Imperial Valley press., 1945-02-28
TIME FOR BROAD VIEW ON
STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM

No other projected expansion program
calls for wider and more liberal and con-
structive views at the moment than the
proposed constructive highway building
program in California Neither must
there be a hit-or-misS system projected.
Backing assurance of complete network
of main and lateral highways reaching
every part of the state should be well
thought out plan barring any Interrupt
tion in its completion and at logical
and possible time, set out in years and
months.
When each and every part of the state;
when all counties and municipalities are
given the assurance that their needs will
be met, then and then only can there be
an end to selfish interests maneuverlng
for first place in construction and loca-
tion of routes. No one county or locality is
bigger than the state. Southern Callfor-
MIA, for instance is made up of number
of counties with general interests identi-
cal.
Under consideration now are improved
travel channels into and crossing the
state from the outside. First of all, it is
well to consider the availability and pos
sibility of acquiring these great systems.
In the light of this fundamental PROPOSE
ton, the people should think we'll before
demanding all or nothing" Is it wise to
play the dog in the manger act?" Man
ifestly three or four cross-country nigh
ways entering the state can touch only
few counties or pass through only linn
tied number of cities and communities.
The broader view, for instance is that
because one of these main arteries by
passes Ell Centre does not mean that 1t
is of no use, or because it traverses the
city of CaleXico, that place is to derive
all the benefits. Or if the route should
miss Riverside county, but cross lmpe-
rial county that it is waste of money
and a matter of favoritism. Provincial
ism is not the blue print for movement
encompassing the entire nation, or the
state.
In working out the country's vast high
way building which will rocket into reali-
ty soon after the war, there is the great
necessity for expansiveness of the mind.
of thinking in bigger terms than few
thousand square miles or, for that mat
ter. than of few hundred thousands of
people.
Before the legislature now are bills
setting up an in.ra-state construction
program of limited access highways
wherein rural areas and the large cities
figure extensively. Here again is room
for wide and liberal views. Either all
must benefit, or all must lose-either
their will be roads or there will not be
roads. Neither should this program be
of the pieca-meal type. This system too.
specifically should be far reaching, an
overall program reaching to the utter
most parts of the state wherever roads
can be built and will be needed to guar
antee the progress and prosperity to-
ward which the state is bound.
So far, in addition to the rural roads
the proposed programs call for 600 miles
within the states seven metropolitan con-
ters. There is an interlOcklng OF the
entire system financing and building.
Citizens as a whole should know of the
basic financing plans. They call for an
increase in the motor vehicle fuel tax,
the revenue thus derived to be deposited
in a special limited access highway fund:
In addition there will be as much Federal
cash as possible to acquire, and then the
state would match the limited access
fund. The bills say ''the funds are to be
expended in each county in proportion to
vehicle registration" UneXpended funds
would be turned to primary and second
airy highways.
Outstanding in the proposed program
is the matter of uniformity in engineer
ing with t.raffic safety at the highest
point of operation.
The call is to look forward. We can't
afford to look back or be static.