Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1922-12-15

HIGHWAY USERS HELD SAVING
J. 7. WHI1E IN aouTHERN STATE,
..5r,,, ,,.SS PAYING Old TOLLS -: 4.

While car and truck owner g saw
ings from better roads in Minnesota
are estimated at $17,500,000 aeyear at
l-cent mile rate, motor vehicle users
in q southern state in particular and
several others continue to-, pay tolls
to use roads and bridges and their ex:
penses run much higher, according to
a current bulletin from the state high:
way department. ~ rsss> rsss>;:::,. ~.
The total Of nearly 350,0O0 motor
vehicles now owned in Minnesota. are
held to travel 5000 miles q year each
or total of II, soc, 100000 car miles
annually, the bulletin states. The cost
of average car operation is commonly
placed at 10 cents q mile under aver.
age conditions and much lower on i'm.
proved roads. Assuming that road
betterments in Minnesota have re-
duced the. cost only tenth or cent a
mile, the bulletin adds, the saving ag-
gregates ST., 100000, a year which is
nearly triple the total Of motor We
hicle taxes.
Highway officials insisted that this
was better way of computing good
road values in Minnesota than that
suggested by former. resident who
sent a report of high tolls paid in a
southern state and applied the sched'
ules to the so-called Babcock roads
here. He said that on recent 30-mile
auto trip with friends he paid road and
bridge tolls of $2.1O or rate of 312
cents a mile, in a southern state not
particularly known fo: adequate high
hnk
miles Of Minnesota trunk highways,
traffic averages 7l0 vehicles a, day,
the writer reckoned that the southern
toll rates would take $174,950 a day
or $63, ,491,7 year from the public.
''This southern state with more than
$1O0, 0,0O0, 600 for roads is starting to
pull itself out Of the mud and abolish
the tolls" he wrote, alluding to recent
figures on practical tests showing that
possible gasoline and tire savings
which would result in five years would
pay the whole cost of paving the Min
nesota trunk highway system.
Pay-as-you-use Is Fairest Road Plan
Minnesota is using only $3.50 of cur
rent revenues each year on it's 1000
mile system of trunk highways for
every $40 on locarzroads and every $42
spent. for. schools. Also, nearly half of
the trunk highway. construction funds
are going into permanent improve
ments--bridges, grading and like work
which will last for many years:
+" Charles sM. Babcock, state highway
commissioner, points to these facts and
official figures in support of proposals
for first issues of trunk highway
bonds by the incoming Legislature.
"Schoo} districts never attempt in a
single tax levy: to raise the whole
cost of a new building which IL to
serve for many years." said Mr.. Bah
cock. ''And as it is only fair and
just to extend the school payment
rover a period of years, SO it is equally
fair and good business to spread road
costs over years the Improvement will
be used and in proportion to the use.
The pay'assyou-use policy is much more
just than the pay-as-you-go policy.
"The public needs the roads at once
and can make big savings on them.
But that is not sufficient reason for
paying the whole cost each year when
a considerable part of the work will
serve during many other years as we'll
The better and only fair way is to al
low each year to pay it's fair share and
the payments can be spread in that
way only through bond issues. That
is the basis of highway department
recommendations. for the first highway
issues at this time The good business
man today does not wait until he has
accumulated the price of. home, but
borrows money, and gains the use and
enjoyment of the home while paying
for it. That is exactly the principle
in the highway bond plan.''
Commissioner Babcock Z emphasized
that the bond plan will not affect thl
reductions already being made in road
taxes because only federal aid and
motor vehicle taxes can be used for
trunk highway purposes Z: