The Washington times., 1919-11-22
WESTERN ROADS
POOR FOR TRUCKS
Engineers Return After Driving
Two Machines to Coast
and Return.

ARDMORE, Pa, Nov. 22.-This
country has hardly made a. beginning
in developing good roads according to
the opinion of the party of Autocar
engineers who reached Ardmore last
week after crossing the continent and
back again with fully loaded new
type of heavy-duty Autocar and the
familiar model of the 1 II to 2-ton ca
pacity.
The party left Ardmore on July IA,
going West over the Lincoln High
way to California, and returning by
the Santa Fe trail. A total of 1872
miles was covered with an average
of 110 miles day. West of the Mis-
sissippi river the prevailing "good
road" IL one that Is hard once in a
while. with no consideration given as
TO what Its condition may be after
rain.
In comparison to it's population,
Nevada was found to have more good
roads than any other State crossed
either way. II PennsyIvania, for In
stance, had as many miles of per-
manent road for each thousand Of
population as Nevada has. every single
highway and byway, main thorough
fare and country lane, would be per-
manently surfaced with the best type
OF modern road construction.
Men whe Made Trips.
The engineers who made this trip
either entirely or in part, included B.
B. Bachman, A. B. Gunner, A. K
Brumhaugh. Nelson 8. Pringle, H. M.
Coale, A. H. Bishop, George Hay,
Frank Gardner, and John Archfield.
The two cars with capacity loads
successfully made the assent of Pixies
Peak and are the first motor trucks
that have ever made that ascent with
such loads. They also were able to
negotiate this climb without any ad-
1ustment of motors. The road up
Pixies Peak Is q good road, amply
broad enough for cars to pass each
other readily and with good surface,
although somewhat soft in places.
& From the toll gate at the bottom
to the summit 10 eighteen miles, with
an averages grade OF 7.6 per cent and
an official maximum Of 10.5 per cent.
The gradometer OF the Autocar party.
however, showed a. grade of 16 per
cent in some places near the top.
This climb Is 1000 feet in eighteen
miles with q road SO winding that in
one spot, looking both above and be-
low, one can see the road in seven
teen different places. The climb was
made In Ave hours and the return down
the mountain in one and one-half
hours.
Motor truck freighting across the
Continent Is possible, but not very
practical, because of the road condi-
tions prevailing In many places west
of the Mississippi. Passenger cars
are able to skim at high speed over
roads on which loaded trucks would
cut through and sink into eight or
ten inches Of sand. All inquiries as
TO conditions OF roads, aiso, are an
swered by the natives from the pas
senger car standpoint.
A road that is rough they would
call bad. no matter how hard the
foundation under it might be- The
light, smooth road, however, would
be called good, even though loaded
trucks on it might sink into the sand
up to their hubs.
Santa Fe In Best.
The feeling of the men who made
the trip between the Mississippi VAL
ley and California, was unanimous
that the Santa Fe was in much better
shape than the Lincoln Highway.
Roads were better with better grades,
and better hotel accommodations. Ga
RACES were found Plentiful over botn
roads.
California was found to be much
more completely motorized than any
other State crossed. In Los Angeles,
for instance. one of the men kept a
record for thirteen days, OF all vehicles
that he saw drawn by animals. In
that time he saw only six vehicles
propelled in the old-fashioned way.
The party, too, were convinced that
roads in the great West, because of
the sparce population, will have to be
built by some such national agency
as that provided by the Townsend bill.
On one stretch of eighty miles there
were only three Taxpayers.
Those "trans-continental" Autocar
trucks will he shown at the National
Motor Truck show in the Eighth Coast
Artillery Armory in New York city.
January to 10, and also in the
motor truck show at Chicago in the
Infarna finnal Arnnhifhaata. Ia--..