eo fs 6 fs fo ee mer ee et ee Road Construction In Canada 1860-1910 ‘COPIE DE: Musée des Sciences et de la technologie du Canada Ottawa ‘COPY FROM: Canada Science and Technology Museum Ottawa A WELL-DESIONED STREET. Cross-section showing sidewalks outside the trees and roadway curbed with cedar. Prepared for The National Museum of Science and Technology Ottawa HISTORICA RESEARCH LIMITED. NMST ef Ne April 30, 2000x SCIENCES & Canadé TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGIE OTTAWA SCIENCE &moo 6 23 2D eS 2 eS 2S 2 Se ES Ss ee TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 STUDY PURPOSE AND METHOD... 2 FACTORS AFFECTING ROAD DEVELOPMENT.. 2.1 ADEQUACY OF ROAD SYSTEM... 2.2 TRAFFIC... 23. DEMAND FOR INTERURBAN/RURAL ROADS IN 1890s 3 ADMINISTRATIO! a DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL ADMINISTRATION .. 311 Introduction. 312 Maritime Provinces... 313 Quebec 314 Ontario. 3.1.5 Prairies and British Columbia 3.1.6 Dominion Government. 3.2. FINANCING Roabs.. 3.21 Cost of Roads... 3.2.2 Statute Labour.. 3.2.3 Toll Roads. 3.24 Provincial and Municipal Grants and Subsidies. a ENGINEERING STANDARDS .. 331 Evolution of Standards. 3.3.2 Vehicle Wheels and Weight. 4 CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES 4.1 EQUIPMENT. 4.2. SURVEYS. 43 ROAD STRUCTURE. - 43.1 Design Issues 7 43.2 Subgrade and Drainage. : : 40 43.3 Road Surface. : 44 Country Roab.. 44.1 Surfaces. 442 Maintenance. 44.3 Landscape of Country Roads. 4.5 URBAN Roab6S....... 45.1 Surfaces. 45.2 Other Features 5 CONCLUSIONS.. 6 APPENDIX 7 BIBLIOGRAPHY Cover Illustration: See Page 59 we ce HA elS863 £6969 9 6S SSS es 2 G4 ea Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 1 STUDY PURPOSE AND METHOD Road development in Canada was transformed during the fifly-year period covered in this report. Beginning in the 1850s and 1860s, the importance of interurban roads commenced a steady decline as long distance traffic increasingly went by new railways. Then, during the 1890s and first decade of the 20" century, an interest in good quality roads revived, Canadians could begin to afford the cost of building good roads and the growing sophistication of the economy demanded good roads. ‘The awareness and demand for better roads by 1900 produced very little mileage of improved roads. Since the economy had evolved during the previous century on the services available through mediocre-to bad-existing roads, actual new construction was evolutionary, not revolutionary, in speed. Instead, this era saw technological improvements in road design and new administrative and financing systems that would facilitate better road construction. The transportation revolution created by the automobile after 1910 provided the stimulus to a vast rebuilding of Canadian roads. The automobile’s impact on pavements was dramatically more demanding than that of horse traffic. Roads had to be rebuilt because the increased number of vehicles was demolishing the existing road infrastructure. This phase of Canadian road development is the subject of a second report prepared by the National Museum of Science and Technology. The decline in road quality in the second half of the 19" century is largely attributable to the competition provided by railways. Moreover, after Confederation, roads were considered to be of provincial rather than federal importance. Thus funding was severely restricted. This was exacerbated as most provinces down-loaded the responsibility of roads to the financially strapped local municipalities. This level of government had no interest in providing interurban roads and little financial resources to maintain what roads they had, The rising interest in roads at the turn of the century is less obvious. The introduction of the bicycle, and concomitant need for smooth riding surfaces, is often given as a reason. The spill-over of railway construction techniques may have started to bring down the cost of road building. Possibly the most important development was the growth in national wealth and hence, the ability to pay for good roads. In 1901 Ontario, and soon followed by most of the other provinces began to offer significant grants towards road improvements. Yet, having stated that the 1890s marked a watershed in the perception of the value of roads, one must remember that the reality of quality roads was little changed. Road usage was hampered by wet weather and a modal shift from ‘wagon to sleigh was necessary with the onset of winter. By 1910 over 50 percent Page 1m3 2 2 Ss 9 FI es eT ma mm 1 & 64 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 of Ontario’s roads were still made of earth. For other provinces, especially the prairies, the percentage of earth roads was far greater. Rural roads constituted the bulk of Canada’s road mileage. During the period of this study they were built, improved, maintained and financed by rural municipalities, typically townships. These municipalities typically lacked both the financial resources and engineering knowledge to maintain a satisfactory road network. A few toll-roads were empowered to charge tolls to maintain a small amount of interurban roads AA far smaller mileage was found within urban areas. These municipalities had fewer roads to maintain, greater financial resources, and usually a city engineer to provide technical direction. City roads were also far more heavily used than rural roads and needed better pavements. This report on road construction, 1860-1910 has been divided into three chapters — factors affecting road development, evolution of road administration, and development of road surfaces. Research was based primarily on secondary published sources. Due to the limited time and budget ~ and hence scope ~ of this study, the conclusion identifies research questions raised in this study that could be examined in future work. Although all provinces and the Yukon Territory are mentioned in this report, much of the technical information on roads is Ontario based. Ontario did not have an especially large road mileage ~ that distinction belonged to Saskatchewan — but it was the leading province in the “good roads” movement of the 1890s and the largest number of contemporary articles seem to have been written about the Ontario experience. One difficulty in undertaking road research in the 19" century is the casual way in which definitions were used. For example, furnpike at the beginning of the century simply referred to a road on which tolls were charged. By the end of the 19" century in Canada, the term was used to describe the process of improving an earth road to stone or gravel, as in “the road was tumpiked.”* Road surfacing terminology is equally vague. The original inventors of the Telford and macadam roads would not have recognized their work in Canada, ‘Thomas Telford (1757-1834) developed a very durable, but expensive, road technology about c.1810-15. Although “Telford” roads were built in Canada they bore only passing relationship to the actual design. John McAdam (1756-1836) ‘was a contemporary to Telford and developed a cheaper, equally effective road surface. The considerable mileage of macadam roads built in Canada was similar to the ideas of McAdam but far less substantial” Perversely, the person’s name was McAdam but the road surface was known as macadam, It is not clear how * Durenberger, Tumpikes, 84 describes the early use. In the early 1900s, Gibson in “Public Works in the Township of York,” 115 and W. A McLean, “The Road Surface", Ontario Association of Land ‘Surveyors, 1909 142, use the, term for an improved road. ? Encyclopedia Britannica, 11" Edition, 1910-1911. "Telford" vol 26, 873, McAdam, vol. 1 Page 2Om OSB IMI BOM IM es eS eS Se Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 often the use of the term macadam in Canada pertains to the specific system developed by McAdam and when it was simply another name for a gravel road. Given that roads were not in the technological vanguard of 19 century engineering, it is not surprising that no Canadian individuals stand out. Many well known 19" century engineers, such as Casmir Gzowski, built roads at various times in their careers but they tended to follow accepted standards rather than advance the technology. More individuals begin to appear at the turn of the century. For example, in 1896 A.W. Campbell was appointed Provincial Highway Commissioner for Ontario, the first one in Canada. By 1909 W.A. McLean was the engineer for Ontario's provincial highways and later the first deputy minister of the newly created Department of Highways.” Further research will identify the work of other engineers, Bridges is one topic specifically not covered in this report. Safe bridges were an essential component of road construction however, they are a very specialized topic well covered in other literature and beyond the scope of this study.* This report was researched and written by Christopher Andreae, Historica Research Limited in February-April, 2001. 3 Guillet, Roads, 186 for A.W. McLean — what about others. * For example Appendix 20, 180-91, of the Canada Public Works. Report. 1867 gives the name of the river, kind of bridge truss, and bridge dimensions built by the Department. For survey histories ‘see Phylis Rose “Bridges” Building Canada, 7-29 and for an example of Ontario see David ‘Cuming, Discovering Heritage Bridges on Ontario's Roads (1983). Page 3fo 69 fo (> fo f f- &- & e729 9 OT I I TI eI 7 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 2 FACTORS AFFECTING ROAD DEVELOPMENT 2.1 ADEQUACY OF ROAD SYSTEM Road vehicles where the only form of land transport available until the arrival of railways. During the railway era ~ that began in the 1850s and continued well after the 1910 terminal date of this study — road transport declined. Rail provided interurban traffic while roads served local communities and individual farms. Roads remained esse1 areas not yet served by rail lines. Throughout the time period of this study, most Canadian roads were primitive earth roads, but they were adequate for the commerce of the period. Foreigners, especially British travellers, made disparaging comments regarding the condition of the 19" century roads. For example, the British civil engineer, David Stevenson, writing in 1838 commented that: The roads throughout the United States and Canada, are . ... not very numerous, and most of those by which I traveled were in so neglected and wretched a condition, as hardly to serve the name highways, being quite unfit for any vehicle but an American stage. ..* Those that understood the economic conditions of the colonies were less biased. The need for road improvements was rarely mentioned in any of the well-known grievances in Upper Canada described in the 1820s and 1830s, In 1817 Robert Gourlay surveyed settlers and found no significant criticism. Later, in 1834, William Lyon Mackenzie did not mention roads under the famous “Seventh Report of Grievances.”* By the 1840s, it appears that a tolerable system of trunk roads existed in the British colonies. Joseph Bouchette described some of the conditions in his The British Dominions in North America (1832). His description for Nova Scotia is probably typical for the colonies as a whole: “the roads in this province are, for a new county, inferior to none in America”. By that time, there was system of highways radiating out of Halifax along and across the peninsula in all directions. Another commentator on the quality of roads was J.F.W. Johnston, Notes on North America (1851)? Ofnecessity, roads became part of an inter-modal system, whose system was influenced by the seasons. The cost of freight land haulage alone was, prohibitively expensive for anything more than local shipments. Thus roads were first used to haul farm produce to ports; later this trip was performed to railway stations. Seasons were significant to road transport. One United States study at * Stevenson, Civil Engineering 216; see also McLean, “National Highways Overland,” 366, 2 Macliwraith, “Adequacy of Rural Roads,” 356-7. ® Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 120-2 Page 40 fo fo fl 4 ff. fo 3 om es es Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 the tum of the century indicated that traffic fell by 50 percent during the season when roads were in poor condition * At one extreme of multi-modal transport, Newfoundland outports had historically relied exclusively on water transport and had no road network. Construction of a railway across the island in the 1890s gave communities reasons to build wagon roads from their ports to the rail stations* In British Columbia one economic historian noted that by the end of the 19" century, a combination of highways, railways, and waterways worked in union to provide a transportation system within the province.® Similarly, between 1900 and 1914, about 2,200 km of road were constructed in the Yukon Territory. Most of these roads were built to compliment river transportation and give access to working claims in the Klondike district. River traffic, in turn, was connected by rail to the ocean port at Skagway, Alaska.” Overland travel in the prairies was somewhat different. The population of the region was minuscule until European settlement began following construction of the Canadian Pacific in the 1880s. Any export trade was similarly small and associated with high value commodities such as furs. No proper roads existed in the prairies and settlers travelled overland by cart trails that meandered across the countryside.* One study of York County, Ontario, prior to the arrival of railways suggests that the quality of roads in the 1830s was adequate for the farmers’ agriculture needs. A relationship evolved between high quality land and road access. As good land close to roads was taken up, the roads system pushed further into the interior to serve new farming areas. By 1860, wagon roads and land development was universal in the county. The adequacy of roads was enhanced by the seasonal thythm of agriculture. During the winter, when farm activities were slower and the roads frozen, the farmer had the freedom to leave the farm and move grain to port? The commercial adequacy of rural roads in 19" century Canada was predicated on that fact that part of the year had good conditions for sleighing. Somewhere in Pennsylvania, the ability to use winter roads would not have existed. Therefore, a different approach to road construction and use would have been necessary."® This may also have been the case with road building in southern Vancouver Island in the 1850s. ‘The seasonal nature of land transport had other drawbacks as well. Between summer and winter was a transition time in which neither wheeled vehicles nor Macliwraith, “Adequacy of Rural Roads;" Commission of Conservation. Rural Planning and Development 75. = Guillet, Roads, 135 ® Lugrin, C.H. “Economic History’, Canada and its Provinces. vol 21, 277 2 Bennett. Yukon Transportation, 88, 90 Guillet, Roads, 115-6 ° Maciiwraith, “Adequacy of Rural Roads" 354, 356-57. *° MaciIwrath, “Adequacy of Rural Roads,” 358, Page 5ff © om 9 al Ea E ea Eo es 2 € ec i fa fa Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 sleighs could move with any reliability. Thus, for example, the dependence of Montreal on water communication and winter roads was such that as late as 1851, the cost of food and fuel doubled while the ice was forming on the river.” 2.2 TRAFFIC ‘Nineteenth century road traffic can be separated into rural and urban traffic. Rural road traffic consisted of agricultural produce, natural resource products, and some interurban business. Urban transport covered all of the services necessary to keep a community functioning. The critical difference with rural traffic was that the mileage of urban road/per capita was very small and the density of traffic ‘was much higher. Early agricultural traffic was grain that could handle rough shipping over @ long period of time. It was harvested in the fall and could be stored on the farm, or at a port warehouse, without spoiling. Thus it fitted well with road transport in winter. By the 1850s there was greater diversification into animals, fruit and other produce. The extent to which this diversification was possible as a result of rail transport has not been studied. One need for adequate road systems was the development of the cheese industry. For years, cheese had been made on individual farms. The first cheese factory in Canada was opened in southern Ontario in 1864." This operation required reliable deliveries of milk from surrounding farms including spring and fall, the times when country roads were least reliable. Cheese factories were well established by the 1880s. While many townspeople kept their own cow and chickens, the demand for farm dairy products was limited. During the 1870s/80s creameries began to be established as rural industries. Farmers could have a local market for milk while the creameries could ship butter to the cities.” These both increased the demand for adequate roads. During the 1890s, Montreal became the principal market for agricultural and dairy products from the Chesterville area of Ontari Construction of a rail line in 1887 permitted farmers to expand their market, territory." As the demand for farm produce increased, the relationship between farm and railway station was critical. In 1875 surveyors were specifying the maximum distance for placing of railway stations: In Prairie and fertile districts, the stations should not be so far apart as to leave an opening for intermediate stations at a future time. All the stations in way desirable should be located in the first place. It is considered that the average distance between stations should be about eight miles." McLean, “National Highways Overland,” 363, 2 Jones, History of Agriculture in Ontario, 254. ® Guillet, Roads, 135-6. South Nation River Report, 61 5 Canada Pacific Railway. Instructions from the Engineer and Chief to the Staff. (1875). 35-6 Page 6= eS es ee ee eee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 ‘Up to date’ market wagon, Commission of Conservation There are numerous examples of mining, logging and other types of natural resource roads. Thus, for example, when iron mining commenced in 1849 at Londonderry Nova Scotia, a road had to be built from the blast furnace to a port on the Bay of Minas, a few kilometres away. Ore was exported until a blast furnace was built about 1860 and pig iron was shipped out. In 1872 a branch line to the Intercolonial Railway connected the iron works and parts of the road fell into disuse.” In the vicinity of Dawson Creek and Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, the Canadian government built about 700 km of wagon roads between 1900 and 1914, The immediate affect of these roads was to reduce freight rates from $6.00 to $1.00 a ton.” Interurban stage coach traffic was important before the arrival of railways. The first through stage between Montreal and Kingston was established at the beginning of 1816, The journey took three days. The following year, the service was extended from Kingston to York (Toronto). The stage route between York and Montreal operated only in the winter because it could not compete with steamers on the St, Lawrence River during the summer. By 1829, stage coaches plied between Halifax and Windsor, Nova Scotia connecting with a packet service between Windsor and Saint John, New Brunswick."* Road connections to the United States were important. As early as 1827, the journey from Montreal to Albany could be made in three days.” In fact, New York State constructed more tumpikes than any other state in the union, By 1811, 36 bridge companies and 135 turnpike companies had been created. ° andreae, “A History of Iron Mining in Nova Scotia,” 50-1 © Tyrrell, J{B. "The Yukon Territory’, Canada and its Provinces, vol. 22, 603-4; Bennett. Yukon Transportation, 87. McLean, “National Highways Overland,"361-3, ! NicLean, “National Highways Overiand” 362-3, ® Durrenberger, Tumpikes, 61-2, 64 Page 7Fo Ga 6 Fs fo 62 fo FS 63 fo fo fo 635 64 fs 6 ES a Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 With the coming of the railway interurban roads effectively disappeared. The trunk roads reverted to feeder lines for railways. The demise of the Matapedia Road between New Brunswick and Quebec is illustrative of the shift. The over land route between the Maritime Provinces and the Canada’s was an important issue prior to the coming of railways. The Metapedia and Ristigouche Road through Quebec and northern New Brunswick were built between 1857 and 1867 at a cost of $187,900. It extended from the St. Lawrence River at Ste. Flavie to Crosspoint Ferry, a distance of about 110 miles. At the Ferry, the road connected with trunk roads in New Brunswick. The earliest route was known as the Temiscouata route.” After Confederation, the Metapedia and Ristigouche Road was maintained for military purposes. In 1868, 14 miles of the road were abandoned to the municipality of Rimouski and 14 miles to the municipality of Bonaventure. Upon the completion of the Intercolonial Railway, the road was abandoned to the municipalities through which it passed and it declined into a system of local roads.” In some cases, improved roads were maintained despite the arrival of railways. For example, the Bytown and Nepean Toll Road was completed in 1853 between Bytown (Ottawa) and Bells Comers, Ontario. In 1870, the Canada Central Railway built a line parallel to the toll road. Despite that, the road continued as a private toll road into the 20" century.” In other cases, roads were reused, or obliterated by subsequent rail construction During the 1880s, construction of the Canadian Pacific through the Fraser River valley in British Columbia destroyed much of the Cariboo Trail. But on the northern sections of the trail, the road remained heavily used, connecting the railhead to ranching operations.* During the railway era of the 19" century roads provided feeder service to rail stations. Stage coach lines connected communities without rail service to the closest station, As the railway network linked up new communities the stage service generally gave up. There were exceptions. For example the Donnely family operated a stage service between London, Ontario, and Lucan, a distance of about 15 miles. Rail service was inconvenient, involving a change of trains and road coaches competed with railways throughout the rail era. Stage coaches could provide a passenger service in part, because they carried mail as well. The post office subsidy made most of the services viable. During the railway era, the postal service used roads to carry mail from railway stations to rural post offices. *" Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 123-6; McLean, "National Highways Overland,” 362-3, ‘Ganada Public Works. Report 1867 ~ 1882, 844-5. 2 Canada Public Works. Report 1867 ~ 1882, 644-6, 2 Nancy Bouchier, "A Broad Clear Track in Good Order * Guillet, Roads, 135 112, 120. Page 8es 2 6 Ss ee 6 ee eo eo eo eo 2 8 ee ee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 Around 1900 the post office began to consider the demand for free rural mail delivery; a service that depended upon good roads. The United States post office inaugurated free rural mail delivery in 1895, Rural mail delivery in Canada commenced in 1908.* Whereas passengers and mail could be economically carried long distances by road, the high cost of transportation made all freight traffic, aside from short haul business, practically impossible on highways. The actual cost of haulage in 19" century Canada could not be determined in Canada. It is assumed that farmers undertook to haul their own freight between farm and station and hence there was ‘no payment of fees. Commercial freight transport, such as it was, never became as highly organized as the stage business. Most of the freighting was seasonal and occurred in the spring and fall.” In the early 20 century, various studies were undertaken to demonstrate the cost of haulage over different road surfaces. The data does not indicate if this information was actually based on real charges or on a model of costs. Thus 1910 and 1919 estimates were given as: Cost of hauling one ton one mile on Highway Freight Costs, Canada, 19197 level roads in the United States, 1910 Cents Type of read] Coston mile (Cents) ‘On asphalt 3 Southera Ont_| Waniioba Dry stone paving 6 Ordinary dit | 42 37 Broken-stone roadin good order | 8 Improved dit] 41 35 ‘Good dry sand-clay road 3 gravel 38, ar Earth-dry and hard 18 Macadam | 26. = ‘Mud-covered stone paving | 21 “Assumplions: Load approximately 15 fons, ‘Broken stone with ruts and mud | 26 hauled about 7 miles. Earth-with ruts and mud 39 Loose gravel Ea Ory sand ea Finally, military and political considerations played some, but ultimately unimportant, roles in road building. Pre-railway military/postal roads such as the Madawaska Road, were replaced with rail routes, Even during the Fenian raids of the 1860s, when the Canadian rail network was still embryonic, the Canadian forces were supported by rail transport. ‘The Dawson Trail, linking Lake Superior and Fort Garry (Winnipeg) was the only road built during the late 19" century associated with political needs. The route was used by troops to suppress the first Riel Rebellion. ® wilcox, History of Rural Mai in Canada, 58-9; Seely, ‘Railroads, Goods Roads, and Motor Vehicles,” 38 ® McLean, ‘National Highways Overland”, 364, 2 Durrenberger, Tumpikes p. 118-9. 2 Commission of Conservation. Rural Planning and Development, 83. * Department of Railways & Canals, Bulletin #1, Canadian Highways And Roads, 8 Page 9or S33 FI ESB TMM Me eA eI eo ee es Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 ‘As noted earlier, urban transport covered the range of the services used within a community functioning, ‘The range of traffic could be quite wide from foot traffic to heavy delivery traffic. No one type of traffic necessarily dominated. The traffic issues were one of very specific technology. For example, those towns and cities with street railways had to accommodate wheeled vehicles and streetcars on the same right-of-way. The generally heavier density of traffic and demand for ‘year around mobility also required more robust road surfaces. Finally, the large ‘number of horses using the streets required sanitary road surfaces that could be readily cleaned of manure. The only distinctive type of traffic that may have had some specific effect on roads was that of bicycles. The bicycle craze of the 1880s and 1890s introduced the public simultaneously to the joys of personal transportation and to the deplorable state of roads. The publicity generated by bicycle interests assisted in the movement for good roads in the 1890s. 2.3 DEMAND FOR INTERURBAN/RURAL ROADS IN 1890S ‘The 1890s were an interesting era for the perception of Canadian roads. A number of developments had elevated the value of roads in the public mind. Technological and economic developments made better quality of roads possible. The actual roads were still bad but the 1890s/1900 set the system in motion that could enable the construction of good roads in the motor vehicle era. By 1890s changes and beginning of a “take-off” in road interest. The advent of the bicycle, the maturation of the railway network and the development of cheaper construction technologies are often given as the impetus for the move to better roads. The influence of railways and construction technologies are given later in this essay. Administrative changes were also necessary for the evolution of good roads and these too, are described later. The role of the bicycle, however, requires some clarification. The bicycle boom in North America peaked in the 1890s. Albert Pope, a leading bicycle manufacturer in the United States, helped create the “League of American Wheelmen”, in 1880 largely to foster road improvements by state and local governments. Later the Canadian Wheelmen’s Association followed its American counterpart in promoting good roads.” By 1897 one road engineer in Ontario could state that bicyclists were “now an important section of the community” usually favoured macadam." The influence of the bicycle must be qualified. First, it appears, at least in Canada, that bicycles were primarily an urban phenomena. Although in 1883, four members of the Ottawa Bicycle Club undertook a jaunt to Toronto, this must be the exception rather than the rule. The major difficulty was with Canada’s rural and interurban roads. In any case, municipal engineers were beginning to * Sealy, ‘Railroads, Goods Roads, and Motor Vehicles”; ush, “The Bicycle Boom of the Gay Nineties.” *" Campbell, "Macadam for Town Streets” 144 Page 106 & 62 Go @) ©) 6 bo 61 65 bo fi £2 bo Eo 2 65 f. Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 experiment with urban pavements by the 1890s to find durable and sanitary surfaces. However, these types of arguments do not address a major underlying problem of road building - their cost. No amount of bicycle advocacy could have lead to road construction if the money was not available. ‘New construction technology, some of it adapted from railway practice, would have helped to reduce the cost of road building. Probably far more significant was the general prosperity in Canada that became evident during the 1890s. As income and property values increased, citizens would have had higher expectations for public works and the various levels of government would have had more revenue to provide them. In both absolute terms and in rate of growth the Canadian economy was expanding at a healthy rate from about 1880 to 1910.” No literature was found during this study to verify this hypothesis between the tise of the “good roads” movement and increased affluence and further research would be necessary. a This graph of real GNP per capita for Canada 1870-1913 displays sharp increases in per capita GNP between 1878 and 1884 and again after 1896. The demand for good roads began in the early 1880s. (Norrie and Owran A History of the Canadian Economy, Figure P4.2, 220.) ‘The absence of proper roads was probably the most serious handicap to both railways and farmers. The writer noted that railways are more essential at first, than good roads. On the other hand, railways could never be put to adequate use without being fed by a system of good roads. By 1910, as rai9lway developed reached its peak, one estimate in the United States declared that a thoroughly good paved road was a better economic feature than a rail line.* By 1890 one writer commented: & Rush, “The Bicycle Boom of the Gay Nineties.” Norrie and Owran A History of the Canadian Economy, 219-21, Commission of Conservation. Rural Planning and Development 75-6, 82-3. Page 112 €3 €° £2 fo 6 €3 fo 6 oo fe Eo a q Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 We cannot say that the day of the ordinary highway is passed or has become less important because we are introducing railways. Each means of communication has its own use, and the office of each is, not to displace the others, but to supplement them. Others commented that country highways were important feeders and distributors from railways and provide economic benefit to towns and cities. ‘The existence and extension of railways greatly increased — rather than diminished the value of proper roads.* At least in eastern Canada, the maximum economic density of the rail network had been reached and communities without rail lines would always be dependent upon good roads.” Of necessity, roads became part of an inter-modal system. The road remained important for local traffic; hauling grain and produce to local markets. The railway, and to a lesser extent waterways, handled the long-distant traffic. This, approach was cheaper and more technologically feasible that single mode operations. An economic historian writing about British Columbia at the turn of the century noted that a combination of highways, railways, and waterways “worked in union” to provide a transportation system within the province.» This nascent interest in better quality roads encouraged the formation of interest groups under the common idea of a “good roads movement.” Bicycle interests, through the “League of American Wheelmen”, were instrumental in encouraging Congress to established an “office of road inquiry” in 1893 within the Department of Agriculture to study highway problems and disseminate information about road improvement. In 1893 the first "Good Roads" association was formed in the United States to promote the construction of adequate roads.© In 1894, the first Good Roads Association in Canada was organized in Ontario. In 1896, apparently following the United States model, Alexander W. Campbell was appointed as the first provincial highway commissioner. This commission was placed within the Department of Agriculture.‘ More Good Roads Association soon followed. The Manitoba Good Roads Association, for example, appeared in 1910. In 1914 the Canadian Good Roads Association was formed.® A primary function of the Good Roads Associations was to introduce techniques of modern road construction to rural municipalities. Alexander Campbell, as provincial highway commissioner, was instrumental in sending out the first "good roads" wagon train through eastern Ontario. All the necessary equipment was ° Murphy, “Our Common Roads 428. 2 WW, A McLean,"The Road Surface", Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1909, & McNally, "Roads, Streets, and Highways" 2 Guillet, Roads, 135, ® Lugrin, C1. “Economic History", Canada and its Provinces. vol 21, 277. * Seely, "Railroads, Goods Roads, and Motor Vehicies ; James J. link, The Gar Culture, 8 *" Adam Short, & Arthur Doughty (ed.), Canada And Its Provinces, "Municipal History of Ontario” by KW. MeKay, vol 18, 486. Guillet, Canadian Roads, 152, 168, 202. Currie, Transportation Economics, 439 Page 12e3 ©9 €9 9D es es es eo 2 es es ee a ea [ Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 included in the train to produce a demonstration section of modern road. Campbell also used his office to generate publicity in agricultural magazines. There seems to have been some significant differences to road promotion between Canada and the United States. In Ontario, the only province for which any information was researched, the promotion work was a government task. In the United States, promotion was not only a government activity but also promoted by railway companies. Some railways, primarily in the western United States sponsored special good road trains to bring demonstration equipment out into the country. The first train ran on the Illinois Central in 1901. Railway trade journals also promoted the relationship of good roads and railways. Canadian railways do not seem to have demonstrated any formal interest in good road construction. This seems especially unusual in the case of the Canadian Pacific that had demonstration farms in western Canada and other programs to promote settlement. Railways had a vested interest in good roads since they could have reduced the demand for expensive branchlines. It was only with the arrival of the motor vehicle that road traffic could compete, rather than compliment, rail traffic. Further research may reveal the differing nature of the Canadian and American exper ‘© Adam Shortt, & Arthur Doughty (ed.), Canada And its Provinces, "Municipal History of Ontario” by KW, McKay, vol 18, 485, “Seely, ‘Railroads, Goods Roads, and Motor Vehicles,” 38-39. Page 13,Po fe fe Oo 6) FS 6 fo fe Ses Fe se ams) Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 3 ADMINISTRATION 3.1 DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL ADMINISTRATION 3.1.1 Introduction ‘Common principles ran through the machinery used in all provinces for the administration of roads. Methods varied in detail from one province to another and from era to another. Until Confederation, road construction was primarily a colonial responsibility. Under the British North American Act roads came under provincial jurisdiction and local municipalities administered most roads.’ The Province of Canada (later Ontario and Quebec) lead the way in the 1850s in starting to divest its roads to local municipalities. The rate at which municipalities acquired the roads depended upon the provincial legislation to incorporation municipal In 1850, the Department of Public Works Department for the Province of Canada ‘was authorized to sell roads to private companies and local governments. The ‘more profitable roads near Quebec City and Montreal were sold to private toll road companies. By 1853, public works claimed that it had sold almost all of its roads? ‘The Metapedia and Ristigouche Roads were built between 1857 and 1867. After Confederation, the road was maintained for military purposes. In 1868, 14 miles of the road were abandoned to the municipality of Rimouski and 14 miles to the municipality of Bonaventure. Upon the completion of the Intercolonial Railway, the road was abandoned to the municipalities through which it passed.* Following Confederation, the federal government continued to build roads in territories without provincial status. For example it constructed the Dawson Trail between Port Arthur and the future site of Winnipeg. By 1913 it had also built had constructed 800 km of wagon roads in the Yukon Territory. 3.1.2 Maritime Provinces Following Confederation, roads remained under provincial control in Nova Scotia. Prior to 1888, some of the larger towns had been incorporated under special legislation. In that year, a Towns Incorporation Act was passed that allowed for the creation of local municipalities.* By the early 20" century a Road Commissioner within the Department of Public Works and Mines was responsible for the construction and maintenance of provincial bridges and roads. The Road Commissioner had travelling inspectors to report on work required throughout the province. These inspectors, had in turn, Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, vol 1, 105. 2 McNally, “Roads, Streets, and Highways” ° Canada Public Works. Report 1867 ~ 1882 p. 644-5, * Morse, “Provincial and Local Government” 479, Page 14af Com cE £ erie] 1 Ey €S es a2 e190 9 | TI | Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 road masters which act as foremen for the job. Municipal road revenues were derived from government grants and from commutation of statute labour.* In 1816, New Brunswick established a clear distinction between local roads and “Great Roads of Communication”. The route of each Great Road was described ina statute and subsequent acts made changes or additions from time to time. Three paid supervisors were appointed for the management of each Great Road. In 1849, the province had about 1,270 miles of “Great Roads” connecting the main centres of the province.® Apart from Saint John, incorporated in 1785, and Fredericton, which was incorporated in 1848, a bill to establish municipal institutions in New Brunswick ‘was not passed until 1851. Until then, the colony was governed by the Sessions of the Peace. Gradually, counties adopted the municipal system until finally, a general act was passed in 1877, which created the municipal system in every county.” The Board of Public Works had responsibility for all “Great Roads” and bridges. By the early 20" century a provincial road engineer had been appointed to supervise road construction. A road tax was levied within each county and the money spent within the county that it was raised.* The Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island named a Commissioner of Highways for each district (a group of townships) and the Commissioners appointed overseers of statute labour and made returns to the Governor. In 1833, an Act was passed that enabled the Commissioners to spend money collected from the commutation of statute labour and government sums appropriated for roads and bridges. In 1877 the province created a Department of Public Works and charged it with the responsibility of roads In 1855 Responsible Government was introduced in Newfoundland. By then a number of local trails crossed the Avalon Peninsula, Some were passable for wheel vehicles. The Outport Road Boards subsequently undertook many small local projects. In addition to the construction and maintenance of roads, these Boards were responsible for wharves, sewers, breakwaters and poor relief’ projects. Little other administrative development seems to have occurred during the time period of this report."° 3.1.3 Quebec In 1841 the Act of Union in 1841 Lower Canada became the province of Canada East (today Quebec) while Upper Canada became Canada West (Ontario). The * Morse, “Provincial and Local Government" 462; Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission; Guillet, Canadian Roads, 155, 163-4, 166. ® McLean, ‘National Highways Overiand” 361; Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 106-7. ” Raymond, "New Brunswick: Poltcal History" 424-5; Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 107, y22 $ Morse, “Provincial and Local Government” 488;, Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission lazebrook, Transportation in Canada p. 107; Guillet, Roads, 163 ‘Commission of Inquiry into Newfoundland Transport, (1978) 15. Page 15es ee ee =o fe fe fe amas es Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 two provinees followed similar but subtly different approaches to road administration In Quebec, the administration of roads was carried over from the French regime. The province was divided into three districts for administrative purposes — Quebec, Trois-Rivieres, and Montreal. A Grand Voyeur was appointed for each district. This officer was responsible for determining what work was required in his jurisdiction. Later, as the government instituted the idea of parliamentary grants, three commissioners were appointed in each county to oversee the expenditure of money. By 1833, the power of the Grande Voyeurs was transferred to the commissioners." Until 1840, the province enjoyed no municipal rights. Lord Durham commented that this was probably a major reason for the 1837 Rebellion. Even the major cities of Quebec and Montreal were without local representation. In 1841 most of the roads were transferred to municipal authorities. Between 1845 and 1855 various Acts were passed to increase the authority of municipal governments. Local municipal councils were given control of roads and bridges but they had limited powers of raising money..”” Provincial road were built under the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Works. By 1867 most of these roads had been transferred either to the local municipalities, or to companies to levy tolls for maintenance."* Following Confederation, one of the main objectives of the provincial ‘government was to promote colonization north of the St. Lawrence River to keep French Canadians from leaving Quebec. The promotion of colonization demanded road building from the centres of population to the vacant land. During the administration of the Mercier government from 1887-1891, provincial grants or loans were provided to municipalities to replace wooden bridges with iron structures. A total of $355,000 was available. Part of the justification for this money was that in the old settlements, revenue had been used for the construction of county and colonization roads without any direct benefit to the settled areas, The administration of Lomer Gouin, who came to power in 1905, provided the new impetus for road improvements in the province. The government authorized a loan of $10 million to be loaned to municipal corporations for road improvements. This was still a work in progress in 1913." Initially, road related issues were administered under a Roads Branch of the Department of Agriculture. A separate Department of Roads was established * Glazebrook. Transportation in Canada p. 108-9; Canada Public Works. Report. 1867. * DeCelles, “Quebec Under Confederation" 289-91, 294; Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 192-3 "Canada Public Works. Report. 1867 111-2; 113-117 list all of the roads built by Public Works in Lower Canada, giving name of road, route, distance, and date of completion * DeCelles, “Quebec Under Confederation” 175-7. *® DeCelles, "Quebec Under Confederation”. 193, 215, Page 16a Mm 632 £ a [ a a a a) [as ea E mm am Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 around the turn of the century. Later the Minister of Agriculture was renamed the Minister of Agriculture and Roads. Highways in Quebec were built under two separate authorities. Provincial roads were constructed entirely by the government and recouped some of the money through a levy paid by the municipality. The province could also expropriate roads owned by municipalities. Local municipalities constructed the other class of roads. The provincial government provided grants for approximately half the cost of macadamizing and graveling roads. In 1912, a new Act was passed to provide funds for municipalities to upgrade main roads.” 3.1.4 Ontario ‘The system of administration in Upper Canada was similar to that of Lower Canada. Following the union of Upper and Lower Canada in 1841, elected municipalities were established. The new province of Canada was divided into districts. Each district council was given responsibility for local roads. Local roads were the responsibility of the council but they had limited powers of raising money. In 1849, Canada West established elected councils for townships and counties both of which were empowered to build and maintain roads. Township councils did not appoint the surveyors of roads." Since 1850, most roads in Upper Canada were under the control of local ities. This power was granted under the Municipal Act (13 and 14 Chapter 15). Roads known as “Great Highways of Communi ‘were not transferred to the municipalities but remained under control of the government.” During the 1850s and 1860s, the Bureau of Agriculture built colonization roads. The Ontario government continued to fund the construction of roads throughout the 19" century, but in most cases, these were for colonization purposes. After 1872, details of these routes and expenditures were identified. The province maintained a superintendent of colonization roads.” Following Confederation, one of the main objectives of the Quebec government was to promote coloni north of the St, Lawrence River to keep French Canadians from leaving Quebec. The promotion of colonization demanded road building from the centres of population to the vacant land. One such road was the Quebec and Lake St. John Road. It was built through unsettled country with no accommodation and was of little practical value.” Private land settlement companies also constructed roads to increase the value of their lands. The Canada Company cut a road from Guelph to Goderich in 1827 DeCelles, “Quebec Under Confederation" 233Guillet, Canadian Roads, 155, 163-4, 166. Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission. ® Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 112-3. +8 Ganada Public Works. Report, 1867; Canada Public Works. Report 1867 ~ 1882 p. 645-6, 653, ® Canada Public Works. Report. 1867: Smith, “Construction and Maintenance of Roads” 134-5. *" DeCelles, “Quebec Under Confederation’ p. 175-177 Page 17ee Eo 6 fe ee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 while in the eastern townships of Quebec, the British American Land Company constructed a road from the St. Lawrence River to the future city of Sherbrooke.” By 1867, roads and bridges that had been built by the Department of Public Works were transferred either to the municipalities through which the road passed, or to companies to levy tolls for maintenance. Although no contemporary descriptions of this transfer were found it seems hardly likely that the local municipalities appreciated having the financial obligations of road administration placed on them. The first toll road act, in what later became Ontario, was passed in 1829. By the time of the Act of Union in 1841, the province had spent about £200,000 road and bridge construction. With the enactment of the Municipal Act of 1841 and its replacement in 1849, the construction and maintenance of highways passed entirely under the control of local municipalities * In 1874, county councils were authorized to take over township roads with exclusive jurisdiction over these routes. Municipal councils could take tolls to defray the expense of building or repairing plank, macadam, or gravel roads. In 1889, municipalities passed an Act to facilitate the purchase of toll roads. On these purchased roads, the tolls were abolished and the roads maintained by the county. The Highway Improvement Act of 1902 finally resolved the outstanding issues of toll roads in the province.* Under the 1849 Municipal Act, a county could, on consent, assume as county roads any highway in the township. This does not seem to have been a popular option. One article indicated that by 1900 county roads were found only in Hastings and Wellington Counties while a second report noted that only five counties had assumed any township roads. Up to 1916, only 20 counties had assumed a county road system. The situation changed in 1901 when Ontario passed The Highway Improvement Act to assist in the construction of county roads. The act reaffirmed the existence ofa two-tiered system of county and township highways. It stipulated that the Province would provide up to one third the cost of roadwork, out of a provincial appropriation of one million dollars. None of this money was available for urban roads. Significantly, the act did not define a fixed standard of road construction but allowed local circumstances determine the nature of the improvements. Specific provincial aid to townships does not appear to have been available until 1915 when the Ontario Highways Act was passed.” ® Guillet, 87-8 McLean, “National Highways Overland” 361; W.D. Lighthall. "English Settlement in Quebec,* Canada and its Provinces, vol 15, 162. ® Canada Public Works. Report. 1867 p. 111-2. 2 Ontario Royal Commission on Transportation, 36-7. % Wheelock, “Road Development in Ontario” p. 128-9. Ontario Royal Commission on Transportation. 36-7; Wheelock, "Road Development in Ontari 481; McKay, “Municipal History” 484-6. # Ontario Royal Commission, Transportation, 39-40; Campbell, “Country Roads” 61-2, 68; McKay, “Municipal History.” 484-6. Page 18APPENDIX No. 19. TABULAR STATEMENT OF ROADS IN CANADA. Made, improved, et in progress of Consruction under the Department of Public Work, with the Expendtars theryp, embracing the sper Seleinoial Highway from Gaspé Basin, oo the South side of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and from Portacuf, 181 miles below Qucheo, ep the North Shore of the Hiver St. Lawrence, Canada Kest, to Sandwich, on the River St. Clair, and Port Sarnia, at the foot of Lake Huron, Canada West. 61 960 ‘161-0981 “BpeUED | UONONASUOD PEON Moms Micas in iso or Roa, owaen oF Yeu ae NAME OF ROAD. tone: | eat | nate | nega commen! 2aca- ston. | com- | com. | eostrnetion Bre [eres | or Prantea Bridges iam the ship. | gotory. | viostal | Tateral | Gravel ldamizea | ates, |meneod.| plotod | “Tain, Rout, | Rost. ROADS BELOW QUEBEC. ator | wien | atten | atin | to. |e om Grand Nouvelle, rom ond of Kempt Road] 1d Jo 1UeUYed9q a4 hq pauopuege Jo pjos usaq aneu Tey) Se6pUG pue speoi jo yuawioyeys e 31 (02-2i¢) 92 puaddy 's¥ioyy 211GNg Jo jwaULedag uy Aq ying speo! ‘o Nouvelle Harbor ml 10 rand Nouvelle to Port Mpevtward from line County of Gaepé.| 67 | ig) 96,151 83 ‘Ayjedtojunus 220 au; Aq s0n0 uaye} SEM peo! at) UN UEDLL O} swOOS Gasrh ax Se. Lawaxxcr. 1 of road en north aide of Gasp ‘9y) Jo sonsuejpeveyo au) Saquosep (61-991) L98L Uodey ‘SOM a1aNd epeuED ‘é| xIpUaddy 4 qwewuopuegy “sHOM : re& &3 oOo Go Ge 6 fe 6 es Sera Sass Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 The Highway Improvement Act came about as a result of agitation for improved roads by the Ontario Good Roads Association. Township control of roads had not produced an adequate system of public highways. There was also unrest over the administration of the statute labour law. Many people wanted counties to assume the responsibility for the construction and maintenance of main market roads and for larger expenditures for highway improvement.” Part of the reason for the Highway Improvement Act was to make the municipalities aid in the maintenance of common roads from which they derived benefit without sharing in the cost. The Act permitted the creation of a county system of roads and the purchase of toll roads. Each county council had to pass a bylaw to define which roads would become part of the county network. The Act did not require a vote by the ratepayers. However, in Simcoe County, as one example, the bylaw failed to receive the assent of 2/3 of the township councils as required by the Act, and the vote was submitted to the ratepayers. The bylaw was carried by a large majority.” 3.1.5 Prairies and British Columbia Of the three prairie provinces, only Manitoba achieved provincial status during the time of this road study. Roads were constructed by the Department of Public Works. Municipalities were responsible for roads within theit boundaries. It was not until 1912 that the provincial government began to provide financial assistance for these roads.” The Dominion government as the North West Territories administered Saskatchewan, Alberta and much of the future area of Manitoba. When Saskatchewan and Alberta were created in 1905, the automobile age was about to start. The prairie farmers were quick to adopt the automobile. Thus, these provinces could benefit from the experience gained for the more established provinces. In 1912 Saskatchewan established the Board of Highway Commissioners to assume part of the cost of highway construction and to plan a provincial highway system. In 1917 a provincial Department of Highways was organized. A separate highways Branch of the Alberta Dept of Public works was not organized until 1923." In November 1851, James Douglas was appointed Governor of Vancouver Island. He became well known as the road builder in the colony. Apparently, the Royal Engineers provided technique assistance for his road building schemes. One of the first major works on the mainland was the trail from Harrison Lake to Lillooet. It was constructed by miners working for the government that wanted to 2 Wheelock, "Road Development in Ontario,” 129 2 Campbell, “Country Roads’ 61-62; Ontario Royal Commission on Transportation, 40. % Guillet, Roads, 117; Guillet, Roads, 168. % Guillet; Roads, 168.9. Page 202) fo Fes FS a... F269 63 68 89 es es ee 2 = Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 reach the gold fields. Later, the Royal Engineers constructed the Cariboo Trail. It was 485 miles long and cost one million dollars.* During the 1870s British Columbia devoted nearly 45 percent of its revenue to the construction and maintenance of roads and bridges. The work was generally done in an inefficient way with money being spent piecemeal on isolated projects. Road appropriations were often looked upon as a means of livelihood for settlers in isolated parts of the province. By the early 20" century, there were about 18,000 miles of roads within the province. These were built by public funds at the provincial level as there were no county councils. Thus, all trunk roads, whether running through, alongside, or between municipalities, were built and maintained at the expense of the provincial government. The same was true of bridges.* In 1908 the province created a Department of Public Works to undertake a new program of highway construction. Road administration was apparently the responsibility of road superintendents in most electoral districts.>* 3.1.6 Dominion Government Under the BNA Act, roads come under provincial jurisdiction, However, the Dominion Government retained the responsibility for those parts of Canada that were still territories. As these regions achieved provincial status, the role of the federal government decreased until — with the beginning of the automobile era in the early 20" century, Dominion jurisdiction applied only to the Yukon. The Dominion government built the Dawson Route from Thunder Bay to Winnipeg during the 1860s-70s as an all-Canadian link between Lake Superior and the Prairies. Apart from a short section that lay within the new province of Ontario all of the route lay within the federal jurisdiction of the North West Territories. ‘The first section of earth road was opened west of Lake of the Woods in 1868. ‘The route was never intended as a wheeled trail throughout but rather a series of trails interconnected by water transport on lakes and rivers. Before the trail was completed the first Riel Rebellion broke out in the future province of Manitoba. In the summer of 1870 1,400 troops were moved over the route to contain the unrest. The Dawson Trail was completed in 1872." "Colonial History” 97, 117. Guillet, Roads, 101 % Gosnell, “Public Administration,” 356. % Guillet, Roads, 170; Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission, 114-7. %* Canada Public Works. Report 1867 ~ 1882, 646-52. * Guillet, Roads, 106-8. Page 21[2 fe fo 6 6 2 bes Fe a Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 Alberta and Saskatchewan were administered as part of the North West Territories until they achieved provincial status in 1905. Roads, such as they ‘were, were administered by the Dominion government from Regina.” In the Yukon, the first Dominion government road was completed in 1899 between Bonanza and Hunker Creeks. The following year, a new road was ‘completed between Dawson and Grand Forks to replace a poorly built private road, In total, 77 miles of wagon and 170 miles of sled trails were built between 1899 and 1900." All Yukon roads were built out of public funds. An informal cost-sharing plan developed between the territorial and federal government whereby the latter contributed approximately 55-60% of the money necessary. After 1900, road construction and maintenance became a political issue and a primary form of patronage.” Itwas until about 1900 that the Dominion Government realized that the gold rush ‘would last longer than a boom, Therefore, it was willing to invest in transportation infrastructure. However, once the gold fields became a millstone, as they did after 1914, the government was no longer willing to invest in the ace Road construction after 1900 was a deliberate attempt on the part of the territorial authorities to reduce transportation costs. This was in recognition that the gold mining community would stay for some time? 3.2 FINANCING ROADS 3.2.1 Cost of Roads Interestingly, the cost of rural road construction did not change significantly in the last half of the 19" century. Roy in 1841 stated that a road in Ontario was cost about £220-280/mile ($1,100- 1,400), In the 1860s-70s, Huron County Ontario, built about 200 miles of gravel road for about $2,500 per mile. In the 1880s, Hastings County, Ontario, purchased 48 miles of private toll roads for an average price of about $2,000 a mile. Murphy estimated that the minimum cost for constructing a mile of broken stone road in Nova Scotia in 1890 was $1,250.00. An earth roads in the prairie provinces in 1910 could be constructed for as little as $40 per mile. It was only % Guillet, Roads, 117. % Bennett, Yukon Transportation, 87. * Bennett, Yukon Transportation, $2, * Bennett, Yukon Transportation, 57, 59. Bennett, Yukon Transportation, 80, Page 22a Ee ec oe ace Las] ea 3 3 1m je 3 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 with the demands of motor vehicles that road costs increased. A crushed gravel road in the 1920s cost $4,000 per mile. A range of costs for urban roads is less available. In 1897 the average cost per mile of a 22 foot macadamized driveway in Ontario was $3,000. But, as the author noted, “it is not well, however, to frighten the public with the estimate of a mile of street. Very few streets are a mile in length, and no citizen has to pay more than his own frontage." Ata cost of about $1,000-2,000/mile local municipalities could not afford many -s of new road. Murphy noted that if will be seen that both the Telford and macadam systems of road making, to be adopted as fixed principles, are entirely beyond our means. Rather than having one standard of road construction, he suggested that roads be improved incrementally where bad sections exited. For ‘example, in the western districts of the province, there were alternating sections of good and bad road. If the worst stretches were rebuilt in a permanent manner, it would make the entire road more uniform in quality.** As noted as a general theme throughout this report, Canadian roads were barely adequate for horse drawn vehicles by 1900. At that time, and lead by Ontario, the provinces were slowly developing the administrative and financial systems necessary to upgrade roads to horse usage. But before that happened, the motor vehicle changed the standards, as noted in the following quote from 1909: With the coming of motor vehicles, a new era in the use of roads is dawning, ‘and to reap the benefit, country roads must be equal to their new counterpart — the horseless vehicle. Ontario roads are not yet in keeping with the horse-drawn vehicle. While it may seem impracticable to aim at serving a higher class of traffic, it can only be neglected to our own loss.® It may be argued that most Canadian roads leapfrogged from pioneer roads directly into the motor era. Road construction was financed by three main methods. Statute labour provided basic work and the additional cost of construction, was met by provincial grants. An alternative to public finance was to authorize the construction of private toll roads. 3.2.2 Statute Labour Statute labour was an ancient concept by which the government could demand a specific amount of time from each settler for the construction of public works. It was widely used across Canada as a means of road construction. For example in the mid-19" century, all householders or freeholders in Ontario and Quebec were liable to statute labour. They were given three days notice to appear with tools and teams. A day's work of a team and wagon was equal to two days of personal Guillet, Roads, 65; Murphy, “Our Common Roads" 448; Ontario “Committee to inquire Into ‘Abolition of Toll Roads", 1887; Canada. Department of Mines. Road Materials Surveys 1914, 3; James, Road Building, 10; Baker, Roads and pavements, 109-10. “ Campbell, "Macadam for Town Streets” 148. “* Murphy, “Our Common Roads" 450. WA MeLean, “The Road Surface", Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1909, 139. Page 2339 0 ©9 9 9 eID I |G es Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 labour. Statute labour could be commuted except where other labour could not be obtained cheaply. Commutation was compulsory for people living in towns and liable to more than six days work and for persons living within half a mile of a macadamized road.” At the turn of the century, every male resident of British Columbia was liable for statute labour at the rate of one day’s work for every $500 of assessed value.” Statute labour was sometimes used in creative ways. For example, in order to stimulate the settlement of isolated regions of New Brunswick, the government passed a Labour Act” by which settlers could pay for their land by labour on the roads in and near their settlements. Most of the settlement from 1850 to 1872 was made under the provision of the Labour Act. Although the use of statute labour was exceedingly durable and remained in use for over a century, it was rarely popular either with the citizens or government. ‘One author noted that “statute labour in pioneer days was the right thing in the right place” but by 1900 it had become not only inefficient but also a waste of money. The writer gives the example of teaming material. Haulage is one of the great factors of cost and the size and number of loads per day hauled by statute labour did not amount to 1/3 or ¥ of what a contractor or good foreman would exact." ‘One of the more popular alternatives was to commute statute labour and pay, in effect, a road tax. By 1890 commuted statute labour in York Township, Ontario, came to about $11,000 a year. By 1906, many of the townships in Ontario had abolished statute labour.® Prince Edward Island abandoned statue labour in 1877. But, starved for revenue, it was forced to reinstate it in 1879. It was abolished again in 1901, reinstated in 1912 and remained, more-or-less in force until 1948." 3.2.3 Toll Roads ‘The most successful method of road making was based on the old English system of turpikes, In 1805, an Act was passed establishing the first turnpike road in the colony. Turnpike trusts were established that had an obligation to build and maintain roads and to collect tolls to cover the cost and profit for the road. The problem with the tumpike privilege was that many owners thought more of revenues than taking care of the roads. For example, all of the roads in the vicinity of Quebec City were under the control of a single turnpike trust. Up to 1840, the only area of Lower Canada served by good roads was that between Quebec and Montreal. These roads were under the control of Turnpike * Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 111 “ Guillet, §4-5; Gosnell, "Public Administration,” 383-4. #8 Raymond, “New Brunswick: Poitical History" 404-6. ® Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 116-7; McKay, “Municipal History” 485, 8! McLean, “Road Supervision” 164-5. © Gibson, “Public Works in the Township of York,” 114; McKay, "Municipal History’ 484-6. Guillet, Roads, 163, * Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 117-8; Guillet, Roads 56. Page 24—_— 2 om Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 Trusts, The Trust at Quebec was created in 1805, while that at Montreal in 1829. In the 1840s turnpike trusts in Ontario were established, These were administered by a board of commissioners who served without pay but were responsible for appointment of all personal needed to build and operate the road. ‘The passage of the Joint Stock Companies Act of 1849 facilitated the development of toll roads in Upper Canada. ‘The first toll road in Ontario was constructed in York County. Money was raised for the improvement of Yonge Street, Kingston Road, and Dundas Street. In s, the roads were constructed by trustees on behalf of the these and other cas municipalities.” “Cheating the toll man." Comelius Krieghoff, 1863 Private companies and municipalities built toll roads. For example, British Columbia initiated a toll in the 1860s to pay for the construction of the Yale to Cariboo Road, and certain other roads in the colony. In 1871-72, the toll was removed from roads, Elsewhere, by the 1880s, Hastings County, Ontario, had 136 miles of toll roads. Of this, 88 miles had been built by the county and 48 by companies, The County abolished the tolls on their own roads and bought out the companies. * & McLean, ‘National Highways Overland” 363. Glazebrook, Transportation in Canad, 108-8; 112-3; Canada Public Works. Report. 1867; ‘Smith, “Construction and Maintenance of Roads" 133-4. 5 Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission. ** Howay, "Political History 1871-1913", Canada and Its Provinces, vol 21, 182; Ontario “Committee to Inquire Into Abolition of Toll Roads’, 1887. Page 25,3 89 9 29 69 es ee et es ea e929 9&3 9 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 Not all municipal tumpikes were successful. Blanchard Township, Perth County construction of 17 miles of toll roads but discarded the system as cumbersome and unprofitable. All other roads were built by statute labour.” Toll gates were placed at variable distances along the roads. In 1859, Huron County built 101 miles of gravel road with 19 toll gates, or one every five miles. Two years earlier, a private company built 26 miles of road in the county with 12 toll gates, or one every two miles. The seven mile Bytown and Nepean Road, at Ottawa, completed in 1853 had two toll gates; one at each end of the road. Since toll roads were often improved existing roads, people lived along the toll road. In the case of the Bytown and Nepean Road, those living along the road commuted their tolls at the rate of 7 shillings, 6 pence per year. Toll road in Ontario gradually disappeared as counties continued to purchase the private companies and remove the tolls. By 1914, there were only eight toll roads in the province outside of Carleton County. Carleton, itself, had eight toll roads. The roads outside of Carleton County totaled 53 miles." 3.2.4 Provincial and Municipal Grants and Subsidies In 1832 in Upper Canada, an Act was passed granting money to be raised by debentures for the improvement of roads and bridges. Various other grant Acts were passed in the 1830s. Grants were made in 1837 for the construction of ‘Yonge Street, the Dundas Road, and the Kingston Road.* In 1841, Upper and Lower Canada were amalgamated into the province of Canada, The new government made a loan of six million dollars for public works. Although most of this went for the construction of a canal system, a large sum was spent on roads. (McNally, “Roads, Streets, and Highways") In the 1850s, Canada (then the future Ontario and Quebec) instituted a municipal loan fund. A prerequisite to local public support was the creation of counties, towns and villages. The Municipal Act, passed in 1849 permitted the establishment of local municipalities. Local municipal councils were given control of roads and bridges but they had limited powers of raising money. The purpose for this Act had been to enable a local authority to establish its own credit rating to fund public works of a local nature. Prior to the formation of municipalities all financial affairs, no matter how small, had to be decided by the legislature. But, just as colonial governments had to look to Britain for guarantees, so {0 did the new municipalities have to look to the legislature for assistance in marketing their securities. ® Bums, “Management of Township Roads” 41 © Ontario "Committee to Inquire Into Abolition of Toll Roads", 1887; Nancy Bouchier, “A Broad {lear Track in Good Order’ 112, 113, & Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission, 221. ® Smith, “Construction and Maintenance of Roads” 133-4; McLean, “National Highways Overland” 363, Page 26ee 2 2 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 In 1852, the Municipal Loan Fund Act was passed in Canada West, which allowed the local government to raise money by borrowing with the credit rating of the provincial Government. Although the Act was passed primarily to aid railway construction, roads were funded in the same manner. In 1854, the Municipal Loan Fund, was extended to Canada East. The Municipal Loan Fund enabled municipalities to grant bonuses and subscribe to the stocks and bonds in local improvements such as bridges, roads, court houses, harbours and railways. A critical defect of the Loan Fund was that it placed no limit on the borrowing powers of the municipalities or on the credit of the Fund, Most loans made from the Loan Fund in the 1850s were used in railway investments. In the wild optimism of the early 1850s, many communities hopelessly over-extended their financial resources. Municipalities in Canada East, however, were more cautious than in Canada West. Of the $7.3 million spent from the Fund in Canada West, $5.8 million, or 79 percent was spent on railways whereas in Canada East $900,000, or 37 percent, of a total $2.4 million from the fund went into railways. Under the conditions of the Loan Fund municipalities were tempted to speculate in railway securities. Not only would buying stock aid in bringing a railway to the community but the stock also represented an investment opportunity for the town. Under such conditions, railway investments would not place any economic hardship on the community but rather earn money from what seemed to be good investments. In the end, money invested by municipalities was lost. Like private investors, councils had been seduced into speculation on the idea of rapid economic growth. The financial crash of 1857 effectively prevented municipalities from realizing on their investments in railways. Finally, in 1859, the Government had to revise the ‘Municipal Loan Fund Act to reduce the borrowing powers of the communities and to make them more responsible for the money borrowed. It was not until 1873 that the government reorganized the debts of the municipalities and reduced the financial burden on them.** The first important step was the Highway Improvement Act in Ontario that passed in 1901. It provided for the sum of $1 million per year towards the improvement of roads in organized counties. The significant part of the legislation was that grants would be made only on roads built according to government standards.” By the early 20" century, the Quebec government had adopted a policy of granting subsidies to rural municipalities for the purpose of road maintenance. These subsidies varied from $100 to over $1,000 according to the nature of the road and the kind of municipality. In 1912, it received authority from the ® DeCelies, “Quebec Under Confederation” 289-91, 294; Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 4142-3; Mavor, "Finance and Taxation’, 262-3; Easterbrook, Canadian Economic History, 314. © Mayor, Finance and Taxation", 263; McLean "National Highways,” 415; Easterbrook, Canadian Economic History, 314. ® Mavor, “Finance and Taxation’, 264-5, 267. ® Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 246. Page 27oe ee ee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 legislature to borrow $10 million, which was increased, to $15 million in 1915 and $20 million in 1916. Part of the money was used for maintenance, and part for the construction and improvement of roads.” Another method of road improvement used, at least, in Ontario was a local improvement system that seems to be an extension of the. The concept of local improvements was adopted by the Ontario Assessment Act in 1859, and modified in 1882 and 1883. Until 1868, local improvements were applicable only to cities. In 1866, the conditions were extended to towns, to villages in 1871, and to townships in 1887. The system was popular as it appealed to rate payers that wanted to improve the conditions of their surroundings. In 1866, the only method of initiating a local improvement work was by petition. In 1871, councils were authorized to initiate work when they were prepared to pay half the cost. The works that could initially be undertaken were limited to sidewalks, street improvement, sweeping, and watering. In 1871, bridges were included. Apart from municipal taxes raised through local improvement programs or similar methods, it does not appear that direct taxation for road construction was widely used. One exception was British Columbia, by the early 20" century, a road tax of $2.00 per head was imposed on all males between the ages of 21 and 60. It does not appear that statutory grants were ever made available to road construction, This approach had been widely used to promote rail construction. Ontario, for example established the Ontario Loan Fund in 1870 to aid railway construction by providing cash grants of $2-4,000 per mile. By the 1890s some writers thought that grants of $1,000 per mile towards highway construction would be of great benefit in Ontario.” 3.3 ENGINEERING STANDARDS 3.3.1 Evolution of Standards The necessary characteristics of a durable road structure were understood by the early 19" century. The importance of good drainage and a resilient, waterproof and self-draining road surface had received considerable attention among European engineers. Pierre-Marie Tresaguet introduced the science of modern road making in France during the 1760-70s. At the beginning of the 19" century, Thomas Telford brought Tresaguet’s ideas to Britain, About the same John McAdam developed an entirely different approach to road building that proved to be as good, or better than the Telford system and considerably cheaper to construct. Whereas Telford ® Commission of Conservation. Rural Planning and Development, 81 © McKay, "Municipal History” 488-90. ‘ Ontario Pubic Roads and Highway Commission, 114-7 Mclean, “National Highways,” 427; Speight, “Notes on Some New Jersey Roads’ 97. Page 28MF FD ee eS eS 2S es Po ee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 and Tresaguet relied on massive foundations, McAdam determined that a thick layer of broken stone could provide the same benefits.” McAdam’s system did prove its worth and became the dominant road building method in North America. By the late 19" century a variety of engineering texts on road construction were widely available. In 1890, M. Murphy, provincial engineer for Nova Scotia, quoted the work of several authors on road construction including W.M. Gillespie, A Manual on the Principles and Practices of Roadmaking (1" ed, 1847) and Q.A. Gillmore, A Practice Treatise on Roads, Streets, and Pavements. (1* 1876). Thomas Roy's, Principles and Practices of Road Making as Applicable to Canada (Toronto: 1841) is frequently quoted by 20 century historians.”* However, it is unknown if his material was read by civil engineers of the period. Due to the wide geographic variability of traffic, construction materials and technical skill, it was difficult for provincial agencies to impose universal standards. Thus, for example, the Ontario Highway Improvement Act did not define a fixed standard of road construction. ‘The nature of the improvements depended upon local circumstances.” ‘The demands for the resources of the Ontario Good Roads Association were so great that in 1896, the Government created the position of “provincial instructor in road making”. In 1910, it had a staff of only three people.” Cities and large towns usually had a city engineer, which could supervise the work, County councils and township councils were less likely to have these services. In Ontario it was not until 1912 when the Highway Improvement Act ‘was amended that counties were required to employ a road superintendent.”® 3.3.2 Vehicle Wheels and Weight In 1841 the Ontario civil engineer Roy estimated that 45 percent of road wear was caused by horses hooves, 35 percent by wheeled traffic, and 20 percent by climate.” Much of this wear was an inevitable process of road usage. Wheeled vehicles, however, unlike horses could be designed to be less destructive to roads. ‘The main variable was the width of the wheel in relationship to the load of the vehicle. During the era of freight traffic on tumpike roads, much of the business was carried in immense sturdy wagons. The wheels were usually four inches or more in breadth and their beds were designed to hold 3-4 tons of merchandise. The ‘wagon was constructed such at the centre of the bed was lower than the ends in order to prevent loads from shifting when ascending or descending steep grades. M Lay, 73-8. 7 surphy, “Our Common Roads" 436. 8 Guillet, Roads, 64; Nancy Bouchie Campbell, “County Roads" 68 5 Wheelock, "Road Development in Ontario” 128. 8 NicLean, “Road Supervision’ 165-6; Campbell, “Country Roads" 63-4; Ontario Royal Commission 9p Transportation, 40. Guillet, Roads, 65. 481. Broad Clear Track in Good Order" Page 293 €2 69 © 639 9 0 23 FS 8 29 2 eo eS es es es oe CL Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 When heavily loaded, such a wagon would be drawn by four or six draft horses at arate of 15-20 miles a day.” According to wagon manufacturers, about 60 percent of wagons used on country roads in the United States had tires that were 1% to 1% inches wide. The remaining 40 percent used tires 2-4 inches wide. Tires on the famous “Red River carts” were 3-5 inches wide. At least one writer did not believe the tires more than 4-5 inches served any extra purpose.” Ona smooth, hard, unyielding pavement, the width of the tires made virtually no difference. With soft roads, and semi-liquid mud, the advantage was slightly in favour of narrow tires since wider tires had a tendency to carry mud with them. It was on the intermediate stage, such as found on most gravel and earth country roads, that the benefit of wide tires was most apparent. Where a narrow tired vehicle might sink to its axles, a wide tired wagon can remain on top of the road surface.” Under such conditions, a narrow whee! would cut through the hard road surface and produce deep ruts Another problem with narrow tires was experienced on grades. In descending hills with heavy loads, it was frequently the practice for teamsters to lock one or more wheels. This practice was injurious to roads under any conditions, but particularly true with narrow tires.” Farm wagons generally had tires 4-5 inches wide. Such tires seem to have been less popular for road vehicles. One argument was that wide tires did not roll freely in the ruts made by narrow tires. However, if wide tires were used, there ‘would be no ruts in the first place. By the 1890s the Ontario Instructor on Road Making recommended that vehicles carrying loads of a ton or more were to have tires of at least 4-5 inches wide. Almost 20 years later the same recommendation was still being made® There seems to have been no agreement as to the optimal width of tires. In France, for example, at the end of the 19" century, tires on market wagons ranged from 3-10 inches with the majority being 4-6 inches. In 1902 the Yukon territorial council passed an ordinance that required four inch tires on heavy wagons between April 15 and May 31. Part of the prejudice in Ontario was that people were not accustomed to seeing wide tires. They appeared strange and awkward, The Provincial Instructor on Road Making suggested that towns and cities could convert their watering carts, garbage wagons and other vehicles to 7 Durrenbeerger, Tumpikes, 118-9. 7° Baker. Treatise on Roads and Pavements, 128; Gilman, Red River Trals, 16. ® Report ofthe Provincial Instructor on Road Making, 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24. © Report ofthe Provincial Instructor on Road Making, 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24 ® Report of the Provincial Instructor on Road Making, 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24; Ontario Public Roads and Highway Commission, 74, Page 30C2 39 fo fe fo es es es ee 9 es ee Oe Ps ee ee Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 wide tires and thus, promote their use. He also noted that wide tires acted as rollers to maintain a hard, smooth road surface.” Horses were the primary means of motive power. Pack animals, at least in eastern Canada, were not part of the commercial scene. It was not until 1900 that it had been successfully demonstrated that horses could survive the Yukon winter. Up until that time, dogs provided land transportation. Horses were brought into the gold field as pack animals but killed at the end of each summer. In the prairies oxen were often used on red River carts. They had greater strength than horses and their cloven hooves gave a firmer foothold in mud. Horses moved faster and were better suited for rocky trails or steep banks." ‘One way to protect roads was to introduce highway restrictions. For example, the worst season for road conditions in the Yukon was in the spring and fall. In July, 1902, the territorial council passed an ordinance that restricted vehicles to two horses between April 15 and May 31 and from September 15 to October 31." ® Report of the Provincial Instructor on Road Making, 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24; Bennett... Yukon Transportation p. 80, 82 ® iaacllwraith, “Adequacy of Rural Roads” 354; Bennett. Yukon Transportation 54; Gilman, Red River Trails, 15. © Bennett,. Yukon Transportation, 80, 82. Page 31fo 6p 0 64 6 6 6 6 fo ee Gs be Ee Eo 6 6.1 Fa a. Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 4 CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES 4.1 EQUIPMENT Under pioneer conditions, roads were built by manual labour with little specialized equipment. Gradually equipment was introduced. For earth roads, the use of drag scrapers and road graders built better roads much faster than manual labour alone. Improved rural roads of gravel and crushed stone required additional equipment such as crusher, screens, and rollers.’ Concrete and various tar/asphalt surfaces that started to appear on urban roads at the end of the 19" century required specialized equipment. Road building equipment helped to produce cheaper and more durable roads. However, such machinery was expensive and beyond the means of most township budgets. Two developments helped to make road equipment more accessible by 1900. Provinces started to make grants available and the growth of county road systems provided larger administrative units that could use the equipment efficiently. The financial assistance and development of country roads authorized by the Ontario Highway Improvement Act (1901), for example, paved the way for the purchase of expensive modern road-building machinery.? Road building in settled areas of the country involved principally the improvement of existing roads. Pioneer roads were completed as cheaply and quickly as possible. They followed the topography of the land with litle attention to gradient or drainage. The first step in road improvements was to modify the earthworks with cuttings, embankments, ditches and self-draining road surfaces. Earthwork improvements were built using much the same equipment as used in railway construction of the era ~ drag scrapers, ploughs, dump carts and wagons.” The road grader evolved into one of the most important pieces of equipment for road construction and maintenance, Such machines could remove earth, excavate ditches, form a crown on the road, and spread gravel. Various models of these versatile machines came with adjustable axles and tiltable front and rear wheels so that the blade could be efficiently positioned for a particular task. Until the introduction of mechanical stone crushers, rock was broken by hand. Manual stone breaking encouraged the use of softer stones. Where available, ‘weathered limestone was used in preference to harder stones even though it did not last as long and produced dusty roads. One man could break about 14-2 yd? of stone per day. Even after the development of crushers, manual stone breaking ‘was maintained, apparently as make-work projects. In 1908-09 the casual * Baker 96-110 213-28. 2 Campbell, “Country Roads” 63-6. 2 The interrelation of raliway and road construction equipment has not been examined. One of the few books to link the two subjects was W. Gillespie's Manual ofthe Principles and Practice of Road-Making.. . of Roads and Railroads, fist edition, 1847, Page 32Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 inmates of the House of Industry broke 2,029 yd* of stone; enough to make less than 1 % miles of nine foot wide macadam road.* Caserron Senarexe Grader. Baker Roads and Pavements, 102,107. Rock crushers broke quarried stone and gravel into usable sizes. In conjunction with screening the material, crushed rock could be sorted into various sizes that able for macadam roads. Moreover the angular particles of stone bound together more closely than was possible with ordinary pit gravel. Despite the importance of crushed materials, mechanical crushers Were not common in the 19" century. The government engineer responsible for roads in Nova Scotia, indicated that in 1890, the province did not contain a stone breaking machine They had, however, tested crushers manufactured by Blake, Hope, and Archer.’ were des ‘The rock crusher was introduced into America in 1860. By 1900 both oscillatory and gyratory crushers were in use. A well designed stone crushing plant cost, between $1,500 and $2,500 and could produce from 10-200 tons of crushed stone per day.® Although a road surface could be constructed directly from “crusher run”, this produced a surface of uneven quality and strength. It was much preferred to screen the stone before use and place the coarsest at the bottom and the finer on the top. As well, pit-run gravel usually contained too much earthy matter for good road making. Screening removed large stones and earthy material.” * Gillespie, 199-200; City of Toronto, Engineering Dept. Annual Report, 1909, 122; Aga, Construction of Roads and Pavements, 123. © wurpny, “Our Common Roads’ 448, ® Baker, Treatise on Roads and Pavements p. 213-7, 7 Burns, “Management of Township Roads" 46; W. A McLean, “The Road Surface’, Ontario ‘Association of Land Surveyors, 1909. Page 33Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 ef Rotating screens by the end of the 19" century usually contained meshes to produce three sizes of stone: ¥4 inch, 1 ‘4 inch and 2 %4 inch. Larger material was recrushed while smaller material could be used as a road binder or for b sidewalk ARRANGEMEST OF SrosE-cRUSBING PLANT ‘Stone crushing end screening plant, ¢.1900, Baker Roads and Pavements, 216 ‘The cost of road building was not so much in the earthworks as in the cost of hauling surface material. It required 3,129 yd of gravel to make a mile of new road 16 feet wide and eight inches deep. It was estimated that one team could haul seven cubic yards of gravel per day when the haul was not over 1 ¥ miles One cubic yard of gravel weighed from 1.3 to 1.7 tons. The roller was indispensable for the construction of sound stone roads as the gravel or stone needed to be rolled and compacted as it was laid. ‘The material was applied in layers of 3-4 inches between rollings. Rollers were also used to compact the subsoil and prevent subsequent shrinkage of the earthworks." Neither Telford nor McAdam used rollers as these machines had not yet been invented. Telford recommended that all stone should be placed in wet weather and during winter months, which probably helped to consolidate the material, ® Baker, Treatise on Roads and Pavements, 217-8; Murphy, "Our Common Roads” 443. °WW. A MeLean, “The Road Surface", Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1909, 140, 142; Ganada, Department of Mines. Road Materials Surveys 1914. 5. Baker, 222; W. A McLean, “The Road Surface’, Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1809, 140, 142 Bums, “Management of Township Roads” 46-7. Page 34Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 ‘The horse roller was introduced in France about 1834 while the steam roller was developed in Britain about 1865." Horse rollers weighed up to 6-7 tons and were drawn by either two or four horses. By 1900 these machines typically cost about $100 per ton. Apparently the ideal weight for rolling was about 20 tons; a weight that required the use ofa steam roller. At the end of the 19" century Canadian road builders seem to have preferred rollers between 10 and 15 tons. Such rollers cost between $200-8225 per ton Baker, Treatise on Roads and pavements 223 224 One limit to the use of heavy rollers was the condition of rural bridges. In 1903 the engineer for York Township, Ontario, commented that good road rollers weighed 7-10 tons but “if we took one of those rollers out into the township every culvert and bridge would be broken down.” Instead, he used a heavy, strong, wide tired wagon filled with stones that could be unloaded to pass over bridges.”* Materials testing equipment began to appear by 1900 as greater emphasis was placed on the durability of road surfaces. Abrasion and impact tests were developed to test crushed stone and brick pavements. Cementation tests were developed to explore the properties of binding materials, Brick was tested in a machine known as a “rattler” consisting of a revolving cast iron barrel containing the test bricks, and sometimes pieces of iron."* 4.2 SURVEYS Pioneer roads followed alignments established when each township was surveyed In what later became Ontario the initial practice was to designate definite road allowances between the concessions, usually 66 feet wide. During the 1870s, the " Lay, 85; Baker, 222; Murphy. "Our Common Roads" 434-5. * Baker, 223; Lay, 85; Burns, "Management of Township Roads’ 46-7 Campbell, "Macadam for Town Streets” 147. *® Gibson, “Public Works in the Township of York” 116-7. ** Baker, Treatise on Roads and Pavements, 180-90, 480-93; Canada, Department of Mines. Roed Materials Surveys 1914, 17-22; Tyrril, Permanent Street Pavement: Their Durability and Cost’, Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1893 108. Page 36monomer e717 e1 fo 6 6) 6 fs 6s 6 Go bo fs Ge te eB Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 province changed the survey method for laying out road allowances. In rougher districts a reservation of five percent of each lot was made for road purposes. Until road construction took place, it was not certain what the best road pattern would be and thus left to the municipality to determine where the roads were laid out."* During the 1860s the Department of Public Works built the Metapediac Road in Quebec within a 66 foot right-of-way in Crown land and townships and 50 feet within the seigniories."* Subsequent surveys were undertaken to improve the drainage and gradient of roads within the existing road allowance. ‘When new roads were constructed the first task was to remove trees from the road allowance. A width of about 20-26 feet was cleared in the middle of the road allowance for the road and ditches. Sometimes the remainder of the allowance was cut but not cleared. In areas of low ground the timber was used to produce a corduroy road. Any remaining timber was piled in heaps and burned. The stumps ‘were immovable and the road bended around the obstacles. The stumps were removed as necessary over time. Earth on either side was loosened with a plow to a depth of 6-9 inches and moved to the centre of the road by shovel or horse scraper. This worked created an earth road about eight feet wide.”” ‘New roads continued to be throughout the 19" century for colonization purposes or to exploit natural resources. For example, in 1858, gold was discovered in the Caribou district of British Columbia. In 1859 the survey and construction of the Caribou Road was commenced to serve settlement in the gold field."* In prairies, trails crisscrossed the land in routes followed by traders and hunters. Settlement roads were ofien started as trails. Along well-used routes, new trails would be broken beside the old when the ruts became too deep. One of the most important connected Fort Garry (later Winnipeg) with Edmonton House. The 900-mile trip could be made in six weeks under good travelling conditions. The route between Edmonton and Calgary began as an Indian path. Between 1873-75 a trail was cut along the route and by the 1880s it was a busy wagon road. However, the alignment was not officially surveyed until 1886." ‘A road surveyed for the most efficient and economic transport needs could be far more expensive than simply opening a route between two communities. Many of the roads constructed during the Klondike gold rush in the Yukon Territory were built to follow the path of least resistance. In most cases, this was along a creek bed where maintenance costs were high as a result of poor drainage, but where construction costs were low. If the road had been intended for long term use, it would have been more expedient to build the road on the hillside but this would have increased construction costs enormously. The life of a road depended on the ‘Construction and Maintenance of Roads’ 132; Glazebrook, Transportation in Canada, 193 * General Report of the Commissioner of Public Works, 1867, Appendix 18, 158. ¥ Burns, “Management of Township Roads’ 41 General Report of the Commissioner of Public Works, 1867, Appendix 18, 159. 1® DW. Thomson. Men and Meridians, vol 1, 280, 286-9. "Gilman, Red River Trails, 27.Guillet, Roads, 109-10, 117. Page 36ee £ en &9 Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 richness of the mineral deposit. Thus, quantity of roads rather than quality of roads was a determining factor in location.” Since most road work focused on the improvement of existing roads, it became creasingly important to determine which routes justified improvements. In 1885, the first detailed urban traffic census was taken in the United States. In 1892 a travel census was taken on 25 streets in Montreal and in 1894, the City of Toronto also took a travel census on three streets." These surveys related to urban roads but the census approach was also applied to rural highways. Knowledge of the level of traffic, helped engineers to determine the appropriate surfacing material.” 4.3 ROAD STRUCTURE 4.3.1 Design Issues Asa general rule, narrow rural roads were considered more economical than wide ones. At an entrance to town, where traffic occurred in both directions, the road covering needed to be wide enough to allow two vehicles to meet and pass without leaving the metalled portion. A 16-17 foot width was considered sufficient. On ordinary concession roads where traffic was in one direction, provision was needed for a road to handle a single vehicle. An unloaded vehicle ‘would concede the right of way to the loaded one. Thus an 18-foot wide road, consisting of an eight foot road of metal and ten feet on either side to provide passing space was considered appropriate.® The passing section of this type of road was commonly referred to as a “summer road.” The spring and fall could be destructive to this type of road. The passing section became muddy and demolished some of the metal on the permanent road surface. However, in 1896 the Ontario “Provincial Instructor on Road Making” advocated the use of summer roads. By the provincial engineers were discouraging the use of this design.* The correct width of a road was subject to considerable interpretation. Roy in 1841 had recommended a 38 foot road. During the 1860s the Metapediac Road in Quebec was built 22 feet wide. By the 1890s 24 feet between ditches was generally ample for country roads and anything less than 18 feet was considered unadvisable. Eight feet were metaled.® ® Bennett, Yukon Transporation, 80. 2 Baker, Treatise on Roads and Pavements, 667, 570-1 ® hag, Construction of Roads and Pavements 437-49, ® Burns, “Management of Township Roads" 46. * Durrenberger, Tumpikes, 86; Mahan. Treatise on Civil Engineering, 429-430; W. A McLean, “The Road Surface”, Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1909, 142; “Report of the Provincial {gstructor on Road Making” 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24, 26-6. ® General Report of the Commissioner of Public Works, 1867, Appendix 18, 159; “Report of the Provincial Instructor on Road Making,” 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24, 25-6; Guillet, Roads, 64; W. A McLean, "The Road Surface", Ontario Association of Land Surveyors, 1909, 142, Page 37a7 €1 4 £D Road Construction in Canada, 1860-1910 Traffic Census, Ontario* October 15/Nov 15, 1913 — weekly tot Interurban Roads t 20 stations Census Station No. Class of Trafic T[eTatTs[s [eps ls elem ‘One horse ight vehicle | ~368_|673. [257 | 248 | 308 | 655.| G43 | 740] Boz | 44d] 367 ‘One horse heavy vehicle | 25| 272" eo | 197 | 68 | 1a8 | 248 | 396] a3} 168 Two horse light vehicie |""24 | 80|—28|-_7|~20|~ 94] 54] 12| 78] 3] op Two horse heavy vehicle |"201 | 428 | 341 | 40 | 163 | ies | 242 | 640 | 249 [61 ter Motor Vehicles 18 | 396 | 672 -a00 [79] 155] 73] 298 [_37| 13] 37 41. Ames north of Baie on Bare-Oriia Road 13 Kingston Road 3 mies east of Belevile 2 Lineon Stone Road % mies west of Beamsville 15._Brantlor-Hamiton Rad 5 es east of Brantford at side road 4 Yonge Street 7 mis not of Toronto 18 Huron Road % mies east of Sebringile at se road 5 Dundas Road 6 mies west of Toronto 19 Longwoods Road 14 mils west of Sathburn st sie cad {8 Kingston Road 2 % miles west of Whiby a side road 20.‘Talbot Steet 1 % miles west of Ayer a sie roee 12 Kingston Road 1 % mies eat of Brock at side road Rural Roads Census Station No. ‘Class of Traffe srt eys Tol ia epr ‘One horse ight vehicle {178223 | 228 | 267 |~aa7 | Tooa | 481 | 118 | 127 One horse heavy vehicle |~ 14 [a7] 20] sa9] 112] 274417 | tot — ‘Two horse light vehicle o| sa] 259 52201 }4e | 12] 17 “Two horse heavy vehicle | —@5.| 105 | 44 | 286 | 63. | 262 | 112 | 96 [30 Motor Vehicles 29 | 156 | 16 [128 [44 | 46 [165 | 14] 5 3 Guolph-Fergus Road 1 mie east of Fergus at side road 11 Athens Road 1 % miles noth of Brockville at size road 7 Port Hope Gravel Rose 4 mies west of Pelerborough 14 Madoc Road 4 mies norh of Bllevite at sde road atside oad 8 nisvile Road 3 miles noth of Perth at 3° Line 18 Toronto Sydenham Read 2 miles north of Dundalk at side road 9 Metcalfe Road 3 mies south of Otawa 17 Owen Sound Road 5 mies west of utham at side road 10 River Road (St Lawrence) 1 mle west of Cornwall Township Side Census Station No. Roads (Gata taken at side road crossing of roads ofthe above interurban andra stations) ‘Class of Taff 3 [6 si] 2 [14 [ 15 [a6] 17] 18 | 19 | 20 ‘One horse ight vehicle {248 |"96_| 24 [er | 160 | 302| 2] 73 | 68 | 34 | 199} 443 | 62 ‘One horse heavy vehicle |" 2] 28 |---| 25 | 121 | 145119} 41] 3] | so] [23 Two horse light vehicle | 19-1 zat est aota7t st] s| a] 91 10 “Two horse heavy vehicle | 11 [75 15] 91 | vot 2 [et | 72-6 | 605i] 48 Motor Vehicles 2 = st [artery oy 7p =) ayaa} t * Ontario, Report of the Public Roads and Highway Commission, Appendix 5, 1914. The census {format used by the Highway Commission seems to have been based on a form developed a few ‘years earlier by the Massachusetts Highway Commission; see Agg, Construction of Roads and Pavements, 343, Page 38,gin ae ae eats ge ee es ee ee ee a ee ee eee eee gee ce ee eee ee gee tae a at | de! Road Construction in Canada, 1960-1910 Urban roads, especially in the older cities such as Montreal and Quebec were sometimes inconveniently narrow. For example, Chenneville Street in Montreal was only 33 feet wide. Even as streets were built under British regime, some remained relatively narrow. Beaverhall Street was 60 feet wide and the earliest section of Sherbrooke Street was 55 feet wide, Some of the old French streets, such as Notre Dame Street, were widened to 50 feet the mid-19" century.® The problem with narrow urban streets persisted throughout the 19" century. Although, for example, the Ontario Registry Act required that all plans with streets of less than 66 feet wide had to be assented to by resolution of the municipal council, some municipal engineers thought that this assent was too easily obtained by any influential landowner. The narrowest residential street ought to be 60 feet wide and possibly 50 feet in special cases. A few engineers though that a residential street need be only 24 feet wide; the same width as the turing space needed for an ordinary buggy. One person suggested that a poor driver that could not turn in 20 feet ought to proceed to a lane or street crossing.” The converse situation appeared in many of the main streets in prairie cities. These streets could be extraordinarily wide. The road allowance was made sufficiently wide that as the ruts became too deep in one part, the trail could move to another location within the allowance.* The gradient in a road had a profound effect on the efficiency of horse traffic, ‘One study in the early 20" century observed that on a level grade, a horse typically pulled 1,000 pounds. This capacity decreased with the following gradients: 1 fi. in 100 (1 percent) 900 Ibs. 1 fi. in 50 (2 percent) 810 Ibs. 1 ft. in 25 (4 percent) 540 Ibs. 1 ft. in 10 (10 percent) 250 Ibs. While a steep incline was hard on the horse, a decline was hard on the road surface. In descending hills with heavy loads, it was frequently the practice for teamsters to lock one or more wheels, causing the wheels to cut ruts into the road surface. Although steep gradients produced poor roads, steep grades were tolerated because of the cheapness of construction. The Metapediac Road in Quebec was laid out in 1857 with grades of 1:10. The grade was reduced in 1862 to the still remarkably steep level of 1:14." ‘Quebec Under Confederation" 307.9, ‘an, “Good Streets" 137, 144, % Guillet, Rosds, 116 % Commission of Conservation, Rural Planning and Development, 83. & Provincial Instructor on Road Making, 1896. Ontario. Sessional Papers, 1897, No. 24. 5" General Report of the Commissioner of Public Works, 1867, Appendix 18, 158, Page 39