The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-03-02
Forum. Of The People
Highway Commission Taxes Business
he Editor of The Age-Herald |:

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 To the Editor of The Age Herald:
 The Age-Herald is to be congratulated upon its stand for the construction of the Eutaw- Livingston highway via Boligec and Epes, based on the greatest public service. Tho route via Boligee and Epes is admittedly the most direct and most feasible route. That's the route the highway law requires the com mission to adopt, having due regard to the public welfare. The route selected by the highway commission may open undeveloped territory in Greene county, but it bars the business interests of Tuscaloosa, Bessemer and Birmingham from maintaining business intercourse by highway with Boligee, Ali son, Epes and other thriving progressive communities About half of the business in Greene county is transacted at Boligee. Much business is also transacted at Epes. The decision of the majority Birmingham business interests from these communities, except by rail, and the inevitable effect will be to strangle and stifle these communities instead of stimulating and de- veloping the various business enterprises al- ready located there.
 There seems to be substantial basis for the report that the federal engineer declines to approve this detour via Clinton and Gaines vile, and in order to get around his veto, a majority of the commission voted to con struct this detour without federal aid When the twenty-five million bond issue was voted, the people were promised that the money would be spent under the direction of the United States government and were told that the government must approve the expenditure of the money, the route selected and the work done.
 Chairman Rogers announced in open meet ing that. even if the federal engineer dis approved the detour it would not change his opinion. The construction of the detour route wholly with state money, independent of federal aid, enables the majority of the highway commission to evade approval of the federal engineer of the detour, and allows them to avoid the effect of his disapproval, but it is certainly not in harmony with the solemn pledge made the people at the time the bond issue was before the people-pledges made to induce the people to support the measure.
 The rest of the state is interested in this project almost as much as Boligee and Epes. A business concern in Birmingham that tray els man by road from Birmingham to Me ridian, or any point west of Eutaw, must pay the expense of an extra fifteen miles every time that salesman makes a round trip. Counting ten cents per mile as fair average expense for salesman, our business men are taxed $1.5O per trip for the detour. This is a perpetual tax that it is wholly un- necessary to impose on us.
 The opening of the undeveloped territory in a county far removed from the most direct route between county seats is essen- tally county matter. There is no justifi- cation for penaliZing the rest of the state in order to accommodate a small section of a county. Business expansion and develop ment may be expected to reach the maximum in towns well located on a railroad, and state highways should make access to such communities easy. instead of solating them
 HORACE WILKINSON.