Quality Control at ALL Levels of Road Construction

LEVELS First, what are the various “levels” in our industry? At the top is Mr. John Q. Public. He is in the driver’s seat, in more ways than one. As taxpayer and voter he is our boss, as well as the user of our product. Under him our industry may be split into two main categories—Public Domain, or the various governmental agencies, and Private Enterprise, which includes the contractor, the material suppliers, equipment manufacturers, and the consultants. Under Public Domain the three principal levels are the customary national, state and local, i.e., county and municipal. Actually, there should be four levels since there is a world of difference between our big, relatively rich units such as the County of Baltimore, or the New York Port Authority, and the more numerous smaller organizations throughout our country which are responsible for many miles of rural roads, residential and city streets. We must not lose sight of the fact that our villages, boroughs and the majority of our counties have some real problems in road construction and maintenance, which must normal­ ly be handled with inadequate facilities and finances. At all levels of Public Domain, however, we have both the legisla­ tive and the executive branches. At the national level Congress estab­ lishes the broad policies and appropriates the funds, delegating execution of the program to the Department of Commerce which, in turn, delegates administration to the Federal Bureau of Public Roads. As you know, the Bureau is departmentalized into various functions at Washington level, with administration in the field conducted through Regional and District Offices. In turn, road construction at state level involves a legislative function for broad policy and appropriation purposes and an executive function through a State Highway Department charged with getting the job done. Other political subdivisions—the county, the parish, the munici­ pality, etc.—also have their counterpart of a legislative and an executive function. Each element of Public Domain thus has its political seg­