The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-10-26
STUDY STATE HIGHWAYS


 STUDY STATE HIGHWAYS
 The real cost of road-building in the United States has not been the actual money spent in constructing good roads, but the money wasted through ignorance and failure of highway bodies to be sure they ware right be- fore going ahead. There is no ex- cuse for neglect of highway commis- sions to find out what are the proper types of highway, because there is abundant accurate and tested informa- tion to be had for the asking. Sew eral states have deemed the selection of proper types so essential a prelimi- nary that they have actually spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in building and testing various forms of material and surfacing. The results they have obtained are reliable and priceless. Yet these results are freely exhibited to officials from other states without charge. Any state commis- sion which fails to avail itself of this information is denying to the public it serves an inestimable benefit.
 Until the recent change in highway authority in Alabama, instances of bad highway management had accu- mulated until practically every county had it's legitimate ground for com plaint and demand for betterment. The methods of the former commits sion were wrong and the legislature has given the people opportunity for new deal. The new commission is showing all evidence of desiring to serve the highway purpose to the best of it's ability The new commission, however, should remember that the abundance of engineers did not keep it's predecessor from error nor prevent the approval of types of construction that are almost fragrant waste of pub lie funds.
 The new commissioners, and not the engineers, are directly responsible to the people of Alabama for highway results. To the new commissioners the people of Alabama look for radi- cal departure from the practices and policy that were headed towards the blasting of their highway hopes. That departure should be guided by the successful experience of highway boards in other0 states, who have passed through the costly experiment tai stage and are now building per manent roads of economical upkeep which will far outlast the period of bonds issued against them.
 Among the states that can furnish data to the highway commissioners of Alabama are New York, Illinois, Ohio, California, Washington and Ore gon. The case of Oregon is valuable as warning against doing the wrong thing. All these states have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, and some of them millions, in testing highways and finally arriving at a reliable decision as to the most eco- nomical and lasting types of road 70 build. Certainly the highway com mission of Alabama would be justified in spending the comparatively few dollars necessary 10 visit these nearby states and perceive for themselves the results obtained. Indeed, it is very doubtful if the state of Alabama can afford to have them fail to make such investigation.
 The people of this state would not be at all displeased if the highway commission should decide to suspend all further operations until it has examined in other states the resistance of various highway types to heavy traffic, has made careful inquiry into the cost of upkeep, and has satisfied itself with respect to the most eff cient and businesslike method of ad- ministering the tremendous and far reaching responsibility that rests upon it. It can greatly profit this state and this people by avoiding the errors that have proved so excessively costly elsewhere. It can avoid these errors only by learning what they are and how they may be escaped.