8 



MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS 



MICHIGAN 



ROADS AND FORESTS 



Official Paper of The Michigan Road Makers Association and 

 Michigan Forestry Association. 



70 Larned Street West, Detroit, Michigan. 



Entered as Second-class Matter April 27. 1907. at the Post Office at De- 

 troit. Michigan, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. 



Frank E. Carter.. ..Editor 



PUBLISHED EVERY MONTH 



BY 

 THE STATE REVIEW PUBLISHING CO., 



SUBSCRIPTION i ONE DOLLAR A YEAR, 

 PAYABLE IN ADVANCE. 



STATE BRIDGE ENGINEER NEEDED. 



Good roads are receiving more attention to- 

 day than ever before in the history of the 

 state of Michigan, but there is one phase of 

 the movement that is not receiving the 

 thought its importance warrants, and that is 

 the question of bridges and culverts. Were 

 proper methods used in the construction of 

 permanent bridges and culverts in Michigan, 

 many thousands of dollars that are now being 

 spent annually on their maintenance might be 

 used for better highways. 



In 1907 the State Highway Department at- 

 tempted to get a complete statement of the 

 cost of bridges and culverts built in Michigan 

 during the year, and the total amount reported 

 was $667,383.15. At the convention of the 

 American Roadmakers' Association, the rep- 

 uty highway commissioner of Michigan, in an 

 address, gave it as his opinion that the total 

 would reach $1,000,000, for the year. 



A large proportion of the existing bridges 

 and culverts, as well as many of those now 

 being built, are only temporary structures; 

 and because of this fact, our present expendi- 

 ture for bridges and culverts is largely one of 

 maintenance. This vast sum spent in 1907 

 was largely used to renew or repair existing 

 structures. 



The great bulk of the bridges in Michigan 

 have span lengths of less than 50 feet, and 

 the cost of building permanent structures is 

 reasonable. It is evident that this large expen- 

 diture might eventually be materially reduced, 

 and the money so saved put elsewhere on the 

 roads, by adopting a policy of renewing bridges 

 with structures as nearly permanent as may 

 be possible under the circumstances. Prac- 

 tically permanent bridges and culverts may be 

 obtained by building them of reinforced con- 

 crete. This material is now being widely used 

 for building construction, and is recognized as 

 a good and cheap material for permanent 

 works of all kinds. 



The problem of bridges is different from 

 that of roads, as, no matter what the character 

 of the road may be, nor how little travel may 

 go over it, it is necessary to have bridges that 

 will sustain the loads that come upon them; 

 and a bridge in a sparsely settled community 

 may be called upon to carry quite as heavy a 

 load as the bridge upon the road where traffic 

 is frequent; so that the requirements of con- 



struction for a bridge are more nearly the 

 same for all localities. 



In a great majority of cases in this state, 

 the present method of contracting for bridges 

 is uneconomical, unbusinesslike, and unsound. 

 Bids are usually asked for, and the contractor 

 submits his own design, plans and specifica- 

 tions, and in many instances bases his price on 

 the cheapest possible design which he thinks 

 he can get accepted. This procedure has a 

 marked tendency to lower the standard of 

 highway bridges. 



In order to secure a well-designed bridge, it 

 is necessary to make rigid specifications as to 

 loading, and details of design under which a 

 bridge is to be planned. After proposals are 

 submitted, careful examination should be made 

 of the plans to determine whether or not the 

 conditions imposed have been carried out. 

 Copies of the plans, specifications and con- 

 tract should be made in duplicate, and one set 

 kept by the responsible officer of the town- 

 ship, and a competent inspector should super- 

 vise the work. 



The detail of a design, such as the number 

 and spacing of rivets, thickness and size of 

 splice plates and pin plates, the rriethods of 

 making connections at the joint, etc., are 

 rarely, if ever, shown. The capacity of a 

 structure to carry safely the load for which 

 it is designed depends upon the strength of 

 the- detail as well as upon the main members. 

 The whole bridge may thus be rendered un- 

 safe by the faulty construction of a single 

 detail. And yet the planning of the details is 

 left to the contractor without restriction of 

 any kind. 



The contract entered into is also frequently 

 vague and misleading. It is usually written 

 on a blank, furnished by the bidder, and often 

 contains clauses which operate to release the 

 contractor from re'sponsibility of any kind. 

 Often plans which appear attractive to the 

 commissioners may call for a strong, heavy 

 structure, but the contractor, taking advan- 

 tage of the substitution clause in the contract, 

 the lack of training of the commissioners and 

 inspector, actually builds a much lighter, 

 weaker, and consequently cheaper, bridge. 



If there are any legal difficulties in the way, 

 they should be remedied by legislative enact- 

 ment, to place the bridge work of the state 

 under the direct supervision of the State 

 Highway Department. This department at 

 the present time is small, and the force is 

 pretty well overworked, and in taking up the 

 detail of this question provision should be 

 made for the employment of a competent 

 bridge engineer, so as to secure skilled super- 

 vision from the inception of a bridge. 



Satisfactory results may then be obtained 

 by requesting competitive plans which are to 

 conform to rigid specifications prepared by 

 such an engineer, who would also pass upon 

 the plans submitted, to determine whether or 

 not they conformed to the requirements pre- 

 viously outlined. The contract could then be 

 awarded to the lowest bidder whose plans are 

 made in accordance with the specifications. 

 A uniform system of proposals should be fur- 

 nished by the State Highway Department, to- 

 gether with a contract blank. 



Local officers could notify the State High- 



way Department that they contemplate under- 

 taking the construction of a bridge, and asking 

 at the same time that engineering services be 

 rendered in connection therewith. Upon re- 

 ceipt of such an inquiry the State Highway 

 Department could set a date for its engineer 

 to meet with the local officers and view the 

 site of the bridge. Definite recommendations 

 in regard to the length of span and character 

 of the structure could then be made. 



Plans and specifications should then be pre- 

 pared in the office of the State Highway De- 

 partment, and forwarded to the local officers 

 for their approval, after which the time and 

 place of letting should be set. This date 

 should be set far enough in advance of the 

 return of the specifications, and the place 

 should be preferably in some public building 

 located in a town or village conveniently 

 reached by railroad. 



Upon the return of the plans and specifica- 

 tions, duplicate copies could be sent to the 

 commissioners, and notices of the letting 

 could be sent by the State Highway Depart- 

 ment to all the bridge companies known to 

 be in a position to do the work, and as com- 

 plete data as possible in regard to governing 

 conditions, so that bidders could in many 

 cases mail their bids, eliminating the expense 

 of sending a man to inspect the site and attend 

 the letting. 



Some such plan as is outlined above would 

 save expense to the bidders, as well as secure 

 actual competition at the letting. 



The State Highway Department could also 

 prepare an estimate of the cost, and from time 

 to time inspect the work during its construc- 

 tion to see that it is properly carried on in 

 accordance with the plans and specifications, 

 and upon its completion a final inspection 

 should be made, and a certificate forwarded 

 to the local officers. Only in some such way 

 will the townships secure well designed, per- 

 manent and properly constructed bridges. 



Michigan cannot be considered as being 

 thoroughly up-to-date on the good roads prob- 

 lem until some such action as is outlined in 

 the foregoing is taken. 



GOOD ROADS MOVEMENT SPREADING 



Never before in the history of this country 

 has there been such widespread interest in and 

 practical activity for good roads as is the case 

 at the present time. The good roads conven- 

 tions that were held durin.g the past year have 

 been remarkable, not only in number but in 

 the results accomplished. Sentiment for im- 

 proved highways has crystallized into definite 

 action, in most cases being led by the gover- 

 nors and leading state officials. 



In mileage the United States has the great- 

 est system of roads which any country has 

 possessed since the world began. According 

 to a careful road census, the length of all our 

 roads amounts to 2,155,000 miles. The annual 

 expenditure on these roads is approximately 

 $90,000,000. Road administration has 'been 

 placed on a practical basis in about half the 

 states of the union, comprising the New Eng- 

 land States, New York, Pennsylvania, New 

 Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West 

 Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin 

 Minnesota, Missouri, Kansas, California and 

 Washington. These have adopted in principle 

 or practice the system of centralizing under a 

 state highway department the road work of 

 the state, thereby securing uniformity in 

 methods, economy in administration and skill 

 in supervision. 



