic yard,
when the average contract price In
Alabama for three years had been %
cents. Authorities should know
whether they are getting full value
for their money. Many counties are
imposed upon in the purchase of ma
terials and supplies, and are paying
more for them in large quantities
than individuals are paying for them
in small quantities.
The remedy for these ills is to have
some one in charge of road building
qualified by education and training
end free from political influences,
who can be held responsible for re-
suits. Very few counties have COM
missioners or supervisors who devote
all of their time and attention to their
Office, and it is self-evident that an
engineer trained in road building
will get better results than can any
set of men who give only few days
in the year to their public Office.
An engineer is indispensable even
though good superintendent directs
the work. A large proportion OF all
roads to be constructed require relo-
cation. profiles of them must be made,
grades established, and, If the work
is done by contract, the road must
he cross-secticned, and the amount
of excavation and embankment cal
culated and made to balance rs near
~ as possible. No one but an en-
gineer can do such work, and the man
VINO does it is manifcstly best fitted
to supervise the construction. The
average road supervisor is usually fg-
,ncrant Of the methods of accounting
correctly for large expenditures and
unable to keep cost accounts Of the
work.
Many county commissioners can
see only the engineers salary, to be
paid twelve times a year, with the
inevitable consequence that there
will be quite a decrease in the num-
Der of days for which they can legiti-
mately demand pay for laying aside
their personal work and superintend-
ing the building or repair of roads In
their respective districts. They re-
gard the engineer as a usurper, tax
ing away the salary OF those guar
dams of the peoples rights who are
so anxious to save money for the
people that they vote against the 5000
per month needed for an engineers
salary and spend $500 per month in
trying to do his work.
A case of this kind came to my at
tention in Alabama. A competent
man in the employ of county was
discharged by the commissioner OF
the district in which he had been
working. The commissioner gave as
reason for this action that he him
self could look after the teams and
hands and thereby save the county
considerable sum per month. The
discharged man resented this action
and kept record of the commission
er's methods. The following occur
renee is typical of them. One day
the commissioner drove seven miles
to a small bridge where he contract
ed with man to repair the structure
for $50. A few days later he re-
turned to the bridge site to inspect
the work. He charged SO day for
his time, or Sc for his services on a
$3.50 job. While he was certainly
entitled to pay for his time, it is