163. The following table sets forth the total areas of the various types of surfacing laid on the Colony's roads during the year. The figures do not include the area covered by more than 75,000 small patching jobs which were undertaken in addition, by departmental labour:-
Type of surfacing Hong Kong Kowloon Total 8" cement concrete 5,714 8,016 13,730 6" cement concrete 31,518 10,822 42,340 4" cement concrete 3,139 3,139 2½" grano, paving 23,405 28,461 51,866 4" Tar macadam 59,248 21,386 80,634 3" Tar macadam 40,987 8,708 49,695 4" Dry macadam 2,873 94,273 97,146 3″ Dry macadam 191 26,874 27,065 2" Tartops 9,748 1,088 10,836 1" Tartops 128,451 203,533 331,984 Tarpainting 50,442 14,031 64,473 Bottoming 27,293 3,013 30,306164. In addition to the vast amount of routine work contingent upon the maintenance of over 400 miles of highly urban roads the following works of special interest were carried out during the year.
RAISING OF QUEEN'S ROAD CENTRAL.
165. If town-planners of the past could have foreseen the inconvenience to which future traffic would be put, it is probable that they would have avoided leaving the big dip in Queen's Road Central where the new Edinburgh House was to stand. During heavy rains this section of the road was on occasion transformed into the semblance of a swimming pool with raised footpaths serving as sidewalks.
166. In view of the frequently recurring complaints of flooding in Queen's Road Central work began about 1920 on the scheme for gradually widening and regrading this busy thoroughfare. This involved re-aligning the road to a standard width of 60 feet and raising the level at some points by as much as 2′3″.
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