The Seward polaris & Kenai Peninsula-Aleutian chain news., 1948-04-24

ALASkA RAILWAY: PLANT
 NEW CROP
 Published in the Seward Weekly Gateway. Seward. Alaska: Satur- day. September l3. 1890
 By DON CARLOS BROWNELL
 ,Continued from last iosucJ
 If a real change IS wanted, propose the following:
 TRUNK HIGHWAY
 TEAR UP THE RAILS. LOWER THE RAIL BED BY SPREADING FOR WIDTH: SURFACE FOR A HIGHWAY: AND CHARGE TOLL. ON BOTH FREIGHT AND PAS SINGER TRAFFIC FOR MAIN FINANCE. firmly believe that if this was done. the resulting ef- fects would stimulate development of Alaska resources far more than inc railroad. "A truck loaded her, in Seward coudl deliver the goods right al the mine. prospect. farm. extra handling. Then all of tn SC town residence. without the now
 many short highways would be connected. making rapid inter communication. If man wants a ton of freight at the end of one of th, many short roads leading to the railroad. he ships a truck out. by train to do the hauling. leaving it idle there when done. CT sending if back by rail to the town. q costly operation that dis courages traffic. On the other hand. if he could run back and forth to the nearest towns at will he would buy more and do mo,' There would be no more ex- pensc to the Government after the highway was finished q say ing to the Treasury of probably a million dollars for another years. Conversion to the highway could be carried on from the north this way without interrupt ing traffic, and with great rapid ity.
 If the plan to change the whole railroad at this time cannot be accepted. then convert that sec tion between Mt. Mckinley Park station to Fairbanks, making it the connection link between the already constructed 30 mile road in the Park. and the present Richardson Highway. If this is not done, the railroad will most assuredly be paralleled by high way in the near future to make the link. The agitation, promo ton and governmental attention already goven to the proposed in- ternational highway, (connecting British Colombia southern Yukon Territory, and eastern Alaska), has reached such proportions as to assure its construction in the near future. Tourist travel to A. laska then will almost wholly be by auto, with the terminal, Fair banks. The fact that Nit. McKin- ley is the highest mountain on the North American continent gives it an attraction far more than it's beauty justifies, and all tourists who came to close at Fairbanks. will constantly agitate for connecting highway until it is built, enabling them to drive on down into the National Park Experience elsewhere, under sim liar conditions, have always brought that result. and will in- evitably do so here. Under simi- lar conditions lsewhere experience has also shown that highway paralleling a railroad, where pas senger travel is predominant, ru- ins the railway.
 It would be wise to continue the conversion on down to Anchr- age. moking that town the end of the highway. and the northern terminal of the Government Rail- way. This plan would stop the roilro7d deficit and enhunce the growth of central Alaska. It is quite safe to say that even the tourist travel coming into Alaska would be gre,tlY increased. There is no freight traffic north of An- chordge thai could not be hand led. by truck. Then fleets of trucks and huses would met their heado"nrters at Anchoruqe and Fairbanks.