The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1941-01-02
EpiscopaI Church
Trunk Highway
Shortening Process
Saves $2O, 900, 900

MinneSota's original concept OF a
trunk highway system has grown
from a network Of $3.50 miles to a
present mileage Of 1920 miles,
but in the meantime the shorten
ing process, applied by construc-
ton and reconstruction, has short
ened trunk highway routes by
more than 400 lineal miles.
This shortening process, togeth-
er with grade crossing structures
the necessity for construction Of
which has been eliminated by
highway relocations, has served to
effect total saving of approx
mately $2O,OOO,OOO in construction
costs and results in an annual
saving to motorists of more than
So, 0O0,0 900 a year in operating costs
M. J. Hoffman,, state highway
commissioner, disclosed this week
in preparing his annual report to
the converting legislature.
The growth in the total mileage
of the trunk system has been
brought about by repeated addi-
lions of new routes not included in
the original mileages taken over
from the counties by the state in
1921.
The shortening Of individual
routes has occurred in connection
with construction and reconstruc-
ton work projects and relocations
which have actually eliminated
more than 400 miles of travel dis
lance.
The cost Of constructing the ex-
ira mileages and structures, had
not the old routes been relocated
and shortened, would have ap-
proximated $2O,OOO,OOO more thar
has been required thus far fol
improvement of the trunk high
ways on the new alignments.
From the standpoint of the
motorists, the saving from the
point of mileages travelled Is ar
annually accruing benefit. The ira,
vel volume on the average mile Of
state trunk highway is $50 car:
per day. Therefore, on the 4O(
miles by which the trunk system
has been shortened, this amount:
to a travel reduction Of $4,000 car
miles a day, or 77,380,000 car-mile:
per year. At a motor vehicle oper
ating cost Of cents per mile, THU
equals approximately $3,005,O Ot
per year. This does not include
saving of time Of the motor We
hicle operators. -
OF the old original trunk high
way system in 1921, only 1873 miles
were paved, 1850 miles were grad
ed to the narrow standards uset
on aid road construction at tina
time, and 2,776 miles were untreat
ed gravel surfaces of varying
qualities.
OF the present 1890 miles
3O78 miles are concrete pavement
4,s9s miles have bituminous sur
faces, and 5000 miles remain gra
vel, while 344 miles are substan
TALLY unimproved. The total o.
surfaced mileages exceeds by more
than 1000 miles the total mileage
of the original trunk system OF x
years ago.
Meanwhile, however, demands
upon the trunk system have In
creased out of all proportion to In
creases in mileage. In 1921 there
were 332652 motor vehicles regis
tered in Minnesota. During 1914
there have been approximately
9O7 900 motor vehicle registrations
This marks an increase of ap
proximately 173 percent in resi-
dent motor vehicles alone, ant
does not take into consideration
from a road use standpoint, eithel
the increased speeds and increased
loads of these vehicles, the increas
ed mileage travelled by the aver
age motor car, nor the fact tina
state trunk highway use by out-of
state motorists now Is approx
mately 10 percent as great as tina
. by Minnesota residents.