1955 PARLIAMENT OF NEW SOUTH WALES REPORT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MAIN ROADS FOR THE Year ended 30th June, 1955 BY COMMAND Ordered to be printed, 27 October, 1955 Wholly let up and printed in Australia by A, H. PETTIFER, GOVERNMENT PRINTER, SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALE? 1956 f 74258 1 1955 -91 ;<.,-. iw. j DEPARTMENT OF MAIN ROADS, N.S.W. THIRTIETH ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1955. TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE. Minister ... 7 Legislation 7 Review of tho Year's Work— Progress Made ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 7 Serious Flood Damage 8 Increase in Road Traffic ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 9 Finance Generally 13 •SECTION I. FINANCE. Receipts and Payments 11 Review of the Financial Operations of the Roads Funds— County of Cumberland Main Roads Fund 16 Country Main Roads Fund 17 Developmental Roads Fund 17 The Commonwealth Aid Roads Act, 1954 17 SECTION II. Ol'ERATIONS. The Main Roads System- Main Road Development Plan for County of Cumberland 19 Planned Arterial Road System for Newcastle and District 19 Country Road Location Investigations and Aerial Photography ... ... 19 Classification of Roads ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 20 Naming of Roads 20 Rates of Financial Assistance to Councils ... ... ... ... ... 21 Metropolitan Main Road Widening 22 Road Construction— County of Cumberland Works 22 Country State Highway Works 26 Trunk and Ordinary Main Road Works 34 Developmental Road Construction ... ... ... ... ... ... 39 Road Maintenance— County of Cumberland Main Roads 42 Country Main Roads (excluding Western Division) 42 Traffic Striping 44 Western Division Roads— Broken Hill District 44 Ivanhoe District ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 44 Wentworth District 45 Bourke District 46 Cobar District 45 Bitumen Surface Treatment 46 Bridge Construction— Principal Works Completed during the Year 47 Principal Works in Progress at Beginning of the Year but not Completed 49 Principal Works Commenced during the Year and not Completed ... 51 Bridge and Ferry Maintenance— Bridges ... JT 54 Ferries • ... 55 Plant and Motor Vehicles— Purchases 56 Plant Repairs 56 New Aggregate Handling and Bituminous Mixing Plant 56 Ferry Vessels 56 Accommodation for Workmen in Field >8 Testing of Materials 58 TABLE OF CONTENTS-^inued. SECTION III. SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE. PAGE. Financial Position 59 Capital Cost 60 Traffic 60 Maintenance 62 SECTION IV. MISCELLANEOUS. Regulation of Weights of Loads on Main Roads 64 Instruction on Plant Maintenance and Operation 65 Safety at Railway Crossings 65 Route Numbering 66 Service to Traffic 66 Chair of Highway Engineering 66 Kerbside Petrol Pumps 67 Conference of State Road Authorities 67 Publications ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 ... 67 Safe Driving Competition 68 Divisional Office Buildings 68 Accommodation for Staff Situated in Country Towns 68 Army Supplementary Reserve Unit 68 Employment and Industrial 68 Visits Abroad 69 Acknowledgments 69 SECTION V. Appendix APPENDICES. No. 1 County of Cumberland Main Roads Fund—Statement of Receipts and Payments 70 2 Country Main Roads Fund—Statement of Receipts and Payments ... 71 3 Developmental Roads Fund—Statement of Receipts and Payments ... 72 4 Sydney Harbour Bridge Account 72 4A Sydney Harbour Bridge—Statement of Capital 73 5 Aggregate Statement of Income and Expenditure from the inception of the Main Roads Board, 1st January, 1925, to 30th June, 1941, and of Cash Receipts and Payments from 1st July, 1941, to 30th June, 1955 74 6 Summary of Loan Liabilities—Main and Developmental Roads Funds 78 7 County of Cumberland Main Roads Fund—Summary of Expenditure on Construction and Reconstruction Works 79 8 Country Main Roads Fund—Summary of Expenditure on Construction and Reconstruction Works 88 9 Developmental Roads Fund—Summary of Expenditure on Construction and Reconstruction Works 103 10 County of Cumberland Main Roads Fund—Expenditure during the Year 1954-55 on the Maintenance and Minor Improvement of Main Roads, Bridges and Ferries 106 11 Country Main Roads Fund—Expenditure during the Year 1954-55 on the Maintenance and Minor Improvement of Main Roads, Bridges and Ferries 108 12 Proclamation of Main Roads, 1954-55 115 13 Declaration of Secondary Roads, 1954-55 115 14 Proclamation of Developmental Roads, 1954-55 ... 116 16 Proclamation of Developmental Works, 1954-55 117 16 Mileage of Main, Secondary and Developmental Roads in New South Wales 117 17 Length and Percentage of Main and Secondary Roads Maintained by the Department and Councils in the Eastern and Central Divisions of the State as at 30th June, 1955 118 18 Expenditure on Main and Secondary Roads by the Department of Main Roads and Contributions by Counoils from 1925-26 to 1954-55 ... 119 DEPARTMENT OF MAIN ROADS. ! Commissioner : H. M. SHERBABD. Assistant Commissioner: J. A. L. SHAW. IMUNCII'AI. OFFICERS. HEAD OFFICE. Secretary: Chief Engineer : Chief Accountant. R. S. Johnston. C. A. Hawkins. J. A. Farley. Assistant Secretary. Assistant Chief Engineer. Accountant : J. H. Fleming. F. W. Laws. W. W. Weir. Bridge Engineer : Administrative Engineer: Investigations Officer. A. J. Clinch. K. E. Blacket. A. E. G. Close. Maintenance Engineer. Construction Engineer : Plant Engineer. C. Binns. J. H. Mould. A. M. Short. Engineer for Country Design and Urban Planning Councils' Works: Executive Engineer : Engineer : P. I. Peterson. D. H. Ingram. M. V. Douglas. Principal Land Surveyor Principal Legal Personnel Officer. and Property Officer. Officer. A. E. Bird. J. A. McCaffrey. P. J. Thomas. Materials and Research Engineer : Traffic Service Engineer; T. M. Coulter. R. E. Johnston. DIVISIONAL OFFICES. Dirision. Ilcmlqiiiutcr.'-. Divisional Engineer. Metropolitan Milson's Point L. W. Hawley. Outer Metropolitan No. 1 Enfield A. G. Scott-Findlay. Outer Metropolitan No. 2 Chatswood ... H. C. Macready. Lower Northern Newcastle R. J. Butler. North-Eastern Grafton A. H. Moroney. Upper Northern Glen Innes G. H. Linton. North-Western ... Tam worth G. W. Mallett. Central Western Parkes L. W. Burgess. South-Western Wagga Wagga D. A. White Central Murray Deniliquin G. J. King. South Coast .. R W. P. Hirt. Southern ,. Goulburn ... K. Jordan. DEPARTMENT OF MAIN ROADS, N.S.W. i THIRTIETH ANNUAL REPORT FOR PERIOD ENDING 30TH JUNE, 1955. THE HONOURABLE THE MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT, SYDNEY. In accordance with the provisions of Section 0' of the Main Roads Act, 1924-1955,1 have the honour to submit the Thirtieth Annual Report for presentation to Parliament. The report covers the period from 1st July, 1954, to 30th June, 1955, though a few matters referred to are carried beyond the latter date for convenience and completeness of record. MINISTER. During the whole period under review, the Honourable E. Wetherell, M.L.A., as Minister for Transport, was in charge of the administration of the Main Roads Act. LEGISLATION. The Public Service and Other Statutory- Bodies (Long Service Leave) Act, 1955, which was assented to on the 27th April, 1955, amended Sections 4A and 7A of the Main Roads Act, 1924-1954. These amendments establish similar conditions for the Department's officers to conditions applying elsewhere in the Public Service, in regard to (a) payment of long service leave where an officer dies before entering upon such leave or before its termination, and, (b) payment of long service leave to officers with at least 10 years service but less than 15 years service. REVIEW OF THE YEAR'S WORK. Progress Made. The first charge on the Department's funds is for maintenance of roads and bridges. The next charge is for the renewal or replace- nient of those road pavements and bridges which are worn out and can no longer safely and economically carry traffic loads. It is only the balance of funds that remains after these essential needs have been met that is available to improve the standard of the Main Roads system, to enable it better to meet the demands of the increasing volume and weight of traffic. The funds available to the Department of Main Roads are sufficient to permit of only a moderate programme of road improvement, and insufficient to enable the carrying out of all works desirable for the efficient and safe movement of traffic. During the past year, in the country, the largest individual road improvement works in progress comprised reconstruction and bitumen surfacing of various lengths of the Prince's Highway and Pacific High­ way; the construction of a new road linking Grafton and Glen Innes, work on which was resumed during the year; the reconstruction of the State Highway linking Cooma and Kiandra to meet the needs of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority; and the reconstruction of a number of deteriorated lengths of pavement, mainly on the Hume and New England Highways. Major bridges to replace deteriorated or destroyed structures were under construction over the Cockfighter's Creek at Warkworth; over the entrance to Lake Macquarie at Swansea; over the Tuross River near Bodalla; over the Hunter River at Denman; over George's River at Liverpool; and over Middle Harbour at The Spit. Erection of a major bridge was in progress over the Clyde River at Bateman's Bay to replace a ferry. A large new bridge over Iron Cove, Sydney, was brought to completion and opened to traffic by the Premier on the 30th July, 1955. Contracts were let by the Department for large bridges over the Karuah River at Karuah on the new route of the Pacific Highway, over the Murray River at Jingellic; and over the Murray River at Tintaldra. A contract was let for construction of a new ferry vessel for the Hastings River crossing on the Pacific Highway. Extension of the bitumen surfacing carried out by Councils and Department of Main Roads during the year totalled 467 miles. This was greater than in any previous year, but was less than programmed because floods (referred to later) seriously interfered with operations in some areas. A special feature of this work was the large mileage carried out in inland areas of the State. Bridges completed by Councils and the Department on Main and Developmental Roads during the year totalled 46.