The Wilmington morning star., 1941-02-16
DEFENSE HIGHWAY
PROJECTS STARTED
Fifteen Jobs Are Forerunners
OF Greater Program Of
n. C.. Road Work
News Bureau,
Sir Walter Hotel
BY HENRY AvERILL

RALEIGH, Feb. Is. - The Is
road projects actively begun in
North Carolina. as certified ma
tional defense projects" are only
the forerunners of a vastly great
er program of road work which
will be undertaken by the fede cal
Works Progress Administration in
cooperation with the state High
way. and Public Works Commits
sion.
Fred J..'Cohn, International d.
rector of the WPA in North Caro-
lima, said today that no exact fig
ures on the whole program of pro-
posed projects can be released
now, but he added that it will run
into many millions in all likeli>
hood. 49,
= Cost Runs High
Cost Of the fifteen projects al
ready on the active list will
amount to ST. 36, ISL, of which the
state, as sponsor, will provide
$791, 915 and the federal govern
ment the balance-part from regu-
lar WPA appropriations for North
Carolina and part from a special
appropriation of $25, 600, 600 made
by Congress for certified national
defense projects.
In certified" projects r in
cluded those which have been in
vestigated by either the War or
Navy Department and found to be
essential to national defense.
All the Is road projects current
ly under construction involve only
a comparatively small proportion
of the 1900 mics of state roads
which have been found by. a de-
tense survey to be desirable IT
not absolutely essential to national
Defense. and it is probable, Mr.
Cohn believes, that a comparative
ly large part Of the entire 1000
miles will eventually be construct
ed as certified" projects.
1t is on this basis that Cohn
estimates that many times tn e
nearly So, 900, 900 already author
lied will be spent on North Caro-
lima road building. Some unofficial
estimates. made by official
sources, put the sum likely to be
spent eventually at close to $780,
900, 900.
Most of the projects already
active are for widening roads con-
sidered essential for efficient de-
tense transport.
The biggest single project is the
Fort Bragg-Fayetteville road, for
which $685. 900 has been made
available. This consists of con-
struction of a % foot strip of con-
crete road from within the Fort
Bragg reservatica limits into the
city. of Fayetteville. From the Fort
to. the city limits there will be,
when all the work is done, a dual
lane road with a ten foot parkway
between lanes and ten-foot should
ers on either side. One % foot
strip Of concrete road is already
in existence. Within the city limits,
there will. be only a single road
way, but it will have a width Of
A feet.
The other IA projects which are
now actively under way are:
~ Columbus widening u. S.
IA all the way across the county
(nearly.* so .miles) to cost $133, 135
Of which the Federal share is $97,.
456.
(2) Mecklenburg-. construction
Of an. access road (about 6 or,
miles long, to the recently author.
lied air base at which troops will
be stationed. This will cost $eO,870.
with the federal share amounting
to $685. 1878. :
81 Rowan-C abarrus- widenino
US % and US 29-A across these
counties (about: 3d. miles,, to cos
$257, 212, federal share $172, or.
(4) Davidson widening US %
across the. county d(about 20. miles,
at: a total cost of $104, 1874. federal
share $82, 973. - ? :, ~. -
(5) Moore-Lee- WIDENING IT'S ,
across these two counties .fbetuyear
81 n 5.miles>'- ito, cost $s14, e22.
q winch the federal share is $751;.
Is? Polk widening US Is fabout
81 lles1 at cost of sls,ee5, federal
20 Fender widening and put.
ing new ! shoulders on lis ~