The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1931-01-15
this stretch, makes per
mile 2y011.l4
Routine maintenance cost,
as given above .......... 1891

49,"
as given above ......... 1881
Makes q total of........$ 2,827.35
This is the cost per mile for 1880
for the keeping Of the Fargo-Maple-
ton road In passable shape for travel.
It was not the best road at that.
Now what have we?
Reaches High Figure
A cost Of $2y827.35 per mile per year
IN place OF q cost Of q little less than
$500 as stated in the article by MI.
Frahm. The sum as given above
does not include all Of the cost as
there was some subgrade work done
that Mr.. Hollipeter did not include in
this, as 1t wa figured in with the
cost Of such work from Fargo to
Tower City and not available in the
costs from Fargo to Mapleton alone,
The sum Of $2.827.35 is nearly five
per cent on 100000 or practically twice
the amount 1t will cost to pave. The
saving from the maintenance regray-
cling and reshaping which is neces-
sary in order to keep this road in pas
sable shape will not only pay the in
terest on the cost Of paving but In 20
years 1t will pay the principal. But
that Is not the only argument why
this road should be paved. There is
q saving to the driving public that
should also be considered. Mr.. Frahm
says, referring to the Fargo-Mapleton
road: Here. in 1929, we had an av-
erage of nearly 1000, though slightly
less in $780,"
In order to make it easy to figure
let us say the traffic on this road is
1000 cars per day. Anybody that
knows anything about roads in North
Dakota knows of G. M. Babcock, COM
missioner of highways of Minnesota.
and recognize him as one with knowl- |
edge when it comes to the road game. |
Well what does he say? Read this: !
1T costs one cent q mile less to run
a car on a paved road than on q good
gravel road, and it costs two cents a
mile less to drive this car on pave
ment than on a poorly gravelai or
dirt road"
Frank T. Sheets, chief highway en-
gineer Of Illinois, makes the following
statement: Two cents a mile is held
a conservative figure on this saving
to the average motor vehicle travelling
on pavement as compared to a dirt or
poor gravel road" Babcock and
Sheets know whereof they speak. If
1t Is true in their states, it is likewise
true in North Dakota. Let us see
what this means to the drivers over
the Fargo Mapleton road. Two thou
sands cars per day, each making IL
miles, would make a total of $4,000 |,
miles per day. !
Saving to Motorists j
We will take their figures of the +,
saving OF one cent per mile, the diff {
ference given by them as a saving in /,
driving over a paved road and a good
graveled road. The saving of this one f,
per mile for each mile driven +,
over this road, $4,000 miles per day, I
would be $240 per day and with 365 S
days in a year, it will mean a saving ]
OF $685. zoe per year to the drivers over I
this road. II
Over q period of 20 years, in which /,
time the saving in the maintenance I
cost will pay for the same, the drivers {
will save the fine sum Of 81. 764, 900. Il
and as the traffic increases the say /
ing will increase. i
Should this road be paved? Why
certainly, it is economy. The next '
question Is can it be paved? Certain
" and many more miles. First, this
road should be paved out Of the
emergency appropriation recently @