The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1920-10-14
ACT ON ADVICE OF COUNTY
ROAD COMMITTEE
Will Undoubtedly Cause Investiga-
ton of Barron Route Before Going
Ahead With Wisconsin Road Pro-
iect No. 121.

The action of the Bayfield, County
Road and Bridge Committee and
Highway Commissioner John Friberg
in writing to the State Highway Com
mission and asking that all bids be
rejected on Wisconsin Project No. 121
which was for the new route across
the Barrons from the village of Mo
quah into Iron River, has borne
fruit, and according to advices re-
ceived from the Office of the State
Commission this week all bids have
been ordered rejected.
Because Of the excessive cost in
carrying through this route the Bay
field county Highway Committee
figured that it was more money than
Bayfield, county was able or willing
to raise, especially when feasable
route could be located on the Barrons
which would cost far less to COM
plete.
When the rev route across the
barronS was first proposed there was
objection by number of the members
of the Bayfield, county board on the
ground that inasmuch as a good road
had been constructed by the town of
Barksdale for nearly half of the dis
tance across the barrons that this
,o~,.& &c Al, ,.,aJ cbo,,1J 10 ,,coJ o,,J
a connection made from this point to
the village of Iron River, but after
going over both routes the State Com
mission decided to abandon the pre-
sent temporary route and establish
a new route south of the Northern
Pacific tracks. 1t was also pro-
posed to build two cutoff, one leading
from the temporary route No. 10,
to Moquah and thence to connect with
the present Route No. "a south of
Benoit, and the other leading from
the city of Ashland across the Fish
Creek valley and connecting with the
proposed Route 10.
The bids as submitted at Superior
a week ago, information of which
was\given in the last weeks issue of
the Times, would have cost nearly
a quarter of a million of dollars for
the route from Moquah to Iron River
and it would be necessary to ex-
pend nearly 100000 additional to
build the proposed cut-offs.
The knowledge of this caused the
Bayfield, County Committee to ask the
rejection of all bids and to endeavor
to get the Wisconsin commission to
make another investigation of the
present Route 10, to determine if a
cheaper route could not be located.
Those who have travelled over the
temporary route are familiar with
the road which has been constructed
by the town of Barksdale for a dis
tance of ten or twelve miles. 1t is
road of standard width, good grade,
and surfaced with crushed rock, and
a finer road does not exist In Bay
field county. The Bayfield, County
road committee believe that this part
of the road could be used and that
a new route could possibly be estab-
lished from this point west that
would answer all purposes and make
a fine highway.
While the letter from the Commits
sion received the latter part of last
week stated that all bids would be
rejected, another letter was received
from the State Commission today in
which it was stated that while the
bids had been rejected, yet is was
not the intention of the Highway
Commission to abandon the idea Of
constructing the new project at some
future date, even though the cost
might be high, unless the Bayfield,
County Committee could find some
route that would be more feasible.
In writing to the Highway Com
mission it was not the intention OF
the Bayfield, County Committee tc
endeaver to have adopted the "snakt
trail" as the present Barron routes is
commonly called, but to use the por.
ton of the surfaced road in the towr
of Barksdale, and then to break south
and use a route near the Northern
Pacific track
The soil conditions. the contour Of
the country, etc., are very similar
whether the road be built south OF
north of the N. P. track, there is JUS
as much farming lands in one sec
tion as there is in the other, the
hills are just as steep, yet the State
Commission seems determined tt
throw this route south of the Northern
Pacific tracks and cause the expen
diture of thousands of dollars of Bay
field county money.
We believe the Bayfield, County
Highway Committee can find NOR,
suitable route, and if the Highwa,
Commission is not biased and deter