comparatively small population, even that ratio would be quite a burden on you. Mr. VAIL. Oh, yes; no question about that. Wr. WOLCOTT. Wait a minute. On the basis of $100,000,000 what has been Colorado's allocation under the formula in the Federal Highway Act? Mr. VAIL. I don't know that I can give you that. Mr. WOLCOTT. What have you been receiving under the Federal Highway Act? What allocation? Mr. VAIL. That is what I say, I don't think I can give you that offhand. Senator JOHNSON. We get 1.8 percent of the total amount, not? Mr. WOLCOTT. There are definite figures and we have had them before us a dozen times on the allocation to the different States. Senator JOHNSON. You will find Colorado's allocation is 1.8 percent of the total made available by Congress. If we set up $250,000,000, Colorado gets about $4,500,000. Mr. WOLCOTT. Then under this bill you would get each year, 10 times that, or $45,000,000 we will say. Then you should have added to that the proportion which your Federal lands bear to your total area, which you say is something over 50 percent, making a total, we will say, of 79 percent altogether. Mr. VAIL. I have in my paper here that under the bill just roughly speaking, we would get $15,900,000. I think you can get all those figures from the table right in front of you, as to how much we would receive under the different set-ups. But, as I remember it, it takes about one-third of $14,000,000, or nearly $4,000,000. Mr. WOLCOTT. That is exclusive of your Federal lands? Mr. VAIL. Yes, exclusive of the Federal lands. Mr. WOLCOTT. Colorado, you think, is in position to take that up? Senator JOHNSON. Yes, sir; I believe we can do it. Roads are too important for us not to do it. The CHAIRMAN. All right; thank you, Mr. Vail. Thank you, Senator. We next have a statement by Mr. Clifford Guest. STATEMENT OF CLIFFORD GUEST, WASHINGTON REPRESENTATIVE OF PUEBLO, COLO., CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Mr. GUEST. The city of Pueblo, Colo., has a shelf of exceptionally meritorious and well-integrated railroad grade-crossing elimination projects ready for post-war construction. It urges that steps be taken now to incorporate them into the federally financed program, both as a means of relieving serious congestion and hazards in an important metropolitan area, and as a ready-made employment backlog which will produce lasting improvements worth many times the expenditure involved. In brief, the plan proposes relocation of main-line railroad and switch trackage which now criss-crosses highly traveled business streets and arterial highways. This is to be followed by conversion of the main-line railroad right-of-way into a restricted truck route through the city of Pueblo, thus taking heavy commercial traffic off the other streets and highways. The proposal has been worked out in detail through the cooperative efforts of the chamber of commerce, the railroads involved, and the city and county governments. Detailed plans for the project have been approved by all these interests, by the Colorado State Highway Department, and in general detail by the Public Roads Administration. Construction could begin almost immediately after the end of the war under the legislation now being considered by your com mittee. The Pueblo Chamber of Commerce strongly urges that if the interregional highway plan proposed by the MacDonald_committee is adopted, U. S. Highway 50 east and west through Pueblo should be made an integral part of the system. Its views on this proposal are set forth in the following formal statement signed by its president and chairman of its highways committee: To the HOUSE ROADS COMMITTEE: PUEBLO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, Concerning House Docket No. 379, referred to the Committee on Roads on January 12, 1944, and hearing on the new road bill H. R. 2426, to establish post-war highway building plans and authorizations. We are pleased that the committee provided for appearance of a representative from Colorado; it is indicative of your desire for full information regarding the important subject before you for consideration. The initial recommendation of the President's committee, showing general location of routes for interregional highway system, including U. S. Highway 85-87 north and south through Colorado, passing through Trinidad, Walsenburg, Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Denver, thence north, serves as we understand it, the real purpose of the interregional highways system. The geographical and strategical location of that highway through this intermountain section as a practical and economic link in the network of important highways reaching from the Canadian to the Mexican borders is thoroughly recognized, approved, and concurred in. No. 2 observation: The travel interest of this community emphasizes that the east and west route of an interregional highway system should be along the route of United States Highway No. 50. Presenting the advantages of United States Highway 50, as east and west link in the interregional highway system, we submit for your consideration the advantages of that highway. Entering Colorado from the east, at an altitude of some 3,400 feet elevation, the road traverses one of the largest single-irrigated areas known; the famous Arkansas Valley of Colorado. This road carries probably the largest amount of traffic of any highway in the State, with special emphasis upon interstate traffic and passenger automobile traffic. It is the main artery of travel from the hot belt to the mountains for summer and vacation season recreation. It serves valuable agricultural interests and industry as well. Proceeding west from Pueblo to the Colorado-Utah line, with a total mileage in Colorado on U. S. No. 50 of 482 miles. The route from Pueblo west closely follows the water grade of the Arkansas River. There are only a very few miles of the road which has more than 4-6 percent grade and the curvatures are not extreme in any instance. In addition to it being the shortest route across the State, it is also the most practical yearround route and coupled with scenic value and importance, most worthy of recognition. On Highway No. 50 across Colorado within the past 10 years there has been expended more than $12,000,000. There is tributary territory immediately adjacent to U. S. No. 50 across the State of some 250,000 population. The highway committee and the board of directors of the Pueblo Chamber of Commerce earnestly urge sincere consideration for the establishment of Highway U. S. No. 50 route as a route of the interregional highway system. It is presumed that information concerning U. S. No. 50 has already been placed before your committee. The communication from the State Highway Department of Colorado dated March 6, 1944, and signed by O. T. Reedy, senior assistant engineer, states in part as follows: "Please be advised that Mr. Vail is already in Washington and is appearing at the hearing today, March 6. He is thoroughly conversant with the matter and will undoubtedly bring to the attention of the committee the advantages of United States Highway No. 50." Grade-crossing removal, which comprises a major factor in the general highway program for the Nation is a major project affecting the Pueblo, Colo., community. Definite plans and specifications for grade-crossing elimination project in Pueblo have been prepared by the Pueblo city engineer and given final approval by the city and the interested railroads. The plan would eliminate all railroad crossings from the main thoroughfares at a minimum of expense and with the maximum results. This project is ready for action whenever the time arrives. Your consideration of it as a part of the major highway program is sincerely urged. Very truly yours, Attest: THE PUEBLO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, HIGHWAYS COMMITTEE, W. T. MATHIS, Chairman. P. A. GRAY, Secretary. The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Guest. Our next witness is Mr. Jones, of Nebraska. STATEMENT OF M. B. JONES, CHIEF HIGHWAY ENGINEER, DEPARTMENT OF ROADS AND IRRIGATION, STATE OF NEBRASKA Mr. JONES. Mr. Chairman, in planning the future development of the State highway system of Nebraska, we find ourselves with five major objectives. These are as follows: 1. Maintenance of sections which are now considered to be adequate for traffic demands. 2. Construction of additional wearing courses and the completion of planned surfacing on sections already constructed to adequate roadway standards. 3. Reconstruction and surfacing on sections previously constructed to older standards which are now found to be deficient. 4. Construction of sections now forming a part of the State highway system which have not been previously constructed to State highway standards. 5. Construction of additional highways as State system is expanded to greater mileage. Adequacy, as related to roadways of any of the highway sections, will be dependent on the type and volume of traffic expected on a given section during the years to come. A large portion of the existing roadways must be classed as inadequate because of deficiencies in alinement, sight distance, grades, and widths. In addition to the above deficiencies, many structures are inadequate both as to load-carrying capacity and waterway requirements. Adequacy of surfacing in our program will require that all primary highways and certain selected secondary highways be provided with surfacing of adequate design to maintain a high standard without excessive maintenance cost and inconvenience to traffic. The remaining secondary highways will require surfacing of such type as to be tolerably passable under all normal conditions. The present surfaced highway system other than gravel surfaced, consists of approximately 2,700 miles of bituminous surface, 1,200 miles of portland cement concrete surface, and 150 miles of miscellaneous types. Although this system has for several years served to provide all-weather dustless surfaces on the major highway routes throughout the State, it is recognized that some positive action must be taken to safeguard this service. This might appear to be a maintenance problem, but in our State the solution involves a great deal of unfinished construction, as well as betterment to higher standards which are now demanded. The 2,700 miles that are classed as bituminous surface constitute two-thirds of all of our mileage of paved and other dustless surfaced highways; but, less than 40 percent of this mileage consists of construction types which could be considered to be adequate, even at the time of construction. The fact that such a large mileage of this system was constructed to a standard known to be inadequate does in no way reflect poor engineering. It does, however, reflect the compromise between adequate design and limited funds which resulted from the crying need for hard surfacing on main routes in the past 10 years. A large part of this mileage is of such age that the completion of subsequent stages of the improvement should have been well under way at this time. The fact that the war has prolonged the lapse of time between the first and second stages of the ultimate design has not helped the condition of these roads. The bituminous surfacing may be subdivided into these general types: Thin surface treatment on existing subgrades. Percent 7 42 29 11 11 During the past 2 years, the department has made detailed surveys to determine the present structural condition of this entire system. With the aid of these condition surveys and a study of the original construction records our engineers have made specific recommendations for every mile of existing bitumious surface. A general picture of the kind and extent of work which is required can be obtained by a brief consideration of each type of bituminous surface now existing on the State Highway System: Nearly 200 miles of the present bituminous types consist of only a light surface treatment on the existing subgrade. This type was used as a temporary measure to provide dustless surfacing at locations where otherwise more adequate construction could not have been undertaken for several years. In most cases of this type, the alinements, grades, and structures are so outdated that a complete new construction project is required. In the few remaining cases where present alinement is adequate for further improvement, the construction of a base course and bituminous mat surface course is recommended. The largest single type of bituminous construction is represented by the approximately 1,100 miles consisting of a light surface treatment. on various types of base course ranging from 2 to 8 inches in thickness. The average age of projects of this type is 4 to 5 years and in practically all cases the locations, alinement, grades, and so forth, are of such high standard that the addition of required second stage construction is justified. The original design and construction of this type was undertaken as the first stage of an ultimate design plan. It was con templated that a 2- or 3-inch bituminous mat-surface course would be constructed on these base courses after an initial period of seasoning in service and as traffic demands required. It is unfortunate that present circumstances have jeopardized the condition of existing base courses because of inability to bring this work up to ultimate design standards. In some cases, increased traffic requirements, particularly heavier truck loadings, will necessitate reconstruction or thickening of existing base courses. In most cases, however, the addition of a bituminous mat-wearing course, as originally planned, will provide an adequate surface type. Relatively thin bituminous mats on previously existing subgrades comprise approximately 800 miles of the present system. A very large portion of this mileage is now 10 to 15 years old, inasmuch as this was one of the early construction types. Because of this greater age and because of the fact that the locations surfaced with these early mats have proven to have very high traffic demands, completely new reconstruction is required in many instances. In some cases experience has proved that base courses should have been constructed under the bituminous mats, thus it is now necessary to construct an additional thickness of wearing course to make up the original deficiency. The State system includes nearly 300 miles of bituminous mats on base courses. In general, projects of this type were designed and constructed as being adequate for traffic requirements. In most cases they have proved to be so and will require only normal maintenance to be kept in adequate condition. However, in a few cases subgrade conditions have not been as favorable as anticipated and truck loadings have increased appreciably so that strengthening of some projects of this type is necessitated. The other major type of bituminous surfaced road in the State is represented by the 300 miles of bituminous sand in the sandhill regions of the State. The natural subgrade in these areas is such that the trails become literally impassable as soon as repeated traffic wears away the vegetation, unless some special surfacing is provided. Several years ago, when it was apparent that stabilization with bituminous materials was practical in these regions, many projects were so surfaced without waiting to make much improvement in the alignment of existing trails. Now that several of the routes traversing these areas have become trans-State and even transcontinental highways, resurfacing, widening, and reconstruction of some of the original projects is demanded. In reviewing the existing bituminous surfacing as a whole, the situation falls into three major cases, summarized as follows: 1. A small percentage of the existing mileage was designed and constructed to a standard which, even today, is considered to be adequate. Some minor repairs and betterments are required to bring some sections up to the present day requirements, but generally the problem is one of normal maintenance. 2. An appreciable portion of the existing bituminous surfacing has become so old, has been constructed on outdated location and alignment, or is now required to serve much heavier traffic demands than originally anticipated, to such an extent that complete construction of a new road is required. Some of these sections should be sur |