The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1923-03-30

some heavy-traffic sections Of the
trunk highway system is costing as
high as $2,145 a mile annually and
that does not give the public whslly
satisfactory results. This expense
was charged last year on the south
end Of the Twin Cities-Duluth high
way, trunk route No. /. 1t would be
greater in wet years, and new gravel
surfacing will run the cost up to $4,000
a mile this year, if the state is COM
PEELED to gravel instead of paving the
section.
This condition does not exist over
the entire 7,000-mile system and for
surfacing the heaviest travelled sec
lions to reduce maintenance expense
is underestimated in many localities.
In districts where trunk route travel
is comparatively light there is a gen.
eral conviction that gravel road is
the thing everywhere. 1t must be ad-
mitted that the gravel road has no SUI
perior where it will carry the traffic.
But where heavy traffic grinds away
the gravel surfacing and upkeep cost
runs past the economy point, pave
ment should be built. That is the ex-
perience in every state.
Suppose the cost of trunk highway
maintenance alone Exclusive of any
new construction-ran up to $14,000,-
900 year, or nearly twice the total
of present receipts from motor vehicle
taxes. Everybody would say that
sometimes must be done to stop the
tremendous waste. The maintenance
costs are running up at that rate on
some sections, and it doubtless will be
agreed that it is important to stop
| that waste, that strict economy de-
mands the hard-surfacing of those Sec
tons to reduce the maintenance cost
| and best serve the public.
On the 416 miles of paving on the
trunk system, the maintenance cost
last year averaged 1927 a mile. That
| included the care of the slab, the
shoulders, the drainage, also the weed
cutting. Two-thirds of the milage was
built in 1921 and 1922 and the mainte-
nance is most expensive the first two
| years-until shoulders are grown over
with vegetation to prevent washing
| out.
1t will be seen how it is possible to
save as high as $4,000 mile annually
on maintenance of some parts of the
| system.
Motor Vehicle Savings.
| Another side concerns the motor
vehicle owners who are paying all the
direct taxes toward trunk highway de-
velopment.
The section of trunk highway No. 1
referred to, carries on average Of
more than $500 vehicles a day, Prac-
| teal tests have shown that average
motor vehicle operation cost of 10
| cents mile on road of this class
would be reduced one-third by paving.
In this instance the savings in gas
oline, tires and car upkeep would run
$45 day and for 200 days a year
$4,000, to which total may be added
the present maintenance outlays.
Pavement would cost not more than
100000 a mile and last not less than
twenty years according to the most
conservative engineers.
Forward or Backward.
One big question to be decided by
the Legislature of 1923 is this:
Do the people of Minnesota want to
go ahead with the highway program
and reap in this generation the great
benefits possible, or will the state lie
idle and let other states take leads
over it?
Here are totals provided for good
roads by some states
Missouri ........... 800, 100000
Texas ........... 100,000,000
pannSvIyania 1OO 0nO fl00