Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1916-08-17
PROGRESSIVE
ROAD MEEH0DS
y .AYED
North Dakota Slow to
Modern Methods.

lists stopping over at, and passing
through jamestown is rapidly in
creasing and is daily noted in this
city, and of course at present the
query How are the roads?" is first
heard from the tourist. During the
National touring week, August to
12, special reports were made of
roads in all the states and J. w.
Bliss, state engineer, prepared the
interesting report given below for
North Dakota:
America is enjoying steady and
emphatic progress in the building of
good highways, in which our own
state is a very material factor, ac-
cording to the information brought
forth by national touring week. In
connection with this campaign in the
interest of a national automobile
outing those in charge found it in
line with their work to make as
first hand an investigation as pos
sible of the mileage and condition of
that mileage in the several states.
North Dakota has been slow to
adopt progressive methods of road
administration and road building,
with the result that while over $21,-
100000 have been spent on the
roads since statehood, no definite
system of improved highways has
been established.
Much of the money that has been
spent has been utterly wasted. This
waste is due to a number of causes,
chief among which are the working
out of road taxes, inexperienced
workers and road overseers, the
lack of a definite plan and the abb
sence of centralized authority.
People are becoming keenly inter-
ested in the building of better roads,
and are realizing more and more the
Importance of the part they play in
the development of the state. I'M
proved roads bring many advan-
tages to rural life. They bring bet
ter schools and churches and great
er attendance, less isolation and a
broader social life, bette health and
quicker MEDICAL aid, mo . cultivat-
ed !ani, ,vr@ahanced land s1lles, AID
cheaper transportation of crops to
the market. And, of course, in
North Dakota the betterment of ru-
raj conditions means the increased
prosperity of all the people of the
state.
The citizens of North Dakota are
fully aware of the need of better
roads, and with the awakened inter-
est of the people has come, in
measure, the improvement of road
conditions. The old statute labor
law has been abolished and high
way taxes are now required to be
paid in cash, which is. long step
in the right direction, although the
provision making it compulsory for
the township to employ any tax
payer if he so desires, until the
amount due him equals his tax, par
TALLY nullifies the intent of the cash
payment plan.
1t is now more generally under
stood that road building and main
tenance and the economic admins
tration of highways can only be
properly done by men especially
trained for this work, and there are
now more skilled road builders en-
ployed in North Dakota, with more
improved road machinery at their
command, than ever before.
All these things are encouraging,
yet the fact remains that North Da-
kota has not kept abreast of the
progress that is being made in the
other states of the union, in the
matter of highway Improvement.
There are now in use in the state
approximately 10000 miles of pub
lie roads. OF this mileage it is esti-
mated that approximately $4,000
miles are turnpiked and graded.
There are LOO miles of gravel
roads and about $4,000 miles of
ordinary ungraded roads. 1t is es-
timated that during the road build
ing season of 1916 approximately
5000 miles of road will be built.
Some of the townships and coun-
ties of the state are building excel
lent roads and keeping them In good
condition for travel at all times, but
they find it discouraging to spend
large sums of money in road build
ing and maintenance, when between
them and the market there is an
unprogressive township with roads
that are impossible after every rain,
and so deeply rutted that travel ov-
er them is precarious at any season
of the year.
A definite and uniform system of
roads is required If satisfactory re-
suits are to be obtained, and in or
der to obtain such definite and
uniform system, it is necessary that
the authority in road matters be
centralized.
At the present time more than
half of the total amount of money
expended annually in the state of
North Dakota is used by township
authorities, and most of the town.
ships are attempting to build what
are properly county roads. Such
roads are naturally much more ex-
pensive than they ought to be, as no
three or four or half dozen town
ships can build road as cheaply as
can the county, dealing with the
same road through the several town
ships as q unit. Further, no three
or four township boards could be ex-
pected to have the same ideas rela-
tive to the construction and main
tenance Of roads, and lack Of uni
formity is the result. 1t is not to