The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1919-06-05
This Country Has 81 Per Cent of All the Motor Vehicles In the World; and
1t Has Eight Times As Many Dirt Roads (Top Ficture) as HardSurfaced
Roads (Bottom Piture).

sASSao \oS&SSSb . 10
prepared by the United States Depart
mert of Agriculture.)
Ii all the automobiles in this u
try stood evenly distributed over all
the roads of this country there would
be five mOtorcars to every two miles
OF road. And there are 2,547,33334 miles
Of public road.
Ii every motorcar in the United
States were loaded to it's limit with
people, half the population Of the Uni
ted States could be hauled at one
load. And there are about 11O,O00,O0O
people in this country.
Getting down to boot heels and btu
iithic-iust to avoid the vulgar phrase
per- cent OF all the motor vehicles in
the world are on the roads OF the Uni
ted States. BY estimate, there were
7,O0O.0OO automobiles in the world on
january l, 1919. BY actual count, g.
1861 of these were in the United
license and other fees, $51 All, 41G.
And this is exclusive of the 100000
motor vehicles manufactured for the
government.
Each one of those six million one
hundred and odd thousand mOtOrcars,
when it runs on unimproved roads.
pays about twice as much for tires and
about twice as much for gasoline as
when it runs on surfaced roads. And
there are about eight times as mlny
miles Of unimprOved rs of improved
public roads in the United States. To
be specific, the public roads in the
United Statrs measure 2,457 1874 miles,
OF which only @9G,229O miles, or about
II per cent, are surfaced. The rest are
earth roads.
Half BiIlion for Roads.
Are the owners of those six million
md odd automobiles interested in the
federal aid roau-huilding program for
1919? 1t is the most s%tupcndOus road
building program in the history Of the
world.
Expenditures for road construction
this year are likely to reach S5OO,0N,-
GOO, according to the estimates of the
United Suites department OF agricul-
ture, the government agency charged
with the administration of the federal
aid road act. Practically all states
are planning a continuous system Of
connecting highways throughout each
state, and there is q more general
disposition than vas eve manifested
Ir,fr, l <, W.. fio,, ,s,N
ncighboring states so that improved
roads will not terminate at state lines.
Congress, shortly before adjourn
mcnt, made an extra appropriation OF
S2U9.ODO, 900 in the post Office apprO-
priatiOn bill to meet the federal part
Of the program. Officials Of the bureau
of public roads, United States depart
mcnt of agriculture, point out that this
Is the largest appropriation ever made
by any government fOr a similar pur-
pose, and that it will enable the fed
crul and state governments to carry
OH a road-buiiding program Of a mag
nitu1e never approached in the history
Of the world. This work, it is esti-
mated, will employ more than 100000
men in active road work, in addition
to the men engaged in the production
and furnishing of rOad-building mate
rails. 1t affords IL Of the large Oppor-
tun!ties for profitable employment for
returned soldiers and sailors.
Automobile Owners and Road Bonds.
The program - a continuing one.
The recent federal appropriation is for
three years. State, county and local
funds will come largely from bond
issues. And there is where the 6,O0O,-
600 automobile owners ought to shine
with u tremendous radiance.
Both sensible selfishness and plain
duty call upon the automobile owner
to vote for road bonds. His tire and
fuel costs, as before mentioned, are
cut in half by good roads. More i'm
p0rtant still, if he be u city man, as
a very large proportion Of automobile
owners are, it brings what he eats to
his doar at less cost. Good roads have
always mean something in the way of
reducing living costs, but they mean
more now that the mOtortruck has
come t o s:uy-and to expand. One
function OF the mOtOrtruck Is to re.
ieve congestion In the neighborhood