Relaying 400 miles of granite-built £
streets, at 11,000_l._ per mile 4,400,000
Relaying 1350 miles of macadamized
streets, at 4400_l._ per mile 5,940,000
Relaying five miles of wood-built
streets, at 9680_l._ 48,400
-----------
£10,388,400
But the above refers only to the road, and besides this, there is, as
a gentleman to whom I am much indebted for valuable information on
the subject, reminds me, the foot paving, granite curb, and granite
channel not included. The usual price for _paving_ is 8_d._ per foot
superficial, when laid--granite curb 1_s._ 7_d._ per foot run, and
granite channel 12_s._ per square yard.
“Now, presuming that three-fourths of the roads,” says my informant,
“have paved footpaths on each side at an average width of six feet
exclusive of curb, and that one-half of the macadamized roads have
granite channels on each side, and that one-third of all the roads
have granite curb on each side; these items for 400 miles of granite
road, 1350 macadamized, and 5 miles of wood--together 1755 miles--will
therefore amount to
£ _s._ _d._
Three-fourths of 1755 miles of
streets paved on each side,
six feet wide, at 8_d._ per foot
superficial 2,779,392 0 0
One-half of 1350 miles of macadamized
roads with one foot
of granite channel on each
side, at 12_s._ per yard square 458,537 4 5
One-third of 1755 miles of road
with granite curb on each
side, at 1_s._ 7_d._ per foot run 489,060 0 0
---------------------
3,726,989 4 5
Cost of constructing 1755 miles
of roadway 10,388,400 0 0
----------------------
Total cost of constructing the
streets of London £14,115,389 4 5
“Accordingly the original cost of the metropolitan pavements exceeds
fourteen millions sterling, and, calculating that this requires
renewal every five years, the gross annual expenditure will be at the
rate of 2,500,000_l._ per annum, which, added to 1,822,500_l._, gives
4,322,500_l._, or upwards of four millions and a quarter sterling for
the entire annual cost of the London roadways.
“From rather extensive experience,” adds my informant, “in building
operations, and consequently in making and paying for roads, I am of
opinion that the amount I have shown is under rather than above the
actual cost.
“In a great many parts of the metropolis the roads are made by the
servants of a body of Commissioners appointed for the purpose; and
from dear-bought experience I can say they are a public nuisance, and
would earnestly caution speculating builders against taking building
ground or erecting houses in any place where the roads are under
their control. The Commissioners are generally old retired tradesmen,
and have very little to occupy their attention, and are often quite
ignorant of their duties; I have reason to believe, too, that some of
them even use their little authority to gratify their dislike to some
poor builder in their district, by meddling and quibbling, and while
that is going on the houses which have been erected can neither be let
nor sold; so that as the bills given for the materials keep running,
the builder, when they fall due, is ruined, for his creditors will not
take his unlet houses for their debts, and no one else will purchase
them until let, for none will rent them without proper accesses.
I feel certain that in those parts where the roads are made by
Commissioners three times more builders, in proportion to their number,
get into difficulties than in the districts where they are permitted to
make the roads themselves.”
The paved ways and roads of London, then, it appears, cost in round
numbers 10,000,000_l._ sterling, and require nearly 2,000,000_l._ to be
expended upon them annually for repairs.
But this is not the sole expense attendant upon the construction of
the streets of the metropolis. Frequently, in the formation of new
lines of thoroughfare, large masses of property have to be bought up,
removed, and new buildings erected at considerable cost. In a return
made pursuant to an order of the Court of Common Council, dated 23rd
October, 1851, for “An account of all moneys which have been raised
for public works executed, buildings erected, or street improvements
effected, out of the Coal Duties receivable by the Corporation of
London in the character of trustees for administration or otherwise,
since the same were made chargeable by Parliament for such purposes in
the year 1766,” the following items are given relating to the cost of
the formation of new streets and improvements of old ones:--
_Street Improvements forming New Thoroughfares._
Amount raised
for Public
Works, &c.
Building the bridge across the river £. _s._ _d._
Thames, from Blackfriars, in the city
of London, to Upper Ground-street, in
the county of Surrey, now called
Blackfriars Bridge, and forming the
avenues thereto, and embanking the
north abutment of the said bridge--(Entrusted
to the Corporation of the
city of London) 210,000 0 0
Making a new line of streets from Moorfields,
opposite Chiswell-street, towards
the east into Bishopsgate-street
(now Crown-street and Sun-street),
also from the east end of Chiswell-street
westward into Barbican--(Corporation
of the city of London) 16,500 0 0
Making a new street from Crispin-street,
near Spitalfields Church, into Bishopsgate-street
(now called Union-street),
in the city of London and in the
county of Middlesex--(Commissioners
named in Act 18, George III., c. 78) 9,000 0 0
Opening communications between Wapping-street
and Ratcliffe-highway, and
between Old Gravel-lane and Virginia-street,
all in the county of Middlesex--(Commissioners
appointed under Act 17, Geo. III., c. 22) 1,000 0 0
Formation of Farringdon-street, removal
of Fleet-market, and erection of Farringdon-market,
in the city of London--(Corporation
of the city of London) 250,000 0 0
Formation of a new street from the end
of Coventry-street to the junction of
Newport-street and Long-acre (Cranbourn-street),
continuing the line of street from Waterloo
Bridge, already completed to Bow-street (Upper
Wellington-street), and thence northward into
Broad-street, Holborn, and thence
to Charlotte-street, Bloomsbury, extending
Oxford-street in a direct line
through St. Giles’s, so as to communicate
with Holborn at or near Southampton-street
(New Oxford-street); also widening the northern
and southern extremities of Leman-street,
Goodman’s-fields, and forming a new
street from the northern side of
Whitechapel to the front of Spitalfields
Church (Commercial-street),
and forming a new street from Rosemary-lane
to East Smithfield, near to
the entrance of the London-docks;
also formation of a street from the
neighbourhood of the Houses of Parliament
towards Buckingham Palace,
in the city of Westminster (Victoria-street),
all in the county of Middlesex;
also formation of a line of new street
between Southwark and Westminster
Bridges, in the county of Surrey--(Her
Majesty’s Commissioners of
Woods, Forests, and Land Revenues) 665,000 0 0
NOTE.--The Commissioners of Her
Majesty’s Woods have been authorised
to raise further moneys on the
credit of the duty of 1_d._ per ton for
further improvements in the neighbourhood
of Spitalfields, but the
Chamberlain is not officially cognizant
of the amount.
Forming a new street from the northern
end of Victoria-street, Holborn (formed
by the Corporation to Clerkenwell-green,
all in the county of Middlesex)--(Clerkenwell
Improvement Commissioners) 25,000 0 0
Formation of a new line of streets from
King William-street, London Bridge,
to the south side of St. Paul’s Cathedral,
by widening and improving
Cannon-street, making a new street
from Cannon-street, near Bridge-row,
to Queen-street, and another street
from the west side of Queen-street, in
a direct line to St. Paul’s-churchyard,
and widening Queen-street, from the
junction of the said new street to
Southwark Bridge; also improving
Holborn Bridge and Field-lane, and
effecting an improvement in Gracechurch-street
and Ship Tavern-passage,
all in the city of London--(Corporation
of the city of London) 500,000 0 0
Finishing the new street left incomplete
by the Clerkenwell Improvement Commissioners,
from the end of Victoria-street,
Farringdon-street, to Coppice-row,
Clerkenwell, all in the county of
Middlesex--(Corporation of the City
of London) 88,000 0 0
-------------------
Total cost of forming the above-mentioned
new thoroughfares 1,764,500 0 0
_Improving existing Thoroughfares._
Improving existing approaches, and
forming new approaches to new London
Bridge, viz., in High-street,
Tooley-street, Montague-close, Pepper-alley,
Whitehorse-court, Chequer-court,
Chaingate, Churchyard-passage,
St. Saviour’s churchyard, Carter-lane,
Boar’s-head-place, Fryingpan-alley,
Green Dragon-court, Joyner-street,
Red Lion-street, Counter-street, Three
Crown-court, and the east front of
the Town Hall, all in the Borough of
Southwark; also ground and premises
at the north-west foot of London
Bridge, Upper Thames-street, Red-cross-wharf,
Mault’s-wharf, High
Timber-street and Broken-wharf,
Swan-passage, Churchyard-alley, site
of Fishmonger’s Hall, Great Eastcheap,
Little Eastcheap, Star-court,
Fish-street-hill, Little Tower-street,
Idol-lane, St. Mary-at-hill, Crooked-lane,
Miles-lane, Three Tun-alley,
Warren-court, Cannon-street, Gracechurch-street,
Bell-yard, Martin’s-lane,
Nicholas-lane, Clement’s-lane, Abchurch-lane,
Sherborne-lane, Swithin’s-lane,
Cornhill, Lombard-street,
Dove-court, Fox Ordinary-court, Old
Post Office Chambers, Mansion-house-street,
Princes-street, Coleman-street,
Coleman-street-buildings, Moorgate-street,
London Wall, Lothbury,
Tokenhouse-yard, King’s Arms-yard,
Great Bell-alley, Packer’s-court,
White’s-alley, Great Swan-alley,
Crown-court, George-yard, Red Lion-court,
Cateaton-street, Gresham-street,
Milk-street, Wood-street, King-street,
Basinghall-street, Houndsditch, Lad-lane,
Threadneedle-street, Aldgate
High-street, and Maiden-lane, all in
the City of London--(Corporation of
the City of London) 1,016,421 18 1
Widening and improving the entrance
into London near Temple-bar, improving
the Strand and Fleet-street,
and formation of Pickett-street, and
for making a new street from the
east end of Snow-hill to the bottom of
Holborn-hill, now called Skinner-street--(Corporation
of the City of London) 246,300 0 0
Widening and improving Dirty-lane and
part of Brick-lane, leading from Whitechapel
to Spitalfields, and for paving
Dirty-lane, Petticoat-lane, Wentworth-street,
Old Montague-street,
Chapel-street, Princes-row, &c., all in
the county of Middlesex--(Commissioners
appointed by the Act 18, Geo.
III., c. 80) 1,500 0 0
Widening the avenues from the Minories,
through Goodman’s-yard into
Prescott-street, and through Swan-street
and Swan-alley into Mansell-street,
and from Whitechapel through
Somerset-street into Great Mansell-street,
all in the county of Middlesex--(Commissioners
named in Act 18,
George III., c. 50) 1,500 0 0
-------------------
Total cost of improving the above-mentioned
thoroughfares 1,265,721 13 1
_Paving._
Paving the road from Aldersgate Bars to
turnpike in Goswell-street, in the
county of Middlesex--(Commissioners
Sewers, &c., of the City of London) 5,500 0 0
Completing the paving of the town
borough of Southwark and certain
parts adjacent--(Commissioners for
executing Act 6, George III., for paving
town and borough of Southwark) 4,000 0 0
---------------
Total cost of paving the above-mentioned
thoroughfares 9,500 0 0
Hence the aggregate expense of the preceding improvements has been
upwards of 3,000,000_l._ sterling.
I have now, in order to complete this account of the cost of paving
and cleansing the thoroughfares of the metropolis, only to add the
following statement as to the traffic of the principal thoroughfares in
the city of London, for which I am indebted to Mr. Haywood, the City
Surveyor.
By the subjoined Return it will be seen that there are two tides as
it were in the daily current of locomotion in the City--the one being
at its flood at 11 o’clock A.M., after which it falls gradually till
2 o’clock, when it is at its lowest ebb, and then begins to rise,
gradually till 5 o’clock, when it reaches its second flood, and then
begins to decline once more. The point of greatest traffic in the
City is London-bridge, where the conveyances passing and repassing
amount to 13,099 in the course of twelve hours[31]. Of these it would
appear, that 9351 consist of one-horse vehicles and equestrians, 3389
of two-horse conveyances, and only 359 of vehicles drawn by more than
two horses. The one-horse vehicles would seem to be between two and
three times as many as the two-horse, which form about one-fourth of
the whole, while those drawn by more than two horses constitute about
one-sixtieth of the entire number.
The Return does not mention the state of the weather on the several
days and hours at which the observations were made, nor does it
tell us whether there was any public event occurring on those days
which was likely to swell or diminish the traffic beyond its usual
proportions. The table, moreover, it should be remembered, is confined
to the observations of only one day in each locality, so that we must
be guarded in receiving that which records a mere accidental set of
circumstances as an example of the general course of events. It would
have been curious to have extended the observations throughout the
night, and so have ascertained the difference in the traffic; and also
to have noted the decrease in the number of vehicles passing during a
continuously wet as well as a showery day. The observations should be
further carried out to different seasons, in order to be rendered of
the highest value. Mr. Haywood and the City authorities would really be
conferring a great boon on the public by so doing.