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

4 Honolulu road authorities should not be in haste
accepting the advice of any single person resident
or stranger no matter how good his CREDENTIALS
There is a considerable fund Of local experience
available now regarding types of permanent con
stFucion for different conditions and locations OF
highways. Concrete has been definitely selected as
IA base and. besides the matter ofcourse essential
OF effective drainage the remaining items for dec
sion are thickness of said concrete base, material
for wearing surface, width of paved area and
where there is no curbng in the country sec
tons, characterized protective shoulder between
paved area and, ditch line
s. These things must all be decided by climatic con
sditions-which vary greatly within short stretches,
by availability of material other than that for the
concrete mixture, and finally. by the character and
volume OF the traffic expected, this latter to be
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 ID feet with
three feet of asphalt macadam shoulder on each
side. This would be notable advance the
dimensions of the semipermanent sections now ex-
istent on the weather side of the island, and prob
ably should be adopted by road builders as the
minimum standard Regarding the thickness of
the concrete base, however there should be hesita
fion about accepting Mr. Beckjords 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
sub-base Of existent coral roads that have become
we'll 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,
rnder whose name comprehensive and highly in.
formative article on concrete roads has lately ap-
peared in the Hio Tribune, is worthy of considera
tion. Mr.. Edwards says: "The depth of concrete
in q 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
sub.base' such, for instance, as the coral roads
Just mentioned.
That Mr. Edwards had in mind substantial
wearing surface on top of the sixinch concrete is
evident by observations he makes elsewhere in his
article. After mentioning that concrete has long
proved its value base for various types of pave
ment, he goes on to say:
But the ali-concrete form of construction has
as yet not gotten away from the experimental stage
considered. che writer knows of cases in Califor
MIA where sections of the allconcree state highway
have failed worn so badly as 20 need replacing in
only three years time Repairs to a concrete road
are hard and costly to make. In the writer's opin
ion the best type of pavement for this country
sists of cement concrete base supporting 2inch
wearing surface of bituminous concrete. Such
pavements 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 military road, as, by
meeting the federal government halfway, weghty
arguent 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 NAV
be epitomized in the three words do or die