Thus Mr. Hanna points out that as between a material that can be cleaned for 15 cents and one that can be cleaned for 30 cents, there is a difference of $3.15 per mile for cleaning, a difference of $15.75 per week, or $630 per season of 40 weeks—$6,300 in ten years. In Mr. Hanna’s judgment cleaning costs can be greatly reduced by a policy of prompt repair. He believes in the continual patrol of all city streets by men whose duty it is to discover defects in pavement and prescribe repair.
Schedule of Street Cleaning
The unit work must be established and the responsibility of each employee fixed in order to secure an economical administration of street cleaning. This principle is illustrated by the so-called “block system.” By this, each man is allotted to a definite area of pavement to clean, which varies in extent depending upon local conditions as to traffic, physical condition of pavement, location of street, proximity to public buildings, population, paving, alleys, street cars, right of way and frontage of streets.
It is the practise of up-to-date cities to prepare schedules showing the character of pavement, area of pavement, number of cleanings or patrols per week, and the standard of work required of each street cleaner. Changes in these schedules are necessary from time to time on account of climatic conditions, street repair and other necessities. The Chicago Civil Service Commission says that to obtain definite standards of schedules for cleaning streets and alleys and the need of repairing such streets, the routing of teams and vehicles, collecting of city waste, the amount and character and physical condition of all pavements must be obtained.
Pavements are usually classified according to physical character for the purpose of determining the amount and character of cleaning as follows:
Improved—Permanent (a) Smooth pavements, including asphalt, creosote block and bitulithic. (b) Rough pavements, including brick, granite, cobble and rubble and other pavements which require that dirt be picked from interstices.
Improved—Not permanent. All macadam pavements and country roads.
Unimproved pavements. All streets that have not been paved.
The oiling of macadam within the past few years has had an excellent effect on this kind of pavement and has given it the solidity and usefulness almost approaching improved permanent pavements. On macadam surface streets, periodical removal of rough material with hoes, brooms and shovels from street surface and gutters and sprinkling in dry weather with water or oil is about the best that can be done. An analysis in Chicago of the standard of work which one man can perform on an oiled macadam street, indicates that the rate of cleaning one and three-quarters miles of oiled macadam of average width in an eight hour day can be reasonably expected of any man.