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Show NEW ROAD FROM ZION TO MOUNT CARMEL BT 1929 Assurance that the new road from Zion National Park to Mt. Carmel would be completed for traffic by the opening of the tourist season in 1929 was given Friday by B. F. Finch, district dist-rict engineer of the United States bureau of public roads following conferences con-ferences with officials of the state road department. The district office of the bureau has recommended to the secretary of the interior the letting of the first contract con-tract to the Nevada Construction company com-pany and the favorable action of the secretary in letting contract is expected expect-ed within a short time. This contracting con-tracting company was the lowest of 13 bidders who submitted estimates to the bureau office earlier this week. The contract will call for the building build-ing of four miles of road up Pine creek from the checking station near the mouth of the park, the road scaling scal-ing by a series of switchbacks and turning up the face of the precipitous cliffs. The contract also calis for 5,582 feet of tunnel and construction of guard rails. Mr. Finch declared the work should be under way by October 1 ana under the contract this section is to b? completed com-pleted in 325 calander days at ar. estimated esti-mated cost under the bid of 5S07.OOO. It is the plan of the bureau to proceed pro-ceed without further delay in letting additional contracts on this road, said Mr. Finch. There is a balance left of $32,000 which is sufficient to build the bridge over Pine creek and this will be carried ahead if authority is granted. grant-ed. Funds for completing the r&ad Till be made available by the national park service July 1. 1928. and immediately immed-iately after that date the bureau will have the work ready to let contract for continuing the work for the remaining re-maining 3.5 miles, construction of the 100 foot span over the main river and miscellaneous other items. It is probable that a concrete surface sur-face will be laid through the mile of tunnel, said Mr. Finch. Plans contemplate contem-plate building a 22 foot road which will be divided in half with a high ridge in the center to prevent drivers from encroaching on the wrong side of the road. Buffers will also be provided pro-vided against the walls to prevent possible pos-sible damage from collision with the sides of the tunnel. By letting this second contract soon after July 1. the contractor wiii be required to complete it before the 1929 tourist season is formally cpene-i. Mr. Finch declared. In the meantime the state is planning plan-ning on pushing ahead its construction construc-tion and " ". let contract this winter for at V -t part of the week front the rat d park boundary to Mt. Carmel. |