During the two-year period covered by this report, conditions have been
unusually unfavorable for highway construction work. Labor and materials
of all kinds have been difficult to secure, wages and prices have been
very high, transportation facilities have been inadequate and many other
conditions have operated to interfere with highway construction. During
the last year public sentiment has been opposed to the prosecution of
construction work and the restrictions imposed by the Federal Government
have prevented the undertaking of any extensive program of road
improvement. For these reasons the Highway Department has not handled
nearly the amount of work that it would have handled under normal
conditions, but nevertheless a great stride has been made in the
development of Oregon's good roads system, and the Department feels that
a fairly good showing has been made. The actual construction work
undertaken and completed during the two years consists of fifty miles of
paving, one hundred and eleven and eight-tenths miles of macadamizing,
one hundred and thirty-four and five-tenths miles of grading and forty
bridges and large culverts.
In addition to this actual construction work the Department has made
surveys of nine hundred and two miles of State roads and has prepared
designs for forty-two bridges for county authorities.