Page:California Highways and Public Works Journal Vols 8-9.djvu/24

 Another Sign of Progress.

We quote in part from a letter received on December 3d by the California Highway Commission:

“Would you grant me a permit to build a new kind of oollege, hotel, airship port, automobile service station and hot dog stand on the state highway?”

Cornell Magazine Tells of California Highways.

W. F. Faiistman, Assistant Engineer in the Division of Highways contributed the feature article to a recent issue of The Cornell Engineer. Mr. Faustman's article was entitled “Recent Progress in construction of California State Highways.”

Federal Aid Roads Further Improved.

The following dispatch from Washington tells of the year’s progress on federal aid roads:

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30.—More than 7400 miles of the Federal Aid Highway System were initially improved by the forty-eight states and Hawaii in cooperation with the National Government during the fiscal year 1929. Thomas E. MacDonald, Chief of the Bureau of Public Roads, announced in his annual report today. Initially improved highways are those upon which no federal aid funds have previously been expended.

Advanced stages of improvement, involving the surfacing of roads previously graded and drained, were completed on 1988 miles of the system. At the close of the fiscal year initial improvements were in progress on about 8358 miles and advanced stage construction was under way on 1167 miles. On that date the actual length of improved roads was 78,096 miles, or about 41 per cent of the total of 188,857 miles in the system.

The cost of the year’s improvement was $195,298,168, of which the Federal Government paid $82,736,878 or 42 per cent.

Resolution Commends State Highway Work.

The following resolution was unanimously adopted at the ninth annual convention of the Redwood Empire Association:

, The California Highway Commission and the State Department of Public Works have rendered accessible the Redwood Empire counties in safety, comfort, and with pleasure and convenience, by improving the Redwood Empire system of highways during the past year, and

, The Director of the State Department of Public Works, also members of the California Highway Commission, also engineers and attorneys and other officials of the Commission, have cooperated with the Nine Counties Highways Committee of the Redwood Empire Association at all times in working out the schedule of budget allotments and highway improvements, and

, These highway improvements and budget allotments have made possible the greatest influx of tourist traffic ever had by the nine Redwood Empire counties, which has added to the wealth and prosperity of the Redwood Empire as a whole, as well as to the Redwood Empire communities individually; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the officers, directors and the entire constituency of the Redwood Empire Association, including boards of supervisors, the press, chambers of commerce and all interests in the nine counties, do hereby express their hearty appreciation and their thanks to the State Department of Public Works and the California Highway Commission, and

Be it further resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to all interested parties, and to the press.

Mountain Roads in North Kept Open Despite Storms. The exceedingly heavy rains occurring in the mountainous districts in northern California between December 8 and 17 caused considerable damage in the way of slides and minor washouts.

Rains which reached the volume of cloud bursts occurred in the Sacramento Canyon district and caused many small slides. Only one or two large slides occurred and while they threatened for a time to close the road to traffic, the prompt attention on the part of the maintenance crews kept the road open continuously for traffic.

In Lassen County cloud bursts caused high water which damaged the road to a considerable extent near Doyle. In the vicinity of Chester the Feather River was out of its banks on a short portion of the old county road which is still under state maintenance, making it neecssary to detour traffic around the lower end of Lake Almanor for several hours.

Reports coming in from other sections in the same general area show that while the rain was exceedingly heavy, no serious damage resulted.

KENTUCKY—A total hard-surfaced construction program of 200 miles, costing $700,000, is outlined for counties in the western part of the state for 1930.

KANSAS—The Jayhawk state had a 1929 construction program with a total of 1875 miles, which included 800 miles of grading, 1000 miles "sand and gravel" and 75 miles hard surface.

MASSACHUSETTS—Under the direction of Ja. H. Taylor, highway landscape supervisor, the Department of Public works is undertaking extensive and permanent beautification of the roadsides on state roads.