Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1935-07-14
D. {. HIGHWAY
REVISION IS LIKELY
Result of 81, 400 Limitation
Placed by President on
Work-ReIief.

Revision of the Districts tentative
program for highway Improvements,
to be financed out of the national
$500 900, 900 road fund provided by the
work relief appropriation, appeared
certain yesterday as result of lin
itation placed by the President on
the cost per man per year.
Elimination of some of the high
grade highway work from the list and
the insertion of more low-cost prof.
ects loomed after District engineers
had scrutinized limitations imposed in
the set of regulations for the pro-
gram.
S949,496 for District.
District officials had prepared long
list of work out of which was to be Sc
lected projects coming within the Dis
trict'S apportionment of the 100000
900 sum for roads and for grade-croSs-
ing elimination. The District is to get
s949, 496 for highway work and s410,-
604 for Embarrassing projects.
A limitation of Sl,400 a year per
man was fixed by the President on
the amount of Federal funds which
would be spent on the two-phase pro-
gram. District engineers found their
tentative program could not be fol-
lowed under this limitation. The
necessary result would be substitution
of low-cost road work from some Of
the high-grade work, it was said.
Few Lump Sums Given.
One difficulty of the District is that
while various States make blanket
appropriation to their highway COM
missioners for road work, the District
appropriations for the most part are
specifically appropriated out of Dis
tict revenues for definite projects.
Only in few instances are lump-Sum
appropriations made for maintenance,
repairs, resurfacing, grading. ETC..
which the District might use on high
way work in conjunction with the
Federal works program here.
In this connection one District Of
fetal stated the District would not
use such funds for this purpose II it
meant dropping of the regular Dis
trict per diem highway forces. There
fore. only those funds for street i'm
provements which would be let out
on contract can be used for this pur-
pose.
officials insisted, however, the Dis
trict program for work under the Fed
eral road improvements would be car
ried forward, somehow. although con-
siderable figuring must be done. For
this purpose a conference of Highway
Department officials has been called
for tomorrow. Contact also will be
made with officials of the United
States Bureau of Roads for interpre-
tation of regulations.
District Could Employ gil.
Under the 1,400 limitation the Dis
trict could employ 678 men under the
$949, 496 grant for road improvements
and 293 men under the Districts
$410,804 apportionment of the Federal
100000, 900 sum for grade crossing
elimination. For the grade-crosSing
program the District tentatively had
planned to build non-grade crossings
over railroad tracks at Eastern ave-
nue., Michigan avenue and the Bates
road crossings.
This program should not be con-
fused with the road improvements
which may be performed by relief Ia
Dor under other grants to the District,
to be handled by Commissioner Allen.
He has sent seven projects to the
Works Progress Administration, and
announcements there have been that
the District had been allotted sums to
cover these, amounting to more than.
$1,200,000, but Allen as yet has not
received notice. These were for q
series of highway and sewer system
improvements.