March 6, TneRE is no doubt that the public of Shanghai are becoming restive over the state of the roads, This is not a matter of traffic congestion but of surface ing. Nor is it noticeable of one section of Shanghai more than of the other.
'At one time it was customary. to regard the' roads in the French Concession. as being a model for those of the International Settlement. 'They certainly are not that now. Only a few days ago we. reported some very strong criticism, delivered by M. clu Pac de Marsoulies, at a meeting of the French Council on the disgraceful condition of Avenue Joffre.' Assuredly all that he said was. justified, But there are plenty, of other roads in the French' Concession of which as much might be said and where there are no tram lines to share the! blame, Several times we have referred to the condition of Avenue Edward VII between Thibet and Manila Roads, which part is under French jurisdic tion, Recently some. palch work has been going on along the south side of the road, which will no doubt in due course extend to the north side, But this brings no permanent—remedy, because while one patch is being mended another wears out and so on indefinitely. And what is to be said of Avenue Foch, the metalling of which is fresh in all recollections? The! foundation-laying of this road' always struck one as very super ficial, not to say scamped; and' this probably accounts for its already worn and bumpy condition.
Meanwhile on the International side, a few delightfully laid roads, like Thibet Road and the strip of Bubbling Well Road that runs round the Race Course up to the Country Club stand out in contrast with the discomfortable state of most others.
But no relief appears likely just} yet, More than once the Commissioner of Public Works has warned us that if the amount of the grant for roads compels a choice between widening and surfacing, widening must carry the day. In last year's report! he wrote:
Although the rate of carrying out! road widenings has been substan! ally increased during the past two years, there is a vast amount of; work' still to be done. The total cost of carrying out, at present day} values, all the road widenings and new roads scheduled within th!
Settlement limits is estimated to imately Tls. 40,000,000.
mount, Ts, 27,000,000 is the value of scheduled properties in the Central and Northern Districts, where there is no question of preparing new areas for development, but the sole problem of mitigating existing conditions. Not merely are these roads and road widenings required for surface traffic, but also to mest the increasing needs of publi utility undertakings which are now forced to use narrow thoroughfares, to the danger} of existing underground works to the further confusion, during con-of traffic and t> suffer bad routing of mains, Ju one. statement, which unfortunately we cannot trace at the moment, we remember the Commissioner telling us that no it would be in having made the period of endurance so short.
'With all respect, may not the policy of road widening and opening new roads be overdone? Where land is so expensive as in Shanghai, roads can never be widened to' the full extent of lwhat'one would like them to be and, therefore, the remedy must, be sought in compelling traffic to take streets which it normally avoids, Although there is no deal through road between east, north and west Shanghai away {from the centre, there are surely other streets which might be repaved and made attractive to|® a single line of vehicles: it is 'a case of the one way traffic, which was most' unfortunately abandoned in the Central Di trict in deference to vested interests, just as people were growing accustomed to it. Time Iwill be lost on the road certainly; but that is inevitable and bears equally on all. As for opening up new roads, this chiefly concerns the French Council and it will be distinctly "vocalled that certain candidates, in their election addresses laid! emphasis on the desirability of putting existing roads in good condition and not opening up more new roads until there was a demand for them—which certainly does not exist-at present, It is an excellent maxim. May, it be acted upon,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.