Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1919-01-14
ipecial to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, Jan. li.-One OF the first
moves OF the Thirty eighth general
assembly on the matter of road legis-
lation will be a conference of the
highways committees OF both the house
and senate and other Legislators
especially interested in this question.
Such conference is being proposed
by Senator Nicholas Balkema, of Sioux
Center, father of the highway COM
mission law, chairman Of the senate
highways commission in the past three
sessions. and state senator since 1908.
The purpose of the conference is for
a thorough discussion of the present
road problems of the state and Of
legislative measures and road improve
ment ideas now in the minds Of the
solons.
This conference will be held early in
the session, in all probability within
the next two weeks. The senate COM
mittees will be announced, by Lieuten-
ant Governor Moore before the end OF
this week and the house committees
will be given out by Speaker McFar-
lane about Tuesday next. The road
conference will follow soon after the
highways committees are appointed
and organized.
1t Is my judgment this conference
will draw out free discussion in an
informal way Of road matters" said
Senator Balkema today. 1T should
bring out information and various
angles Of the road problem which will
help to suggest practical legislation or
such legislation that there would be
chance OF passing and laws which
would be workable. Thru this frank
conference we could obtain an ex
change of views which certainly ought
to be helpful. Then furthermore We
ought to reach some sort of common
ground to work from in the matter OF
road legislation and possibly avoid
useless friction on the floor Of both the
house and senate as well as save
time"
Time Ripe For Action.
Senator Balkema has been a student
of the road problems OF Iowa for many
years and especially since he became
a member of the Iowa state senate. He
said today that in his judgment the
time is ripe for practical progressive
road legislation.
Il believe we will have to come to
some form of surfaced roads for our
state roads. possibly concrete in some
places and intrenched gravel in others.
"Of course concrete under present
conditions is going to be expensive.
possibly prOhibitive in many instances.
Under present cost conditions a sixteen
to eighteen foot roadway Of concrete
win cost from $4,000 to $4,000 per
mile. 1t is useless to say also that this
will not need repairing. Concrete roads
do need repairing. usually beginning
about the third year after they are
down. This is more especially true if
trucks are used on the roads.
AN entrenched sand surfaced road
can be built for not more than $4,000
per mile. that is road of from six
teen to eighteen feet in width. There is
one instance of where a sand road was
built at IRON $4,000 to $4,000 per mile,
but that was where the hauling , Of
gravel was free Of charge, and other
conditions entered in to reduce the
cost.
IAN entrenched sand surfaced road
has to be built by digging off the road
surface six. eight or ten inches and
then putting on three layers of sand.
rolling each layer thoroughly. Usually
no binder is used
"a sand surfaced road needs to be
constantly patroled but we have the
provision and machinery for this in
~, n In, I,> ! 10
patrol any stretch of road. We have
found it so in Sioux county.
Il Travelled over stretch of sand
surfaced road in Minnesota in Novem-
Der this last fall which was as perfect
a piece Of road as ever saw. or course
there was no heavy trucking over it