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(Continued from page ten.) Sand-Clay System vs. “Turnpike’’ Grading Bluff Point, R. D. June 6, 1932 Editor Chronicle Express: — Three “dirt” roads lead from the concrete highway to the tip of Bluff Point: The East Branch or college road, the West Branch or Esperanza road, both very close to the lake, and the Hill or Kinney’s Corners road. With occasional exceptions the ‘‘sand clay” method of a one-way grade has been recognized as the only safe method on the lake side. The chief trouble with these two lake shore roads is that they are narrow and crooked, and should be widened to give opportunity for passing at all pints. With all respect to those differing with my view, and I seem in a minority I urge that the one-way grade is as essential to safety and economy of upkeep on any dirt road as it is a necessity for the side-hill road. The turnpike or “hog-back” roadway is totally unsuited to motor traffic. While drainage of water is of vital necessity to a dirt road, it is virtually an impossibility to drain ef fectively if the roadway is used after a heavy or protracted rain, and when it rains we farmers all take advantage of this opportunity to “go to town.” ._ But laying aside for the moment the relative safety, the economy of upkeep for the one-way grade leaves it the only method that should be em ployed with possibly an occasional exception. _Turnpiking”’ involves lifting the mud, soil, leaves, grass and stones which have accumulated in the side ditches, on to the center of the road way, giving an elevation (until worn down) of from 18 to 36 inches, or a grade of about three inches to the foot, or 25%. This in time is flat tened down by use, but even with such a grade one trip of a motor vehicle during or after the rain has softened the ground, puts an end to the water finding the side ditch, for a truck or even light auto makes two “ditches” which soon fill with water, and arrests its flow to the side ditch. The next motor vehicle either follows this water-filled ditch, making it deeper, or it undertakes to make an other trail, and we have another ditch, so that the “hog-back” grading does not take off the water but in the soft dirt and effluvia piled up in the center for us to drive over, we soon have a dangerous if not impossible condition. Disadvantage of Turnpiking To turnpike a 20-foot-wide road way, requires going over with tractor- Scraper not less than four times and generally six. If two motor cars meet in the road, it’s just too bad for the fellow who has to give way and get off the center, unless he has chains on his tires, he is stuck “sunk.” If he has chains, they should be removed when he gets on concrete, as they have short life on hard sur face roads. Turnpiking piles up in the center of the road all trash, leaves, stones, etc., from the side ditches, giving for roadbed the accumulated decayed grass and leaves, making an insecure base for auto cars or trucks, and re quiring much more labor and expense to maintain. . .The sand-clay system of grading eliminates the high center, all the grading being from one low side to the high side, mixing the natural clay with top soil, loam or sand. Now let us consider the one-way grade, such as was established by engineers, when in the poorer south ern states, with hard surfacing ma terial not accessible this grading was found best. If there is a “low” side to the roadway, we should start with the scraper on the low side, provided the ground is fairly level. Establish ing a grade of about one inch to the foot, we tryo get down to the sub soil, or clay, scraping a blade full of dirt towards the other or high side (on a hillside you of course reverse this and build up on the low side). In this way we give a slight grade all one way, and once such a grade is established, future upkeep is compar atively inexpensive. Once we establish a 30-foot road way, with one grade, the entire sur face of this roadway can be gone over with the equipment we have in Jerusalem (a heavy duty tractor and scraper) in two trips, once up and once back, with two scrapers at tached. All of the stone, grass, leaves, etc., will be carried to the high side and there spilled over the edge or piled out of the way. We will have, of course, mud after rains, but can establish more than one rut to drive through in the 30-foot surface. There are about 20 miles of road way on the three roads referred to. Once the grade and width is estab lished and going at a speed of three miles per hour, the entire 20 miles could be scraped and ruts cut out or filled in about seven hours. It will require seven days to go over and give a smooth dirt surface to the hill road alone, and we go over each year the heart-breaking experience of driving over a ridged-up center, full of stones, grass and muddy slush, or what is worse in many respects, clouds of dust. Dirt Road Waste Statesmen and economists are call ing attention to the rapid rise in our taxes. There is evidently much waste, but a study will develop few instances of more inexcusable waste than on our dirt roads. We cannot all have hard surface roads, but poorer states have developed the “‘sand-clay” system, the chief merit of which is the one-way grading. On such a road in Georgia, I have seen a truck pulling a ‘“‘leveller”’ that had a 12-foot sweep, that is it treated a 12-foot surface each trip, at from 10 to 15 miles per hour, but the roadbed was free from stones, was treated after a rain, and the road was like a race track. ‘If we will quit “turnpiking’ our dirt roads, not each year piling up soft dirt in the middle, to be flattened out by our motors during the summer, we we can have passable roads at from 10 to 20% of present costs. After the frost goes out in the spring, we will have for a few weeks roads with no bottom, but they dry quickly, and one scraping will make them passable, which can be done in one day, and if repeated after each heavy rain, we can keep out of the intolerable ruts and the equally disastrous clouds of dust which are an accompaniment of the ‘“‘turnpiked” road, and not nearly so evident in the one-way system, which scrapes this fine material, along with the stones, to one side, and out of the driving space. Let’s give it a fair trial. Macadam (stone) roads are expensive to build and maintain, and before we can cover our 20 miles of present dirt roads, let us hope for a state highway, properly located and economically maintained. Land is cheap, we have something better to sell, namely the most beautiful scen ery in the world, and men will pay for it if they can get to it. None of us are making a decent living on our farms. Let us sell them to agricul turists, the difference being that a farmer goes to the city to spend what he makes on the farm while the agri culturist comes to the country to spend what he makes in the town. But they must be reasonably accessible. P. GARRETT.
Newspaper Details
Penn Yan Chronicle Express
Penn Yan, New York, US
Thu, Jun 09, 1932
Page 3
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USA 17 Feb 2026
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