Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-05-06
Friday, May 6, 1921
SOME HIGHWAY PROBLEMS

ways will be so long as highways are
used. but today they are unusually
insistent The public is taking over
a larger share than before of the
transportation. Trucks arc now
hauling freights which but for the
motive power of gasoline would nat
urally have sought the railroads, and
automobiles are conveying passengers
that formerly travelled in steam cars.
The public has not forseen or pre>
pared for the volume of business
thrust upon it.
Those who promoted the railroads
did. in part at least, forsee the work
they were to do and prepared for it,
even developed it, and built accord
ingly. They employed the best engi-
recring skill in the world and paid
for it. Success depended on so do
ing, on wisely laying the foundations.
All this they have amply demonstrat-
ed. They may have used politics in
furthering their schemes but those
doing so in the management went
into the hands of receivers or changed
their policy. Those that succeeded
found out what to do and then did it,
They could not depend on taxes to
make good the deficits. either from
poor or from inefficient management
The public ought not to and if 1t does
will suffer in consequence. 1t should
seek the best engineering advice seek
It from those who have acquaintance
with local conditions and common
sense, which cannot take the place of
the technical skill but can nightly
assist it,
The Highway News Digest presents
comprehensive address by II. G.
Shirley before the Society of Auto
motive Engineers, from which the
Following is taken. as being especial
ly pertinent at this time:
THE roads of this country are be-
ing built without any definite math-
ematical computation. Design is
based on such computation, and the
type and character of construction
represents. the Judgment of the engi-
neer rather than a logical known de-
sign.
Refore the advent of the heavy mo-
tor vehicle the roads during the
spring. when the sub grade had be-
come saturated. would loosen up and
heave. but the traffic. being light and
the vehicle having iron tires. would
roll back and reconsoIidate the road
surface as soon as the sub-grade had
dried out. This would be repeated for
a number of years before the surfac-
ing broke UP under such traffic When
the heavy motor vehicle strikes the
surfacing over a saturated and YIELD
ing sub grade it destroys it complete
ly. and the effective service of the
highway is greatly reduced
conditions have changed so rap
idly that it is now very necessary
that some investigation and study be
made OF the sub grade so that it can
be stabilized and its bearing power
known. Knowing this. along with the
wheel and axle load, the highway en-
gineer can proceed to design a slab
that will have the proper thickness
to carry the load specified safely. But
not until these two factors are known
will we be able to solve the equation
and find the unknown quantity, and
road designing will be left on the hit
or-miss plan
He replies to the criticism of motor
makers on account of roads fail
ing to stand up under the traffic by
calling attention to the fact that the
cars they originally built would not
bear up under the present day re-
aufrements; that they restrict loads
on their vehicles and that there is
just as much reason to restrict strains
imposed on our highways. There
should be Il getting together for the
solution of this problem
Unless the designer of a motor We
hicle and the highway engineer get
together on reasonable wheel and
axle load We cannot expect very much
improvement in our highway work"
He remarks that loads may be large
and heavy provided they are dis
tributed over the proper number of
axles and wheels, except with refer
ence to bridges. He declares that
The many political conditions that
have to be met in road building make
it difficult to construct a road as it
should be" and adds that the engineer
must 30 conduct his work as to gain
the public's confidence in his judg
ment.
1t certainly ought to be very evil
dent by this time that the public
should have the advice OF a trained,
nom political engineer, acquainted
with conditions. equipped with good
judgment and empowered to as great
an extent, at least, as were the engi-
neers employed in the construction Of
our railroads.