The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1963-02-01

a quarter of mile into the canyon.
NO STUDY MADE
OF PASS ROUTE
Quinnell thought that the trucks
would use the lower river route in
the canyon even though the pass
would be twelve miles shorter, be-
cause he thought that there might
be a seven per cent grade to get
over the pass, even though no engi-
neering data had been developed
on the pass routing.
Jack NARROW, secretary of the Con-
tractors Association, wanted the reso-
luton killed because the contractors
had spent three weeks preparing for
the bidding the Commission & had
scheduled this week. 50 re -
Ed Cowan, BPR Montana chief,
came up with a report by two field
engineers, M. J. Wilkin and Dan
Lewis, who made an after-the-fact-
of-the-canyon-route-selection report
on the pass location suggested by the
"erstwhile program engineer" Horace
Williams. The report was dated April
z, 1860, long after the edict to go
down the canyon was given by Birch
Society endorser Harry Burns, then
chairman of the commission.
THIS is ENGINEERING?
HEAVEN HELP US!
The report is vague as to how high
the pass really is. 1t quotes the power
company as saying 1900, and the
Geological Survey as finding it to
be 1000 feet. 1t then tells how tough
the rocks are. But tough rocks make
a better road than the sliding shale
of the canyon. The cost would be
great to cut through the pass but the
saving in total mileage between Great
Falls and Helena would more than |
offset it, in lower gasoline and wear
and-tear bills for vehicle operators.
And the construction sequence
would mean that it would be four
Or five years before the public could
use the new pass. This would not be
4 hardship on the travelling public
Who find no particular joy in driving
through construction areas anyway.
The continual holdups now suffered
n the canyon would be eliminated.
Cowan differed with Quinnel and
aid that the present (old) canyon
Dad would require very little main
enance because it would only be
lsed by the light weight recreational
ravel on the road once the Interstate
vas built through the pass.
The pair went into scare routine
hat the money already wasted on
he canyon would have to be paid
ack to the federal government. That |
you'd mean that construction would {
top for about one year in the state, 9
ccording to the way Quinnell fig
res. We get % million with which 4
D match federal money from the !
tate's fuel taxes. IF we paid back
2 million that would leave only ten :
which six million goes for mainte-
ance and another two for incidentals
such as engineers, etc., leaving only t
vo million for new construction n
atching money. h
It's a good thing there is a BPR r
m Washington to G
raighten out this kind of financial a
Maybe they better take
oser look where their roads are i
,ing.-FS
Although the Senate Highway Com :
ittee was bamboozled by the money q
lgle-that the federal government :,
ould have to be repaid for the a.
lossal error of the canyon route -
ID decided against SIR 9, they, re- :
rtedly, would attempt to prevent !,
petition of this type of expensive T.
gineering error by having the Leg =
ative Council make monthly in -
ection of the Highway Depart n
,nt's programs and finances. -
~ sc
Life is hl1t ONE Continual co11yra IF Of