Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1919-01-18
WOULD INCREASE TAX
of Good Roads As
sociation For Improvement of State
Highways-R. Stuart Roger Chosen
Delegate From Eighth District.

Delegate From Eighth District.
The convention of the Virgini
| Good Roads Association held its open
ling meeting in Murphy's hotel Audi
torium with from four-hundred t
five hundred delegates, m attendanc
from all sections of Virginia. Amon'
tnose present was R. Stuart Royer
business manager Of the Chamber o
Commerce.
Wade H. Massie, president of th'
association presided. Motor parce
post routes were discussed by Jane:
l. Blakslee, Fourth Assistant Post.
master General, who pointed out the
great possibilities Of development OF
parcel post motor transportation
which has already proved a great sue
cess in sections where it is already ir
operation.
Governor Davis spoke on Future
Highway Improvement in Virginla's
and received an ovation when he pro-
posed to raise s25,OOO,O00 for the i'm
mediate construction of twelve-hun-
dred miles of good roads in the high
way system by levying a. special tan
Of one mill and increasing the auto
mobile tax so per cent. Governor
Davis declared that at the rate we
we're going it would take sixty-five
years, and cost in original construc-
sion S75,000,OOO to carry out the state
highway program adopted by the Gen
eral Assembly of 1918. He showed
now under his suggestion plan of tax,
ltion, S39,O0O,000 could be made avail
,ble for construction and maintenance
during the period 1920-28 whereas
lnder the present plan the state has
,nly S2,150,OOO for roads, of which 81.
10000 only is available for new work.
Commissioner Coleman spoke or
Ways and Means for the construc-
tion of the State Highway System
lie pointed out the necessity of draft
ing uniform cratic regulations, and
stated his opinion that the fast NOV
ing motor trucks would soon destroy
not only the light but the heavy sur
faced roads.
He further declared that in orde,
TO meet the necessities required By
the Federal appropriation acts and tc
provide funs for resurfacing and re-
constructing roads which are rapidly
going to pieces, we must have spe-
,ial road tax of not less than one and
,ne-haH mills, or fifteen cents on the
lollar the tax to apply to all proper
les subject to State tax. He further
suggested that Section 1S4 of the
Constitution relative to issuing bonds.
be brought to the attention of the
people SO that the preliminary steps
could be taken in order that bonds
.ould be issued at the end of four
years, if at that time bond issue
should be deemed advisable.
DR.. R. B. Airport of the Richmond
Automobile Club, explained the atti-
i:ude of the automobile owners toward
highway improvements in Virginia.
, He declared that $4,000 automobile
owners in Virginia would be glad TO
pay reasonable or even an unreason-
,able tax if they could get some re-
burns for their money, but were get
hing tired of being taxed and recelv7
fng little or no benefits.
/; Wednesday morning Second Audi
Cor Roosevelt Page discussed the ques,
;'ior of state bond issue for the CON
:,t.uction of a highway system. Mr.
Page intimated knowledge of the fin
;incial affairs of the state made hi:
id'ress an exceedingly interesting
and instructive one.
+: Wednesday afternoon w. S. Falls
Chief Engineer of the y. c. Stat
Highway Commission spoke on "Pro
per Regulations for the use of I'm
\ ;,roved Highways" He told of tn
changes in kinds of traffic developed
| IN the past few years.
\ He declared that every whee
should pay license tax, gradated &C
,ording to it's destructive effects o
The road. Every wagon. buggy an
cart should pay according to tn
width Of the tire and load capacity
The width of the tire the less tn
Hess the tax. He stated that the liz
\ snse tax on automobiles should
gradated according to horsepower a
4 This generally related both to capacit
I and speed. Laws should be passed r
| gulating both load and speed and e:
ceptionally heavy trucks should ]
| kept off Of all roads except thozese
pecially hnilt to accommodate thel