An Improved Method of Forming Sloping Roads or Footways, Subways, Passages, and the like.
Year: 1899

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Method of Forming Sloping Roads or Footways,
Subways, Passages, and the like.
I, ALFRED ROBERT KAY, of 5, Bow Street, Huddersfield, in the County of York,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
-
My invention has for its object the provision of a safe walking surface for
sloping roads or foot ways, subways, passages, floors, and the like, the invention
being specially applicable to inclined or sloping footways or subways. In carry-
ing out my invention, I form across or partly across the road, foot way, or subway,
a series of channels, which serve to give a grip to the foot when walking thereon.
The channels are wedge shaped, with the deep side thereof at the lower side of
the foot way or subway, and running off to nothing at the upper side. These
channels form. a series of stops, struts, or faces against which the heel of the boot,
shoe, or clog will abut, particularly in descending, and afford a good foothold
in ascending. The depth of the channels and the distance between same may
vary as desired to suit requirements. The channels may be formed either at
right angles to the length of the subway, or at any angle thereto. For drainage
purposes the road or subway may be somewhat convex in shape, draining into
gutters at each side, or concave, and drain into a central gutter.
If the footway or subway be level, I would form the channels at an angle of
inclination sufficient to effect drainage to one side or the other, or to both, or to
the centre as desired.
The footways or subways may be made of any suitable substance or material,
or combination of substances or materials, suitable for the purpose, such as con-
crete, cement, asphalt, stone, bricks, or tiles, flags, setts, or if desired metal plates
or wood may be employed.
The channels may be formed at the time of making the road or subway, or
they may be cut in existing roads or subways. If concrete or cement be employed
to form the surface, the channels may readily be formed therein whilst the
material is soft, by means of bevilled laths of wood or other means. For the
purpose of resisting wear, the faces of the channels may have applied thereto
sheets of hard wood or metal either embedded in the material or keyed or other-
wise fastened thereto.
If bricks, tiles, setts, or metal plates or wood blocks, be employed to form the
surface of the footway the channels may be made with a slope of the desired angle
on one side, and then by placing this slope at the lower side, likewise with the
next block, and so on, one after the other.
The channels or walking surface may be applied to a portion only of the foot-
way or road or subway, and plain portions may be left for the use of wheeled
reuicles, such plain portions being serviceable for draining off the water.
Dated this 2nd day of September 1899.

page_text: An Improved Method of Forming Sloping Roads or Footways,
Subways, Passages, and the like.
I, ALFRED ROBERT KAY, of 5, Bow Street, Huddersfield, in the County of York,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement:-
My invention has for its object the provision of a safe walking surface or foot-
hold for sloping roads or footways, subways, passages, floors, and like surfaces
for passengers, whether said surfaces are stationary or moveable, the invention
being specially applicable to inclined or sloping footways or subways. In carry-
ing out my invention, I form across or partly across the road, footway, or sub-
way, a series of channels which serve to give a grip or firm foothold to the foot
when walking thereon. The channels are wedge shaped, with the deep side there-
of at the lower side of the footway, or subway, and running off to nothing at
the upper side. These channels form a series of stops, struts, or faces, against
which the heel of the boot, shoe, or clog will abut, particularly in descending,
and afford a good foothold in ascending. The breadth and depth of the channels
and the distance between same may vary as desired to suit requirements. The
channels may be formed either at right angles to the length of the footway or sub-
way, or at any angle thereto, and may, if desired, drain into a channel or channels
at one or both sides, or centrally thereof.
Or as an alternative for drainage purposes, the road or subway may be some-
what convex in shape and drain into gutters at each side or concave, and drain
into a central gutter.
If the footway or subway be level or flat, I would form the channels at a slight
angle of inclination sufficient to effect drainage to one side or the other, or to
both, or to the centre, as desired.
The footways or subways may be made of any suitable substance or materal,
or combination of substances or materials suitable for the purpose, such as con-
crete, cement, asphalt, stone, bricks, or tiles, flags, setts or, if desired, metal plates
or wood or a combination thereof may be employed.
The channels may be formed at the time of making the road or subway, or
they may be cut in existing roads or subways. If concrete, or cement be employed
to form the surface, the cross channels may readily be formed therein, whilst the
material is soft, by means of bevilled laths of wood or shaped prints, dies, or stamps
of wood or metal or other means. For the purpose of resisting wear, the faces
or deep sides of the channels may have applied thereto vertical strips of hard
wood or metal either embedded in the material, or keyed, or otherwise fastened
thereto.
If bricks, tiles, setts, or metal plates or wood blocks, be employed to form the
surface of the footway the channels may be made with a slope of the desired angle
on one side, each brick, tile, or sett, being placed with this slope at the lower
side and against the highest portion of the line of bricks or setts next below.
In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification:-
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an inclined or sloping footway or road with my
improved foothold channels or recesses formed in its surface;
Fig. 2 is another view in perspective of the same footway, seen from the lower
end of the incline, shewing the gutters or side drainage channels more clearly;
Fig. 3, is sectional perspective view shewing the application to the deep sides

page_text: of my improved safety wedge shaped recesses or channels, of wearing strips and
alternate methods of securing them in the footway or road.
Figs. 4, 5, 6, are similar views illustrating various methods of forming my
improved safety channels or recesses in footways or other road surfaces constructed
of bricks, tiles, setts, or blocks;
Figs. 7, 8, and 9 are plan views illustrating alternative methods of draining
the wedge shaped safety recesses or channels.
01
My invention consists in forming in the surface of footways, roads, subways
or other like surfaces over which traffic passes, and more particularly inclined or
sloping footways or the like, a series of wedge shaped or inclined recesses
channels a arranged at right angles to, or at any suitable angle transversely of
the length of the road or subway, the deep sides a' of the recesses or channels a
being, in the case of all sloping surfaces, at the lower level or side of the incline
and tapering or running off to nothing a short distance above or higher up the
incline or slope leaving a portion of plain walking surface 6 intermediate of each
wedge shaped safety recess or channel.
The lower or deep sides a¹ of these channels or recesses form a series of cross
stops, struts, or faces, against which the heels of boots, shoes, or other footgear,
or the toe and heel pieces of the shoes of animals, will abut, particularly in
descending, thereby avoiding all liability of slipping over the surface and afford-
ing a good firm foothold in ascending or descending the sloping footway or
road.
The breadth and depth of the wedge shaped or inclined recesses or channels a
and the distance between same, may vary, as desired, to suit requirements, and
they may be made or formed at the time of making the road or pathway, or cut
in existing roads, or pathways, any substance or material, or combination of sub-
stances or materials, suited to the purpose, such as concrete, cement, asphalt, stone,
bricks, tiles, flags or setts, or metal plates or wood blocks, or both, being employed
in the construction of the road or foot surface, and the formation of the recesses
or footholds.
If concrete or cement or the like be employed in forming the road or pathway
or other surface for foot traffic, the recesses or channels a may be easily formed
therein whilst the material is soft or in a plastic state, by means of bevilled laths
or bars, or shaped dies, prints, or stamps of wood or metal or other suitable
means.
For resisting wear on the rises or deep sides a¹ of the recesses or channels a
I may apply thereto narrow wearing strips c (Fig. 3) of hard wood or metal, either
embedded in the cement or material composing the surface of the road or foot-
way, as shewn on the left of Fig. 3, or keyed thereto by a key or wedge d as shewn
on the right of Fig. 3, or they may be otherwise fastened in position. At each
side of the road or subway may be formed gutters or channels ee to which the
recesses or channels a are open at each end and drain into same to keep the foot-
way clear of water. If the gutters are rather deeper than the recesses a, the
latter may be arranged at right angles to the road or footway as in Figs. 1, to 6,
because the water lodging therein will flow naturally therefrom into the gutters.
The recesses or channels a may, however, be slightly inclined to one side as in
Fig. 7, to drain into one gutter only, or inclined from the centre to each side, as
in Fig. 8, to drain into gutters at both sides, or inclined from the outer sides to
the centre as in Fig. 9, to drain into one central gutter.
A further alternative to ensure perfect drainage of the road or foot surface
consists in making the surface convex or concave to drain respectively into side
gutters or into one central gutter.
For roads, footways, or like surfaces for foot traffic which are or require to be
constructed of tiles, bricks, setts, or flags, or metal plates or wood blocks, or both,
I may employ specially made tiles, bricks, or blocks having a portion of their
upper surfaces bevilled or inclined to one edge or side, these said edges or sides
being placed against the deeper edges or sides of the next lower line of bricks

page_text: tiles, or the like, and thus forming the wedge shaped recesses or safety foothold
channels a with deep struts, faces, or sides a¹, at the lower sides of same, as illus-
trated at Fig. 4. Ordinary bricks, tiles, setts, or blocks, may, however, be
employed, and by arranging each row at slight angles to the level or incline of
the pathway or road, that is to say, with their upper edges level with, and the
lower edges slightly below, the pathway, as shewn at Fig. 5, the wedge shaped
recesses or safety channels a are formed across the road or footway.
If desired, one or more rows of said bricks, or setts, could be placed level with
the pathway intermediate of each row of angularly placed bricks to give a level
or plain walking surface between each recess or channel a.
As a modification every other brick, sett or block only in each row may be set
at an angle to the slope of the footway or formed with an inclined surface, so
as to give short separate wedge shaped recesses or safety footholds a at intervals
apart across the footway, those in one row being arranged alternately of those in
the adjacent rows, as illustrated in Fig. 6.
The channels or walking surface constructed or formed as above, may be applied
to a portion only of the road or footway and plain portions left for the use of
vehicles, such plain portions, if countersunk, being serviceable for drawing off
the water.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
The formation, arrangement or construction of roads, footways, subways, or
other like surfaces for foot passengers or road traffic, particularly sloping surfaces
or footways, having extending across or partly across the roadway or footway, a
series of safety foothold wedge shaped recesses or channels such as a each com-
prising a rise, strut, or deep side a extending below the walking surface at the
edge or side nearest the bottom of the slope and a floor portion inclining up-
wardly from the base of said strut or deep side to the level of the footway and
dying away into same at the upper side or edge of the channel either in combina-
tion with or without a gutter or gutters for draining off the water, substantially
as herein shewn and described and for purposes set forth.
Dated this 31st day of May 1900.
TASKER & CROSSLEY
Patent Agents, Huddersfield, Agents for Applicant.