An economic comparison of the construction of coastal logging roads by power shovel and tractor

Graduation date: 1965Logging road construction in the coastal regions of British Columbia has always been a difficult and expensive undertaking. The soils are generally ill-suited to road construction, rock outcrops are numerous, and climatic conditions unfavourable. In\ud addition, the mineral soils are overlaid by a heavy layer of partly decomposed organic material. This "overburden" renders conventional tractor and scraper construction methods impractical. For the Port Hardy Forest Development Road it was decided to experiment with three basic methods of construction; the power shovel method, the tractor method and a combination of the two. These methods were tried for nearly two years while accurate cost and production records were kept. A comparison was then made considering only the phases of construction that were affected by the construction method used. Soil types, climatic conditions and the resulting roadway were also considered in the determination of the best method of construction. For the climatic and soil conditions considered, for the machinery\ud used and for the results desired, the most advantageous method of construction was the combination method