The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1917-08-30
COMPLETE ROAD NEXT YEAR
Plans are Made to Eliminate Dangerous
Crossings Between Racine and Keno
sha by Shifting Electric Railway
Northwestern Favors Plan.

The Sheridan Drive is to be COM
pleted through the counties of Racine
and Kenosha during the summer of 1918
according to the statement OF State
Highway Engineer James Gillespie who
with a corps Of men today began max
ing the surveys of the unimproved por-
tions of the road in the two counties.
The road is to be built with federal aid
and Engineer Gillespie and his men ex-
pect to complete the surveys by the end
of this week and the plans will then be
submitted to the federal department for
its approval with the understanding
that the work will DO started as early
as possible in the spring Of 1918. The
plan to be followed will be similar to
the plan by which federal aid was Sc
cured for the completion Of the south
portion of the road in Kenosha county,
which it is expected will be completed
this year.
Engineer Gillespie also announced
there would be change of the road
line between the two dangerous rail
road crossings, between Racine and Ke-
nosha, on which so many accidents have
occurred in recent years. The piece of
unimproved road north of Racine will
also be taken care of next summer, he
said, but just now that matter has been
hung up in the agricultural department
which is being kept busy with the food
conservation measures. BY next spring,
however, he thought all matters in con-
nection with that portion of the high
way would be cleared up.
While the announcement that the
road south of Racine is to be improved
through to Kenosha with a cement CEN
ter of the type constructed for a great
part OF the distance pleases the travel
ing public there is nothing more pleas
ing to the automobiles than that the
highway will be shifted so that it comes
between the electric and steam road
tracks at the points where it now cross
es the North Western steam road
tracks. In order to accomplish that
change right-of-way will have to be
purchased from farmers residing at
that point and presented to T. M. e. r.
& L. Company for use in it's interurban
business. The electric tracks will be
shifted farther to the east, giving am
pie room for o concrete highway on a
new route. That plan will do away
with the necessity of crossing two dan
gerous points besides giving straight
roadway entirely devoid of danger.
The Northwestern company is I'M
derstood to be greatly in favor Of a
plan of that kind as il will be able to
do away with the crossing men which
means great saving. The electric rail-
ray midway between the present two
moved slightly to the east although it
is satisfied with the route over which
its cars now travel.
There promises to be some objection
from farmers residing on the present
road between the two points of crossing
the railway tracks. They may refuse
to permit the portion of the present
road now lying west of the North West
ern tracks to be blocked of and Just
how it is planned to satisfy tho prop
erty owners has not been made public.
There was some talk of having the
Northwestern company put in a sub
way midwal between the present two
crossings and closing the openings
where tho road now crosses but that is
not desired by the property owners.
They maintain that it would be putting
them back off the main road which is
not desirable.
The state engineering department has
been working on the plan to do away
with the two crossings for some time
and has held off improving that part of
the highway, it is said, on account OF
the features of the plan Objectionable
to the property owners on the west side
Of the track. There probab-y win be
several sessions with those property
owners before the plan for next year s
improvement is carried out.