22-7

Traffic heavy.

The oil macadam pavements have carried approximately twice the annual tonnage at a less cost per ton mile for upkeep and have also been in service 7.02 years against 4.54 years for the State concrete roads considered on this basis. Further, thirty per cent of the concrete roads are classed as poor, and must soon be rebuilt, while the macadam roads are classed as good. The year 1916 may be taken, for the purposes of further analysis, as the average date of completion for the 626 miles of State road under consideration. The bonds with which these 626 miles of State roads were built will all be retired in 46 years thereafter.

On the assumption of an average life of pavement of 15 years, provision must be made for renewal at the end of the first fifteen years and a second renewal prior to 1962. Allowing $15,000 per mile for pavement for each renewal and assuming that the average annual general maintenance charge of $285.00 per mile will be continuous over this period, the cost of one mile of road in 1962 would be $30,000.00 plus the annual maintenance of $285.00 for 46 years plus annual interest and bond retirement for the original road of $77,058.00. This gives a total average annual charge of $1,674.00 per mile for 46 years of service.

On the foregoing assumption, the original concrete roads have now become a foundation. for either bituminous surface or a new concrete surface as the case may be. The value of this original road as a foundation is indefinite. If it has failed as a wearing surface, will it not continue to fail as a foundation? Inspection made of various roads which have been resurfaced with a Topeka top shows that this deterioration found in the original road is continuing. For example, on that portion of the State concrete highway which has been surfaced with 12-inch of Topeka top between Pomona and Ontario, known as San Bernardino 19-A, several points are found where the surface of the road is depressed and the Topeka surface is pushing up and disintegrating. This is caused by continued failure in the 4-inch concrete base. Photograph No. 21-5, shows this condition. The Ventura road just west of Universal City has recently been resurfaced with 12-inch Topeka. This surface shows signs of foundation movement.

The above deductions made beyond the year 1920 are subject to criticism and they are given only as a rough means of estimating the cost to the taxpayers of maintaining a mile of improved highway.

Referring again to the oil macadam roads built by Los Angeles County for the purpose of extending the analysis and comparison, it is estimated, based on general conditions of these roads today, that the upkeep and fixed charge will be $1,611.00 per mile including interest and sinking fund. This will carry these roads to the limit of the life of the bonds, which is 1949. At this time the total cost per mile, on the above reasoning, will be $62,413.00.

From 1949 to 1962, a period of thirteen years, the total upkeep cost will be $883.00 per year mile, giving a total cost of this road in 1962 of $73,892.00.

The people of California will continue to insist on good roads. There were, June 30, 1920, 450,000 automobiles and 31,000 trucks in California using these roads. The pleasure and economic value of this system of highways has been thoroughly established. The conclusion to be drawn from this study is that we should build better roads with longer life and that they should be protected against abusive use. While long-lived bonds may properly be used for grading highways and building permanent structures, shorter lived bonds should be voted for building pavements or they should be constructed from direct taxation. While the oil macadam types of road from the basis of actual cost are shown to be no more expensive than 4-inch concrete pavements, the concrete pavement has become the one most universally used for the construction of state highways in the United States. Due consideration should be given to the source from which money is obtained for the upkeep of the ever-growing mileage of improved highways and the traffic that is developing thereon.

The total length of State roads proposed under the three bond issues is approximately 5,600 miles. If this total mileage is built with similar pavements to the past, the annual charge

for upkeep, interest and sinking fund will amount to approximately $11,000,000.00. At the present time there are some 3,300 miles of paved county roads in California. Adding to this the 5,600 miles of State highways built and proposed, gives a total of 8,900 miles of paved roads. These roads in general have been built through the sale of bonds. Aside from this there are approximately 60,000 miles of unimproved roads which call for their proportionate part of maintenance. The total cost of this large mileage of improved and unimproved roads may easily amount to twenty millions of dollars annually. This demonstrates the great importance of this road problem to the people of California.

The usual argument advanced in favor of hard surfaced roads is that the maintenance of earth roads or gravel roads far exceeds that of the hard surfaced roads. This assertion is made, it appears, without due consideration for what has been done in other states with this type of road.

In the Engineering News Record of December 9, 1915, page 1110, it is noted that the Department of Highways of New Hampshire has improved and maintained by direct tax a system of approximately one thousand miles of gravel roads for a period of three years at an average annual cost of $250.00 per mile. The excellence of these New Hampshire gravel roads is vouched for by the many tourists who travel through this state. Traffic on many of these roads averaged from eight hundred to one thousand cars per day, a maximum for one day of fifteen hundred automobiles was noted.

The Engineering News Record of December 19, 1918, states the maintenance of Wisconsin's gravel roads was $125.00 per mile per year.

The maintenance of the Michigan gravel roads is from one hundred to three hundred dollars per year mile. (Engineering News Record of October 11, 1917.)

The State of Indiana has for many years been developing an excellent system of gravel roads by direct tax. At the present time approximately every city in the State may be reached at any period of the year over one of them. No information is available as to the annual maintenance charge.

In the Engineering News Record of November 11, 1920, it is noted that Michigan is building some hundreds of miles of trunk line gravel roads. "With 6,000 miles of trunk line highways, it is held humanly impossible for some years to hard surface all the mileage even if present traffic warranted hard surface."

"Excellent gravel road construction, maintenance and service is the vivid impression of Michigan Highway practice in 1920. A conservative hard surfacing program covering main traffic routes and highways tributary to industrial centers is being developed without seeking extensive mileage and with liberality in type of construction employed.”

It is recognized that the maintenance of a gravel road is much aided in the Eastern and Middle Western States by climatic conditions. Periodic rains aid in compacting the roads. This condition in California is found only during the winter months. However, the difference between annual maintenance costs shown would outweigh this natural deficiency on many of our proposed roads.

To July 3, 1920, there had been paid in interest and bond retirement fund on the First and Second State Highway Bond Issues the sum of $10,009,000.00 and but $1,600,000.00 in bonds have been retired.

The only justification for the construction of a highway with the proceeds from the sale of long life bonds is when the money is spent in permanent improvements. Future generations should not be required to pay for an improvement the greater portion of which is quickly worn out.

Inasmuch as no type of pavement has been found to date that can withstand modern traffic requirements for a long time, the only portion of a highway that can be constructed on sound financial basis through the sale of long life bonds is the permanent portion of the