Show Better Farm Travel Promised in Huge Federal State Federal State Postwar Road Program Cooperation of Local Agencies Is Needed to Assure Share in Projects By V WALTER ALTER SHEAD Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON D. D Township C. C. C trustees and highway super super- supervisors supervisors visors county highway superintendents boards of county commissioners com com- commissioners missioners and other officials of local governmental units inter inter- interested interested I ested in secondary and feeder road construction and nd improvement have an unprecedented opportunity to take advantage of the largest larg- larg largest est grant aid of federal funds in the history of the Public Roads administration tion This grant federal aid for highway and road construction to tobe tobe be matched by the states on a 50 basis totals and provides for a expenditure of federal funds annually for the first three postwar fiscal years That means if the several states take advantage of all the funds an expenditure of three bil- bil billion billion I lion dollars on highways will be made in the year three period This expenditure is to 10 be divided annually for foi the regular federal aid highways annually for urban projects on the federal aid highway system and for secondary and feed feed- feeder er roads And it is this latter appropriation with which we are particularly con con- concerned concerned for if aU subdivisions of the state governments take advantage of thIs congressional appropriation for the year three period it will mean an expenditure of on these important all farm mar farm to mar mar- market ket roads which constitute percent per percent cent of all our public highway mile mile- age The importance of participation by local g governmental officials is pointed out for the reason that in inmost inmost most of the states it will be necessary necessary sary to enact en enabling bling legislation in order that local road officials and state highway departments may get together on a comprehensive plan which will take in these farm to market roads The federal bureau of of public roads deals only with state highway de- de departments departments so the cooperation of state and local highway departments is essential if this money is to go goto to local road construction Legislatures Meet l i In every state in the union with the exception of Kentucky Louisi- Louisi Louisiana ana Mississippi and Virginia the state legislatures are or have been in session this year The chances are that where necessary this en- en enabling enabling abling legislation is already before the stat state legislatures In some states for instance in North Carolina West Virginia Virginia Vir- Vir Virginia ginia Delaware and Maryland all county roads have been taken over overby overby by the state highway departments department In other states such as the New England states there is a working agreement that the state highway departments build the county roads The point is however that this is not a paternalistic gift to the local communities the federal air is ex- ex extended extended tended on the basis of need and the extent of the cooperation between local road officials and their state highway departments In a good many states a system em of secondary roads has never been designated by the state highway departments and this designation isone is isone one of the requirements so that the money spent can be under the super super- supervision supervision vision of the highway departments of the states Insofar as the market farm roads are concerned the of federal funds for the year three period will wil be apportioned to the states third one on the basis of area third one on the basis of rural I population and third one on the basis of rural post road mileage The importance of the develop develop- development development ment of these secondary and feed feed- feeder er roads to the basic economy of the rural districts of the nation is immediately seen when it is pointed out that there are miles of these roads and only about 5 per percent percent cent of that mileage is paved About 38 per cent is surfaced with such material as topsoil shale un- un untreated untreated treated gravel and crushed rock and the remaining 57 per cent has no surfacing of any kind In other words the millions of farmers liv- liv living living ing on this 57 per cent of the mile mile- mileage mileage age of market farm farm market to-market roads are still in the mud Benefits WIdespread While there are no clearly de- de defined defined fined boundaries of the areas of population groups especially served by anyone any one of the three classes of roads that is federal aid highways urban roads and streets and the market farm farm market to-market roads all areas and all populations derive de ive some benefit from the three groups of highways It is apparent however that people living outside of any municipality municipality and people living in municipalities municipalities of less than population tion are arc especially interested in these market farm or secondary roads J Before After n Batt w r Before F After M Widened drained and graded these county feeder roads In Mary Mary- Maryland Maryland land are now providing farmers with faster and smoother service I to marketing centers And here are some population fig fig- figures figures ures on that basis There are ap- ap approximately approximately proximately people living in towns of less than and about people mostly farm farm- farmers farmers ers living outside of municipalities or a total of people So that per cent of the total population population lation of the country are in areas where the secondary and feeder roads are located and would a large measure of benefit from their improvement I But to be more specific people live on these secondary roads and they constitute the life life- lifeline lifeline line for 92 per cent of the farms in the nation Travel studies for the year 1941 showed that of the total of vehicle miles traveled in the United States was on the mar farm ket roads or per cent of the total vehicle miles traveled Of course the funds to be avail avail- available available able for the improvement of these secondary roads is not expected to improve all of them and it is the responsibility of local road officials and the state highway departments to determine what proportion can best be improved to provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people Funds Limited According to estimates which have been received from many many states it is doubtful that funds pro pro- provided provided vided in the year three period will provide improvement for as much muchas as third one of the entire secondary road system And it is likely that thousands of miles of these second second- secondary secondary ary roads will never be improved For instance F. F R. R White chief engineer of the Iowa State highway system in testifying before the house of representatives road com com- committee committee said that studies in his state indicated d that improvement of about 83 per cent of the rural sec sec- secondary secondary road mileage would provide a surfaced road to each farmhouse I in the state A A goodly portion of the re- re remaining remaining 17 per cent of the mileage is so little used as to be nothing more than land use land use trails which could well be abandoned as public highways and the land turned back to corn production Mr White said In some states the need is much greater than in others as was evi- evi evidenced evidenced in some of the testimony be be- before fore this committee In Indiana for instance a large per cent of rural roads have some sort of sur- sur surfacing surfacing facing like bituminous crushed rock or gravel while in Alabama the testimony showed that some miles of the country road system is largely without permanent surfacing I and varies greatly with the dIffer dIffer- dIfferent different ent counties While cost of these mar to farm to mar mar- market ket roads vary in different sections of f the country indications are that the county and township officials want as much mileage surfaced as possible from the funds available at costs running from approximately to per mile Intermediate Intermediate diate types of surfacing would run upward to approximately per mile wIth the higher type pave pave- pavements pavements ments costing upwards of per mile State Funds Available Due to the fact that there has been little road building during the war state highway construction funds have well d into fantastic proportions despite the fact that reve- reve revenues revenues from automobile licenses and gasoline taxes have been reduced due to curtailment in auto travel The Public Roads administration estimates that unexpended balances in state road funds by the end of this year will total around To this will be added current curren t receipts from levies upon the auto owner so that the PRA estimates the states will have approximately to available for new highway construction I It they match the authorized appropriation appropriation as set up in the new federal aid highway act their total must mus t reach at least annually Of the federal funds is already available for surveys I Plans and construction but the th e remainder of the program must wait until the first postwar fiscal year r which ends June 30 following proc proc- proclamation proclamation by the President of the end en enof d of the existing emergency or a concurrent resolution by the Con Con- Congress Congress gress that emergency has been sue suf- sufficiently cased sed to permit high high- highway highway way work It is pointed out that there have been federal aid appropriations for secondary and feeder roads in the past but unfortunately there has never been full and complete ad ad- advantage vantage taken of the money approprIated appropriated and as a result in anum a num number ber of states the intent of the ap- ap appropriation appropriation has not been fully realized For this reason federal of- of officials officials along with those interested inroad in inroad road construction both public and in private industry stress the importance importance tance of close cooperation between local and state officials in selecting a secondary road system which will qualify with the PRA care being exercised ex- ex exercised not include roads of minor importance Some important features of the 1944 act include costs of rights rights-of- way in construction costs provided the federal share shall not exceed third one 10 per cent of total authorization may be used unmatched un un- unmatched matched by the states for elimina- elimina elimination elimination tion of hazards in highway rail grade crossings with the govern govern- government ment paying 90 per cent and the rail rail- railroads railroads roads 10 per cent of the cost 1 h per cent of the total authorization may be used for range long high high- highway way plans Federal Share According to officials of the American Association of State High High- Highway Highway way officials the states feel that the federal government has an obligation obligation gation in making these grants for use by the states in highway con con- They also feel that the federal government should pay a higher percentage of the costs than the 50 basis which is now and has been in effect I Samuel C. C Hadden of Indiana president of the American association association pointed this out in his testimony testimony mony before the house committee He said that in 1942 1932 for instance the federal government collected taxes on motor vehicles and parts and on motor fuels in excess of while in the same year it returned to the states in the form of federal highway aid less than one fourth of that amount For some years Mr Hadden said it has been the declared policy of the federal government that the state governments should not practice diversion of motor ve- ve vehicle vehicle hicle tax revenues from highway to other purposes This disparity between precept and example has not escaped the attention at- at attention of our citizens generally or of our state and local public officials Frankly it is the belief of the great majority of our citizens that the federal fed fed- federal eral government should take its own prescription in this matter especially since the precept is con con- considered considered sound and the example un- un sound As a matter of fact 14 states have within recent years amended their constitutions to prohibit diver diver- diversion diversion sion of taxes collected from gaso gaso- gasoline line and automobile licenses to other than highway construction and maintenance At any rate if local and state of- of officials officials cooperate properly there is a good chance that during the three years following the war several millions of our farmers will get out of the mud through the medium of the availability of these federal funds These farm market farm market to-market roads are arc our bread and butter roads they carry our food to market t ey carry the country children to school and back home in again the eve eve- evening evening ning they carry the mail to a third of our population they carry this third to and from their churches and they reach into remote corners I |