Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-08-12
OUR HOME STATE
KEEPS STEP WITH
GOOD ROAD MARCH
National Touring Week Shows
Advance of Highway
Development

America is enjoying a steady and
emphatic progress in the building of
good highways, in which our own
State is very material factor, accord
ing to the information brought forth
by National Touring Week. In con-
nection with this campaign in the in
terest of a national automobile out
ing those in charge found 1t in line
with their work to make as first hand
an investigation as possible of the
mileage and condition of that mile
age in the several States.
The report on roadway in our own
State contributed to the promoters of
National Touring Week by our State
Highway Department is as follows:
GOOD ROADS IN PENNSYLVANIA
BY W. r. D. Hall,
Statistician State Highway Department
The Pennsylvania State Highway
Department has exclusive Jurisdiction
over 10000 miles of roads forming
the State Highway System. There are
1880 miles of public roads in Penn
sylvania or approximately two miles
of road for each square mile of terri
tory in the State. The State High
way Department of Pennsylvania was
reorganized in 1911 by the passage of
law known as the Sproul Act, which
provided for the reorganization of the
existing Department. increasing its
personnel and amplified its powers.
This Act also designated 296 routes,
forming the State Highway System,
over which the State Highway Depart
ment, as noted before, was given ex-
elusive control. The Sproul Act num-
bered each route and gave the list of
important places through which it
passed, as, for example: Route Num-
Der /, from Harrisburg to Sunbury.
Commencing at point on the boun-
dairy line Of the City of Harrisburg,
and running by way of Dauphin, Hall
fax and Millersburg to a point on the
dividing line between Dauphin mad
Northumberland counties; thence, by
way Of Herndon, into Sunbury, North
cumberland county," Each one of the
296 State Highway routes was thus
designated and described in the Sproul
Act.
1t was recognized by the Legislature
of 1911 that the formation OF this vast
highway system would necessitate
large expenditures for the purposes of
reconstruction and maintenance. The
revenues Of the State, from which all
legislative appropriations are drawn,
were known to be insufficient to A.
nance the highway problem in Penn
sylvania. Therefore, it was proposed
that an amendment to the constitu-
ton be passed which would permit a
bond issue of fifty million dollars for
highway purposes. 1t is necessary in
PENNSYLVANIA in order to amend the
constitution, that two successive Legis-
latures pass a resolution calling for
the amendment and specifying the
purposes for which it is proposed. This
resolution, having been passed by two
successive Legislatures, then goes TO
the people for ratification at the polls
"a al
the Sproul Act, approved a resolution
calling for the constitution amend
ment. There seemed to be sentiment
in favor of such action at that time
The State Highway Department en-
tered upon a period of reorganization
and reconstruction. The Sproul Act
provided, among other things, that
complete surveys be made OF the State
and of the counties of the State for
the purpose of issuing road maps
which should be entirely accurate.
With this survey work and with such
reconstruction as was feasible with the
moneys at hand, the State Highway
department occupied itself during the
next two years.
The 1913 Legislature, with the same
ideas in view as had its predecessor,
increased the mileage of State High
way routes by adding 17S more routes
to the system, bringing the total mile
d5S up " 1UsEUU. InlS LEGISLATURE,
likewise, again passed the resolution
for the constitutional amendment.
This constitutional amendment
came before the people for ratification
at the election of November, 1913, II
was defeated. Under the Constitution
of this State a defeated constitutional
amendment cannot be resubmitted for
popular approval until five years have
elapsed.
The Commonwealth of Pepns1,I,,a
mia, therefore, was left in the embar-
RAISING position of having assumed the
Jurisdiction and exclusive care OF 10
zoo miles of its highway with revenues
totally insufficient to finance such an
undertaking. In consequence of this
the State Highway Department has
been living a hand-to-mouth existence
since that time and has been com
PEELED to devote most of its energies to
the proper maintenance of the State
Highway System.