Controlling | Route 
Authority. Mileage, 
Cost of 
Jonstruetion 
and Fquip- 
ment. 
Government ... 
Municipal sve 
Private ... es 
_l1les. 
131-1 
168-7 
45-4 
x 
9,084,635 
5.902,019 
865.176 
Total ... | 
645-92 
25.851.830 
Motor Vehicles. 
Motor Vehicles 
Registered. 
Year ended 
30th June. 
Number. 
Per 1,000 of 
Povulation. 
921... wen 
922... ve 
923... -_ 
924 o 
925... von 
926... ni 
1927  ... veo | 
928... es 
(17,163 21 
39,090 25 
75,170 31 
241,869 12 
305,639 52 
390,300 65 
196,367 «+ 80 
65113 90 
Roads. 
32. The importance of the road 
transport system of Australia is so 
apparent, and is so fully recognized, 
that we are only dealing with it and the 
associated subjects of motor and tram- 
way services in order to give a true 
perspective in connection with the sug- 
zestions which we subsequently make 
in regard to co-ordination of various 
transport services. 
33. Expenditure on roads is rightly 
regarded as the first necessity of deve- 
lopment, and as we have already in- 
dicated in dealing with the subject of 
railways the latter should only be built 
if and when road transport is proved 
lo be impracticable or uneconomical. 
The Committee on Mechanical Trans- 
oort of the Development and Migra- 
tion Commission, in a report dated 
2nd March, 1928, dealt with the esti- 
mated cost of mechanical road trans- 
port compared with branch railway 
operations, and submitted recommen- 
lations suggesting that ‘¢ apart from 
‘he advantage of deferring capital ex- 
penditure upon prospective non-paying 
oranch railways, mechanical road 
sransport could be economically used 
‘or new developmental areas until 
settlement and production have been 
sarried to a stage which would enable 
2 branch railway line to be constructed 
and operated without loss.” 
34. The Commonwealth Road Board 
and the State and other road boards 
are, so far as we are able to judge, 
officiently dealing with the question of 
making, improvement and mainten- 
ance of the main roads, and, apart 
from the method of applying the Com- 
nonwealth Road Board grant to the 
States, to which we draw attention 
selow (instancing the special case of 
Tasmania), we have no suggestions to 
offer. It is, of course, impracticable 
within a short space of time and with- 
out undue capital expenditure to put 
even the main roads of the vast terri- 
tory of Australia into a wholly satis- 
factory condition, but energetic action 
is taking place in that direction, and 
a considerable distance outside each 
of the cities is now satisfactorily served 
by roads of a high character. The 
whole question of providing satisfac 
tory ‘‘ country ”’ roads is more diffi- 
ult of solution. The construction and 
naintenance ‘of the roads in less popu- 
lous areas, out of funds provided by 
rates levied on the inhabitants of the 
ocality, means that, unless the in- 
lustries carried on in that area are to 
se adversely affected by a heavy bur- 
len of rates, the progress in improv- 
ng the undoubtedly bad roads in such 
areas must necessarily be slow. It 
8 a question of patient effort, 
Although, given good bridges, roads of 
v sort are easy to make and maintain 
n most parts of the back country. 
85. We have one suggestion to offer 
a regard to main roads, namely, that 
wy sums made available for transport 
»urposes from the Commonwealth 
‘evenue should he freely placed at the 
lisposal of the States for the purposes 
f transport in general. The par- 
icular case of Tasmania illustrates 
his point. The Road Maintenance 
Board there has an inadequate revenue 
of £35,000 per year from the motor 
bax, plus £20.000 from the municipal