Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1921-01-18
YElM-ST. CLAIR ROAD
FEASIBLE At LOW COST
Fred j. Brown Explains Position on
General situation in Thur>ton
County



st. Clair road, ! am writing this
article TO explain my position from
an engineering standpoint, as l see
1t, OF the general road situation Of
Thurston county, and as in the dis
oussion OF the Yelm-St. Clair road
We will meet with the same problems
that confront the location and con
struction OF any other main road.
am mentioning and discussing this
road simply by way Of illustration.
The problems concerning all road
constructions are, first the import
ance Of the district from the stand
point OF the number OF people AMI
property to be benefited; second
grade and alinement; third, cost OF
construction. AS the importance Of
the district to be benefited will govern
the amount and nature Of traffic and
as the preparation OF the road bed
for the traffic for which the road is
being built must be considered nat
must affect the estimated cost of con-
OF construction and maintenance Of
the road must also be considered in
the location and grade Of the road
The heavier the cost Of construction
and maintenance per mile, due en-
tirely to heavy traffic conditions, the
more it becomes necessary to con-
slider the alinement in the location of
the road in figuring the final cost. For
illustration, in the location Of the
a road that should be hard surfaced
at an estimated cost of $4,000 per
mile, in order to take care Of the
traffic, should be Strengthened when
ever the added cost of the subgrade
due to Strengthening will not exceed
the added cost of the hard surface
eliminated. These are problems that
decide the location and cost of road
from an engineering standpoint; but
too often the outside political situa-
ton enters into the location of a
road, setting aside all problems enter
ing into logical location.
Gives Yelm Ten Miles ON Highway.
Considering these problems in the
discussion of the Yelm-St. Clair road
we find that this road puts all of the
Yelm country onto the pavement in
side of eight miles, giving Yelm ten
miles Of pavement on the road to
Olympia.
If we take bird's-eye view of that
part of the country We find a chain
of hills that in coming from Yelm to
Olympia puts us within three miles
of st. Clair before we pass them. We
also find a group of lakes that We
must either 60 east or west Of. io|
go east Of these lakes the road will
continue almost straight toword st.
Clair; but to go west of them the road
must turn toward the southwest for
over three miles before it again turns
toward Olympia.
The argument is made that the St.
Clair road extends over unsettled
country. The fact is that it will not
pass through as much unsettled coun-
try as the present road does; but
that no road can be built to Yelm
that does not pass through a con.
siderable country, which owing to
poor soil conditions will, perhaps,
never be improved to amount to any
thing
Yelm is entitled to a main road
built to stand the traffic, so is Cham
ber's Prairie, and so is Rainier for
the reason that any settled portion
of the county is entitled such
road. The Yelm-St. Clair road passes
over country over which road COZ
struction and maintenance will be the
least possible cost. At no point on
the road would gravel for gravel
surfacing have be hauled over one
mile. The one obstacle is the cost
of the crossing under the Northern
Pacific Railroad, but this. company,
through its attorney, has agreed to
bear not less than one half of the
expense of the underground cross
ing. This would fix the cost to the
county of approximately $26,OO0 for
| the first mile of road, but all OF
the remainder of the road can be
built at less cost per mile than
any other location. While much of
the gravel for the road across Cham
ber's Prairie to Olympia must be
hauled several miles, thus making
the cost for graveling over much of
this road twice as much as over the
Yelm-St. Clair road, the difference
In cost more than offsets the cost of
the underground crossing.
The position then that 1 have taken
In the location Of the Yelm-St. Clair
road is this: 1t gives Yelm a road to
Olympia on ten miles of pavement,
thus saving the maintenance on ten
miles Of gravel road. 1t will relieve
the Chambers Prairie road of the