The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-05-07
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
MORN A TION
Blu RE AU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Director
Washington, D. g.
KEEP WAR TRAFFIC OUT OF
RCTS
Washington. d. g.


RUTS. rs
Washington, d. c.. May A few
days ago a big government motor
truck stuck hard and fast in rut
cn the road between Washington and
baltimore. A Commercial truck tried
tC get around it from one direction
and another government truck from
the other direction. Both of these
also stuck. Soon this overtraveled
read, for a mile each way, was jam
med with squawking cars and trucks.
All traffic was stalled for the better
part of q day, with the result that war
work was delayed, suburbanites were
late to dinner. and thirsty Washing
tonians were unable to reach the
Maryland oasis.
This incident is no special discredit
TIC the Maryland road builders. The
| Washington Baltimore road was not
| built for the amount and kind of traf-
| fic which it is bearing. The same
thing is true of many other highways
! iE all parts of the country. More and
| more, motor trucks are taking over
what used to be short haul railroad
freight. And the short haul that is
accomplished by motor truck has
gradually heightened from ten or fif-
teen miles until Eow much freight Is
carried two hundred miles in trucks.
These facts are the basis of drive
which is being made on congress for
| legislation which will empower the
| federal government to unity the roads
OF the United States into a compre-
| henSive system, and to spend the
money which is necessary to make
| the roads adequate to meet the new
requirements which are being placed
| upon them. The federal government,
it is claimed by the proponents of
the plan, must do the work, because
a central authority is absolutely
necessary to the perfection of a ma
ttonal syntem of roads. And the fed
eral government should spend the
| money, they say, because their mili-
tary value makes the roads a great
rational asset This military value of
good roads is already shown in this
country by the dependence which the
government is placing upon them for
the moving of troops and supplies. In
Europe 1t has been even more con-
vincingly demonstrated. 1t has been
said that good roads saved France
and the lack of them defeated Russia.
1t is certainly true that French had
the best roads in the world when the
war broke out, and that the men and
supplies which checked the first Ger
man rush went forward largely by
motor. 1t is also true that a break
down of all transportation facilities
prevented Russia from effectually
mobilizing her tremendous resources.
The American Automobile associa.
ton is leading proponent of the new
drive for a national system of high
ways, and is ably represented in
washington by A. G. Batchelder. its
executive chairman. Senator Cham.
ber1a1n, chairman of the senate COM
mittee on military affairs has intro
duced bill, which is sponsored in the
house by Representative Dent, pro.
viding for the desired federal super.
| ~
This measure has been read and ap.
proved by Secretary of War Baker II
addition to this measure, a number OF
others have been introduced by repre-.
sentatives and senators from svariou.
states, who feel that the federal gov
eminent should pay for the mainten
ance of roads which are being USED
largely for the expedition of govern
ment business. Senator Smith Of
Maryland. Representative Cooper o.
Ohio, and Representative Raker OF
California, are among these advocates
of the federal road scheme.
There is now a federal office o.
good roads, operating under the fed
eral road act, whereby the govern
ment appropriates funds for roads
provided the states in which the road
are to be built will appropriate a sim
liar amount. This gives the govern
ment the power to recommend the i'm
provement or building of certain road.
and to disapprove the improvement o.
building of others. 1t may exercise
sort of advisory and mildly compul
sorry power toward the establishment
of unified national system of roads
But this power, it is argued, is by M
means sufficient in an emergency 1ils
the present What is needed is tn,
. power to form a definite PLAN for
system of national highways. and tn
funds to carry that plan into execu
ton as rapidly as possible.
For this new national system O
highways must not only be a thorol
co-ordinated one. but it must be of
! character radically different from tina
of most of our present roads. Tn
failure of these latter is largely du
very well for the traffic of light pleas
ure cars and farmers wagons, will
not stand up Under the strain of heav,
: truck traffic. A truck highway. ii
i order to NEE. the requir .ments which
, are now being laid upon it. must be
. paved highway with a concrete base
l Such a road is very expensive to build
: il costs from twenty thousand to thirt
l thousand dollars a mile. But the up
keep of such a road is only about one
fourth IS expensive as the upkeep o
cheaper road under heavy traffic
1t is a case, say the experts, wher
large initial expenditures will be tn
cheapest in the long run.
The beginning of federal co-ordi
l nation of the country's roads has bee
r made by the highway transport com
j, mittee of the council of national de
Tense. By linking together state an
county roads, 1t has worked out route
D by which government motor truck
travel from inland towns to seaports
But this organization has no none
to spend, and the effectiveness of it
Y efforts has been greatly limited by thi
fact.
The Chamberlain measure, whic
has the approval of the secretary O
war, provides that a plan for a ma
r tional system of highways shall b
r drawn by the chief of engineers of tn
war department. The primary pur
1 pose of this system of roads. the BIZ
e provides. shall be to facilitate tn
: movement of troops and s, pplies. bu
a it shall also be made as useful as pos
7 | Sihle to the postal service and to com