Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-11-04
PARRY WARS ON
ROAD GRAFTERS
Drive Them Out of the State
State Senator Says in
Statement

1.-THE time is ripe for New Jersey
to drive the road grafters out of the
state. For years the patented paw
ing ring, by it's alliance with govern
ing bodies, has been mulcting the
taxpayers of New Jersey. But a
patient and long suffering public
has at last been aroused by the re-
rent exposure of the awarding of
forty-lve and a half miles of pa
State Highway Commission at an
average cost Of v $4,000 per
mile.
Representatives Of the patented
paving trust and Chairman Burton
of the State Highway Commission
have made apologize d~efenses for
the extravagant and exorbitant
prices that have been paid. But
their weak and wobbly explana-
lions have been swept away by the
tide Of damning evidence that has
been turned against them as to the
prices Of road construction from
every section of the country and in
different parts Of New Jersey.
The average cost per mile for
roads constructed with federal aid
Is s38,150 for concrete and $31,530
for bituminous concrete. The fol-
lowing is the average cost per mile
of roads being constructed by the
state highway commissions of other
states, according to recent letters
that I have received from state
highway engineers: New York,
$4,000 to $4,000; Iowa. $4,000 to
900; Colorado, $33,60O; Arkansas.
$4,000 to $4,000; Rhode Island,
100000 to $4,000; Michigan. $780,
900; Tennessee, $4,000 to $4,000;
Delaware. $4,000 to 100000; Ohio,
SIS, 1000; illinois, $4,000; Wisconsin,
$4,000, and Maryland, $4,000. The
roads Just cited are built of con-
crete, a non-patented substance.
NJ. w. Watson, state highway en-
gineer of Kansas, in a letter which
1 receivsi from him recently COM
pletely answers the claim Of the
Warrenite crowd that their pave
ment is superior to the non-patent-
ed types and is worth $2S,000 extra
or more per mile than the New Jer-
sey State Highway Commission is
paying. while there is merit in
some Of the patented types" says
Mr.. Watson. there is not sufficient
merit to warrant paying excessive
royalty and promotion fees which
they demand by reason of their
patents. AS far as their claim, by
ruling out the patented pavements,
you would be securing an inferior
type, there is absolutely nothing to
such contentious. This State High
way Department has never been
willing to recognize patented pave
ments end under our laws the ap-
prevail of the plans and specifica-
lions for all county work also is
vested in the State Highway Com
mission. In this section of the
country Topeka mix has given far
better results than the warrenite or
bitulithic pavement that has been
constructed"
Replies, which I have Leen re-
ceiving from county engineers of.
New Jersey, whose boards CT free
holders are lot controlled by the
Warrenite ring, emphasize the wan
ton extravaganza of the New Jer-
sey State Highway Commission in
the contracts it has AWARDED for
patented pavements. Roscoe Parke
McClave, county engineer of Ber-
gen county, says that River road,
East Paterson, twenty feet wide
and nine inches deep has been built
of three inch sheet asphalt on a six
inch concrete base, at 4 cost of
$32,841 Fer mile exclusive Ct grad
tiS. 1Iduu dNciluc, Eng eWOOQ, IL
being paved of the same material,
twenty-five feet wide at a cost per
mile of $53,643. Fort Lee turn
pike at Bagota, a road which car
ries very heavy traffic, Of double re-
tnforced concrete and thirty feet
wide, cos $57,024, exclusive of
grading. Roads of the same width
being built by the state highway
commits sinn with warrenite btu
lithic are costing 100000.
William G. Cattell, county engi-
neer of Gloucester county. reports
that Gloucester is building a rein
forced concrete road from Swedes- |
boro to Woodstown, twenty feet
wide, with five foot gravel should
ers on each side for $39. 676 per
mile, including all costs. Glouces-
ter county is also building a road
from F%aulsboro to Gibbstown
which Mr.. Cattell states calls for a
pavement of more than ordinary
thickness, which is twenty feet
wide, ten and one-half inches in
depth in the center, with gravel
shoulders on each side of five feet
each at a total cost of $40,458 per
mile.
Harry F. Harris, county engineer
OF Mercer county, writes that the
principal roads constructed ty Mer-
Ger county during 1921 and 1922 |
range from $4,000 to 5000 per
mile, all of which were built of re-
inforced concrete. I'm many in
stances" he states that heavy ex-
cavation or drainage have had a
tendency to greatly increase the
cost Mercer county has construct |
ed Princeton avenue with width of
twenty feet at a cost per mile of
S4S,654. Chambers street with a
twenty foot width at a cost of $780,
o6S per mile. Yardville road, also
twenty feet in width at a cost per
mile of $5S,370. while Sanhican
drive which is t%wentyfour feet, cost
S57.116 per mile. With the excep-
ton of Chambers street, which was
seven inches in depth, Mr.. Harris
states, that these roads were eight
inches IN depth.
Fl. w. Vetter, county engineer of
warren county, writes hat the War
rem Board of Freeholders has con-
tracted for a reinforced concrete
from Hope to Blairstown over
i've miles in length, at an approxi-
mate cost of S26.623 per mile. This
contract, however, did not include
the cost of grading and drainage.
Jacob l.. Bauer, county engineer of
Union county, writes hal his county
built a twenty-five foot concrete road
on Park avenue and Martin avenue.
Scotch Plains and Fanwood. with a
depth of eight inches and heavy re-
enforcement at a total cost of $63,611
Tor It's i.39 miles. Union county also