The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1917-08-30
$794,429 FOR
NORTH DAKOTA
3. ROADS IN 1918
lug
More Than Three-Qparters Of a
Million Available for High
" way Improvement
PROJECTS WILL BE PUT
IN SHAPE DURING WINTER
Highway Commission Now in SEES
sion Here Hopes to Complete
Preliminaries

Requests for federal aid projects ag
gregating $4,000 are being consid.
cred at a meeting of the state high.
way commission which opened at the
capitol today. These are requests
which conform to federal require.
mentS as to post roads, with some
slight adjustments, and on which the
state highway commission antici-
pates contracts for practically all tbs
work petitioned for may be let this
fall or early this winter.
Funds available for federal aid
work are $76,l43 of the 1916 appro-
priation, which has not beea toucneu,
$l52,2S6 which became available July
l., and $22S,l29 which will become
available July |, 1918. For state aid
work there now is on hand $SS,0O0,
and it is anticipated that $2JO,OOu
more will be available by July |, 1918,
making total of $79i,429 which will
be available for the improvement Of
North Dakota highways during the
ensuing IS months. The highway
commission hopes during the coming
winter to procure from the counties
requests which will consume the en-
tire amount available for work in the
summer and fall Of 1918 and the
spring of 1919. Until the spring OF
1913 it is not probable, owing to I'M
ouni1o n1n In1o hot or 10 pr
federal aid work will be done on
North Dakota highways.
To Change Locations.
One of the important matters to be
taken up by the state highway com
mission at its present meeting is the
changing of locations OF reads in sew
eral counties in order to take better
advantage Of rural post roads. Fed
eral funds will not be available fol
the improvement of roads over which
mail is not now carried. County
boards and the state highway commits
sion now have the difficult prOS.em
OF relocating many roads already vs.
part OF the state plan in such a way
as not to materially increase til. to.
tai mileage Of state roads and at the
same time to secure a greater percent
age of post routes. TO facilitate such |
relocation, the state highway commits
sion has had prepared post route
map showing all the rural as we'll as
star routes.
-.a.. Plans Broken UP.
The plans of the state highway
commission have suffered serious .te-
lay owing to the fact that the ruling
Of the United States department of
agriculture practically restricting fed
eral aid to post roads, did not come
until May g. when the state commits
sion's plans had all been laid, the
counties had picked out the roads up
on which they desired federal aid,
and these had been approved by the
state board. This selection was made
with particular attention to the traf-
fic needs of the communities, giving
post roads secondary consideration
AS result the ruling of the depart
ment of agriculture giving precedence
to post roads to tho practical exclu-
sion of all others rendered radical
reimbursement necessary. 1t is due t.
this fact that little actual construc
ton has been or can be attempted
this year.
1.,, Field Parties Out.
A number of field parties are now
ont over the territory, and Senior
Engineer II. B. Hutchins of the Unit.
ed States Office of public roads for
this district is making detail surveys
There is every reason to hope that
by early next spring the state and
federal departments will have com.
pleted all preliminary work and that
one of the greatest road-building cam
paigns in the history of any north
western state may proceed without in,
corruption.