Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-06-12
City Engineer Tells Why Homo.
lulu Streets Do Not Support
Present Traffic
BY GEORGE N. COLLINS.
(city Eneineer.)

= eaen week. why I1Ouotuiu ndS SuSH
poor roads and how to get better
ones. This is the first article.) -.-
In considering TIE majority oil
streets and highways in this city,
which are falling rapidly beyond the
limit OF efficient maintenance, certain
facts should not be overlooked which
apply without contradiction of local
conditions.
First-The general type Of pave
ment which Is disintegrating is thin
asphalt or oiled-bound macadam.
Second Traffic conditions OF today
have placed enormous loads upon cur
streets which the present type of con.
struction Is unable 10 support.
Third The solution Of the present
difficulty lies In the repaying of the
city streets along permanent lines.
Fourth-The speed with which per-
mancnt pavements are laid throughout
the city depends almost entirely upon
the FUNDS available.
Fifth--The general revenues OF the
city and county government have
never been sufficient, under the old
system OF road construction where
the city paid the entire cost, to build
permanent street payements exten.
siyely, or to provide adequate main.
tenance.
stretehed Appropriation
Poor Roads.
As 10 the type of pavement which
Is failing rapidly under present condi.
tons: We find q prevailing thickness
OF about three inches of crushed rock
which is bound generally with asphalt.
This three-inch carpet rests upon the
original surface Of the ground, which
consists in many cases of a clay earth
OF very low supporting power II not
thoroughly drained. It is quite prob.
able that this pavement was the re-
suit OF stretching appropriations to the
full elastic limit In the attempt to
pave the greatest possible area with
the limited funds available for such
work.
thick Psvement's Life Long.
In discussing the thickness OF a
navement as an element In its perma.
hence Il must be remembered that all
loads upon the street are ultimately
carried by the sub-grade or ground
surface upon which the pavement Is
constructed. The greater the thick.
ness OF paving material the greater
the area OF ground surface over which
the load is distributed, consequently
the smaller the burden on the sub
grade. Other things being equal, the
thicker the pavement the greater Its
life. Il has been customary in this
city In late years to provide greater
thickness In the pavement by intro
ducing sub-base or artificial founda.
ton OF crushed rock between the
ground surface and the rock layer
which Is bound with asphalt. This
latter type Of payement is found in
reasonably good condition on King
street In the vicinity Of the Kameha-
1neha schools, and on Beretania street.
between Richards and Alapai streets
Thin Paving Wastes Money.
Good examples of the failure of the
three-inch pavement are found on
Nuuanu avenue and Liliha street and
on portions of King and Beretania
streets. AS general rule the destruc-
tion OF the pavement has been greatly
FASTENED BY the lack of proper drain
age in the sub-grade. A three-inch
pavement upon q soft, clayey founda.
ton win support littIe traffic. The
crushed rock settles into the soft
earth, gradually developing waves and
ruts which increase in size and num-
Der as time goes on. 1t is obviously
waste Of money to attempt the
maintenance of such roads.
Traffic lncreases Greatly. =.
The steadily increasing traffic of to-
day has placed loads upon our streets
which the old-type three-inch con-
struction Is unable to Withstand.
Pavements which carried traffic five
years ago are not adequate to carry
the loads now imposed upon them by
tordriven trucks. An excessively
heavy truck passing once over three
inch pavement viii work greater dam
age than an infinite number of light
vehicles. Highspeed motor-driyen
vehicles play an important part also in
payemsnt destruction. This is espe-
cialiy true on Mater-bound macadam
roads, such as Beretania street, be-.
tween Alapai and Punahou streets.
The shearing and suction of automo-
bile tires rayel out the pavement and
develop ruts.
Motors Replace Horses.
The failure of our present roads is
due largely TO change in the char
acter and volume o. traffic. Horse
drawn vehicles have given place to
automobiles and motor-driyen trucks.
The fact that the volume Of traffic has
changed is indicated by the enormous
increase in, the number of automobiles
sold in Honolulu during the past few
years. Tax Office records show an in
crease Of Ill per cent from 1918 to
1915. Approximately, 625 machines
were imported IN 1918, $50 in 1914, and
$50 in 1915, with still further in
crease Tor 1916.
In view of the above described
nEAnArLE