The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1921-12-31
EASTERN BUREAU
.LAUDS SEATTLE
1922 to Be Big Year in
Highway Building

NEW YORK. Dec. 3o.-The Off
Gals and citizens Of Seattle may
not realize. perhaps. that through
III. sum Of tss.ss7.is. which they
are reported az contemplating
spending or ms voting TO spend In
the near future for street paving
they Will share 10 no little extent
Ia carrying out the greatest era OF
road building and street conEtruc-
ton ia history. says Clifford =. Lee.
director OF highways Information
service.
The industrial depression that has
existed during the past year has
effected the road building program
but slightly. with more than 81
600 900 900 available. all told. and the
new federal MD law now In effect
and making 100000 In new
funds available In federal aid dur
ing the coming year, the country
has never experienced such "a road
building boom as the spring Of 1922
promises to inhugurl,ts.
Reports show that during the
past four months new streets and
road projects were announced as
contemplated but not yet voted 10
grand total OF s2s2sss.s23. Of
which the sum OF s7ii.Is0.T00 Is for
roads and f3i.sis.s23 for streets. In
addition. the American taxpayers.
during August. September. October
and November. actually voted s23s.-
eso.iss for new streets and roads
and the public officials soid NO.
sss.sos worth OF road and street
Improvement bonds. For streets the
sum OF ssT.sso.i7s was voted and
fzs.Tsi.ssi in bonds were sold. For
roads the sum voted was 1901 49,.
ss2. and the bonds sold were sii4.-
ssb.iS7. The reports showed new
street improvements to he oontem-
plated or actually under way In
s5s cities and towns.
Tia, our cities are making ire
mendoua strides in street paving is
Indicated In reports from city engi-
ncers TO The Asphalt Association.
New York. which Indicate shat over
so.0oo.ooo square yards. equivalent
TO l7bo miles Of aBphaitic pave
ff'fAs " ~ NtA's WIN hhA1 VII
city streets this year Reports from
state highway departments indicate
that za.o0s.ooo square yards were
laid on the state highways while
the area laid in counties and other
district brought the total to cS.-
900 900 square yards. equivalent to
5000 miles OF asphalt payements is
feet vida This Ii NOR. than suffS-
Gent To build one asphalt road is
feet wide from Augusta. Me. 20
San Francisco. CAL and another
from Augusta, Ne. to New Orleans.
The great change which has come
over the system OF road and street
building recently is the realization
that the material OF a road should
not be capable OF absorbing water.
but water.proofed. Not only does
rain percolAte thru and destroy a
road. but when frost comes II
heavcs the pavement and founda-
ton. Prolonged drought Is also
very harmful TO plain macadem sur
faces which become dusty and ravel.
Impact In a new and destructive
enemy OF pavements. When a
loaded motor truck weighing with
it's load. 22.soo pounds. and moving
AT n rate OF Is miles an hour en-.
counters an obstacle on the high
way sufficient to give tho rear
wheel n drop Of one inch the effect
upon the road is practically the
same as though the total weight
were multiplied by six. In a sense
the truck becomes n projectilc and
hattcrs the pavement by a success
sion OF mighty Impacts.
Two methods of resisting impact
have been developed among high
way engineers. one being TO design
rigid structure which will with
stand the impact as armor plate
is expected TO withstand the pro-
jectile. This method Is AN effort to
match the strength of the dcstruc-
tive agent with an equal or supe-
rior strength on the part of the de-
fensivc agent. II calls for n con-
stantly increasing thickness OF slab
and more reinforcement. Just as
more powerful guns and increasing
ly effective armor piercing projec-
tiles call for thicker armor.
In California and Oregon the en-
gineers do not attempt TO stop the
mighty impact OF the motor truck