Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-08-28
Belt Road Construction

r. Honolulu road authorities should not he IN haste
accepting the advice OF any single person, reslden
eor stranger no matter how good his credentials
There is considerable fund Of local experience
available now regarding types of permanent con
struction for different conditions and locations o
highways. Concrete has been definitely selected al
a base and. besides the matter-Ofcourse essentia
OF effective drainage. the remaining items for decl
sion are thickness of said concrete base materIa
for wearing surface width of paved area and
where there is curbing az in the country sec
tons, character Of protective shoulder between
paved area and ditch line.
These things must all be decided by climatic con
ditions-which vary greatly within short stretches
by availability of material other than that for the
concrete mixture and, finally. by the character%anC
volume Of the traffic expected, this latter to bt
gagged according TO the present use of particular
roads. with allowance for probable increase under
conditions of the contemplated improvement
With regard to width. the belt road being in
mind, Mr.. BeckjOrd, the California road builder
who has been heard from here within the past few
days. submits the California plan of 15 feet with
three feet of asphalt macadam shoulder on each
side. This would be notable advance the
dimensions Of the semi-permanent sections now ex
istent on the weather side of the island and prob
ably should be adopted by our road builders as the
minimum standard. Regarding the thickness OF
the concrete base, however, there should be hesta
ton about accepting Mr.. Beckjord's suggestion OF
four inches with "squeegee" coat of asphaltum
and rock sand composition. Four inches of con
crete would probably be sufficient if laid upon the
Eubbase of existent coral roads that have become
well settled under traffic, but over earthly bottoms
in wet sections the experience both of California
and Oahu would suggest more substantial base
In this connection the advice of w. W. Edwards
Inder whose name a comprehensive and highly in
formative article on concrete roads has lately ap
peared in the Hilo Tribune, is worthy of considera
ton. Mr.. Edwards says: "The depth of concrete
in road pavement may vary with conditions of
Foundation, presence or absence of reinforcement,
and traffic, and is usually between five and eight
inches For moderately heavy traffic depth of six
inches is considered sufficient if placed on good
subbaser -such, for instance, as the coral roads
Just mentioned @as. i
That Mr.. Edwards had in mind substantial
wearing surface on top of the six-inch concrete is
evident by observations he makes elsewhere in his
article. After mentioning that concrete has long
proved its value as base for various types of pave
ment he goes on to say:
"But the allconcrete form of construction has
yet not gotten away from the experimental stage
and the experience of others should be carefully
considered. che writer knows of cases in Califor-
MIA where sections of the alconcrete state highway
have failed worn so badly as 20 need replacing in
only three years time. Repairs to concrete road
are hard and costly to make. In the writer's opin-
ion the best type of pavement for this country con
ests of a cement concrete base supporting 2inch
wearing surface of bituminous concrete. Such
parements are now being laid in the main streets
Of Honolulu and are giving good satisfaction
Collating the views of such men as those here
cited with those of men of local experience the
questions of dimensions and general type of road
for different sections of the belt road should not be
difficult of settlement In considering the element
Of traffic the main highway of the island should be
designed to support the maximum loads up to the
present time, with perhaps an allowance for in.
crease but only to certain degree beyond which a
limitation should be fixed by ordinance. railroad
standard Of loads cannot be admitted, as anything
worthy of being called permanent" road ought
not to be placed under the necessity of rebuilding
within the life of generation. 1t should however
fulfil the requirements of a military road, as, by
meeting the federal government halfway, a weighty
argument will be created for extensions of the high
way around the eastern and western corners of the
island by war department funds
Kerensky's address to the Moscow conference mas
1,f ,puifomize1 in the three words .tDo or. die