The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-08-22
For the Good OF
the COnnll

"ITHlN few days contractors viii begin
w building about % miles of permalert roads
in Jefferson county. These roads will cost owe
$4,000 mile, which looks like big sum to pay
for them.
Pr1or to the European war the cost of construct
ing roads similar to those to be built in Jefferson
county under contract awarded last week was
about $4,000 mile 1t was estimated that
$4,000 mile would build and equip a steam
railway line.
Costs have gone up to unheard of attitudes in
the last four or five years The cost of materials
used in road building and of labor have kept pace
with everything else in that respect
While over $4,000 a mile will be expended in
the construction of these highways, the people of
Jefferson county have the consolation of knowing
that they are paying only half of it. The federal
government puts up dollar for dollar and it's en-
gineers will see that for every dollar expended
there will be dollars worth of material or labor
put into the roads. And in the end Jefferson
county will reap a rich reward on the investment
A pretentious road building programme has
been mapped out at Montgomery 1t calls for the
expenditure of $25, 0O0,0 900 on state trunk high
ways within the next 10 or IL years and for the
application of all automobile and motor truck IL
cense taxes to the road building fund This would
take of the interest on the $25, 900 900 bond
issue and the maintenance of the roads and retire
the bonds by 1941-
There is danger of this programme being de-
feated in the legislature at Montgomery. When
the revenue bill was in the house two weeks ago
the automobile and motor truck license schedule
was amended to provide that the cities and the
counties should share in the license tax. IF this
amendment remains in the bill when it Is finally
passed. the road programme will thereby be de-
feated. There will be no money to take care Of
the bonds, principal and interest," and for the
maintenance of the roads.
The automobile people of the state agreed TO a
SO per cent increase in the license schedule on con-
dtion that the entire amount thus raised be turned
into the highway and bridge fund in accordance
with the plan worked out by State Engineer w.
S. Kellar. To make the increase and refuse to
carry out the other conditions of the agreement
with the automobile people will be to break faith
with them.
The state of Alabama cannot afford to break
faith with anybody. The legislature should either
carry-out the entire road building programme or
reduce the automobile and motor truck license to
the schedule now obtaining.
It is announced that Illinois is lust entering
upon programme patterned after that worked
out for Alabama. Other states have adopted the
same plan The people of Illinois voted by over
100000 majority $60,O00,O0O road bond issue
to carry out this programme. Illinois has 100000
automobiles and motor trucks The annual Ii
cense in that state is less than in Alabama but
the revenues derived therefrom amount to about
$7,000,000. Five thousand miles Of highways are
to be built, connecting every important municipal
ity in the state.
In Alabama it is proposed to build $500 miles
of highway connecting all the county seats and all
important municipalities. Another amendment
added to the revenue bill at Montgomery requires
the building of at least 80 miles Of roads in each
Of the 81 counties. That makes total of 2010
miles, leaving only about 500 miles to the dscre-
ton Of the highway commission and the highway
engineers. Whether that is a good provision or
not time will tell.
But the important thing is that unless the orig
inal provision of the license schedule is restored
to the revenue bill, Alabama will not issue the
$25, 900 900 Of bonds and there will be no road
building programme in Alabama for at least four
years, and perhaps not at all. The opportunity
to draw llions Of dollars from the federal treas
ury will have been lost and the people of Alabama
deprived of the good roads they are SO badly in
need of
The peopla who want good roads, roads that