Morris tribune., 1922-12-01
GASOLINE SAVINGS
WOULD PAVE ROADS
Highway Figures Show Gains POss-
ible Buying Good Roads In
stead of Extra Gasoline +.


paving the entire 7,000-mile Mime
sofa system of trunk highways, ac-
eording to practical tests made by
the Iowa State College. Expert engi-
neers report that equal savings can
be made on tires with paved, against
unpaved roads, and this added, the
possible savings would equal the
paving costs in five years. Even
greater savings possible on the life of
every car and the comfort and con-
venience afforded by hard-surfaced
highways would represent net gains
they assert. q. ..
Charles M. Babcock, state highway
commissioner, made it clear that
there is no immediate plan to pave
1000 miles or even 700 miles on the
trunk system, and that the figures
are applied to the Minnesota high
way program to emphasize that the
proposed bond issues to speed up bet
terments are 'just good business"
FIGURE BIG SAVINGS
Iowa tests averages showed that a
gallon of gasoline is the motor fuel
necessary to transport one ton IA
miles on an earth road, 21 miles on
gravel road and 81 miles on a con-
crete pavement. With gasoline at
d cents a gallon, ten mile fuel costs
are III cents on earth, 1.15 cents
on gravel and SIT cents on paved
roads. Further, the tests show pos
Bible savings of Sc cents a ton mile
on gravel over earth roads, "a cents
on pavement over earth roads and
.3S cents on pavement over gravel
roads. The weight of the average
vehicle is placed at 1.36 tons. These
basic figures make it easy to figure
with fair accuracy the gasoline saw
ings possible from Improvement Of
any road on which is known the
number Of motor vehicles using it
daily. ..
Applied to the Minnesota trunk
highway system, the test figures in
dfcate fuel cost of motor vehicle
operation, per ton mile with 24-cent
gasoline, Of 66lhundredths Of cent
on concrete road than on the av-
erage unpaved road in the state.
With traffic averages Of TO vehicles
and 996 tons day on the Minnesota
trunk highways, the gasoline saving
alone would be $2,325 a year, plus
ing or a total of $4,000 a mile saved
annually.
Interest charges included, concrete
pavement in Minnesota costs $50, 700
a mile. So the possible savings on
gasoline with hard-surfaced roads,
with maintenance costs reduced
would in ten years at the present
price Of gasoline, cover the gross
cost of extending paving over all Of
the 1000 mile state highway system.
BABCOCK MAKES STATEMENT
Commenting on the proposals to
be made to the legislature, Commits
sioner Babcock said:
1.-THE highway department will re-
commend first issues Of state high
way bonds because 1t believes the
proposal just good for business and
what a good manager would urge up
on stockholders in a private enter
prise under like conditions. The
public corresponding to the board of
directors in a private business must
decide whether the proposition is
timely. It will stand solely on it's
merits.
The successful business man bor-
rows funds when he finds he can use
rows funds when he gnds he can use
them to build economically and ad-
vantageously. Minnesota with
credit of $40 per capita and only
$8.14 of debt or net credit Of nearly
$12 per capita, is in better position
to borrow money for needed highway
improvements than many states now
going on with much larger highway
funds and programs. Highway bond
and other recommendations to be-
made by this department will not add
one cent to taxes. Better roads al
ready are returning to average car
and truck owners more than they
pay in motor vehicle taxes and since
the state assumed the expenses Of
building and maintaining the more
expensive main roads, county, town
ship and city-village levies for road
and bridge PURPOSES are rapidly go
Ing down. Direct toxes for roads in
Minnesota are being lowered for the
first time in the history of the state.
Current trunk highway funds to
date have installed $4,000, 900 less
than was agreed to under Amend
ment No. 1 and reasonably expected.
Highway demands are increasing as
more and more people become con-
vinced that good roads more than
pay themselves by stopping gasoline
tires and other waste. Reasonable
funds provided, the state will be able
to speed up highway improvements
and to the advantage of every pro-
perty owner and citizen. 1t will be !
possible in all parts of the state to !