Evening Star Newspaper, February 12, 1928, Page 91

THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, FEBRUARY 12 11928—PART 7. District Traffic Bureau Is a Clearing House for Auto Drivers BY GEORGE H. DACY. VERY day is “trouble day" at the District Traffic Bureau. For Washington is constantly hatching out new crops of would-be motorists, and to ma- ture these fledglings into seasoned driv- ers who understand and abide by the local traffic reguiations is no smlll‘ task. And then there are thousands of | trafic signs of many different kinds to | make and maintain in proper positfons, | and miles of street marks and safety zones to keep painted, not to mention | the street parades which have to be! prepared for. Cars involved in acci- | dents must be inspected. Brakes are | tested. Headlamps of the many thou- | sand cars which operate under District | licenses are cxamined and adjusted | properly. Today the traffic problems of a city of one-half a million people | are more complex than international treaties. | The drivers of local motor cars and trucks should rank among the best- schooled operators in this country if | the efforts of the Traffic Bureau to make them such are a terion by which to score Director Harland and his aides 0 are doing their bost to fron all the wrinkles from Washington's gasoline travel, a Job of a magnitude comparable to the feat of flving from earth to Mars The improvements in the current system of moldimg noviiiates into com- petent drivers are outsianding. For- merly it was a simpler matter for the new candidate to obtain a beginner's driving permit. All he had to do was to apply at the Trafic Bureau and take it away with him. Which meant that each day the number of “prac- ticing™ drivers, accompanied by in- structors, who used the public strects s a school increased. Logically. the cident and collision records soared under such a system. Unskilled drivers with their authorized beginner's per- mits added new menaces to moior travel in Washington At_preseat eonditions have changed fo: the better. 1f you apply for a be- ner’s permit to operate an automo- the District, before the card is must demonstrate your competen This practical demonstra- tion takes the guise of an oral exam- ination on the District traffic regula- | tions. The Trafic Burcau provides thes~ litle text books for your study. When you have “bucked up” sufficiently on the rules you return to the Traffic Eureau ready for the verbal test. An officer in civilian clothes sits down opposite you at a small table. He fires quesilons at you about the tratfic rules. Anywhere from 8 to 10, 12 or more queries. He grades you on your replies. If you pass the test. you are | supplied with a beginner's permit. If | you fail. the examiner kindly, but firmly. tells you to return to your study of the regulations. “Come back and try egain when you have learned the rules,” he seys. % % INCE this system hes been in effect traffic accidents caused by inexperi- enced drivers have fallen off appre- ciably The “green” operators now are required to know she traffic laws tore they steer their gas-propelled v hicles cut on the streets and avenues. Their familiarity with what they are supposed to do and what are the rights of the oncoming drivers has curtailed accidents. Last year the Traffic Bureau | issued 13.890 learners’ permits. | The new candidate for a driver's per- | mit has to undergo vislon, color identi- | fication and reading tests in proving | his fitness a5 a prospective automobtle cpcrator. The eye tesis, in particular, erc important, for the man or woman and has not had | vision corrected by | s, 15 & menace to safe driving. optomotry tests made at the | reau are short and simple. | eni in the deiection of those | X ht is beiow par. During | the last six months of 1927 22.465 of these vision tests were made son under test stands 20 feet from the opometric charts. The examiner near- | b.. means ¢f control cords, changes ; 19+ iliuminated eye charts as he wishes. | 1f the candidjte passes the standard eve tests which demonstrate normal v the exeminer shifts the exami- nation 1o the appliances used in t detection of color blindness. Approxi- mately 8 of e 1,000 examined are aMicted with vision not corrected by glasses !, on thc other hand. the eve tests ing to light vislon defects, the per- son 18 referred to professional optome- h for complete examination® Thirty-five members of the District of Columbia Optometric Society have vol- teered their free services for such tests. he applics can select which one of these experts he will visit for an eye examination. The optometrist reports subsequently to.the Traffic Bureau con- cerning the condition of the candidate's vision. If glasses will correct the de- 1rct, the applicant is required to securc them. Eventually when he revisits the “Traffic Bureau wearing his glasses and passes his second eye examination, his permit is marked “restricted to operate only while using proper giasses 1o cor- roct defective vision ™ The color tests consizt in the identi- cation of different colored lights such #s are used on the automatic electri- fied traffic signals. Amber, green and red ligh's are flashed In sequence and the applicant is required to identify each ligi by color and to explain what the different colors stand for, #< red 1 stop, green o go and amber tre caution and change signal. Cases ©f oolor biindness apparently are very Tare. as Jess than one dozen applicants have been denjed operators’ permit: curing the last 1), ycars because of | Bome memorize the such sliments sequencs ‘n which the street change and repeat this order as 1z at the Traflic Bureau are fore them They fall in the test be- cause tne indoor Jights have a different enor rotation. Color dumbness 15, how- ever, rether prevalent s the appli- cants for & permits. This tnabil- signals | the test fashed T) sty 10 ide colors is confined o the and ignorant who apply 760 permission W drive aubo- mobtles in the District. It is diffcult for the most of us 1o belleve that Lhere sre hund: ot adults in Washington Country Now Joined by Tel BY GLORGE PORTER JTH e opening of tran - wilantic Ar e rervice | between the Uniied Stete y i 4 telephonics 1689, com sed with Ciba Merien were switehiaras of i I3 yewr. anad wefore JYZB was 1wo yoont e ol Beigium. Mollara snd O wiltin the 1 of Uncle * s now ally pok gent Gk chould e Y Ao s, Uy Pk up the re<y ver o e White Houws 0 \alk 1o L Gomge i Lapidon, Eing plbert ) b1 v Curen Wibhslming 1 The Hegue Presiacn Windenburg i Berlin v Gen Willingdn, n Olvaws, Presi- | cent Musnann i Mavens or Pres | acnt Cuiles . Mesion Gty Or b | could el o sny one of Uee yulers v e otiers istened VeV DL PrEvent 81y eurh prio- coauie bul b Ui event of & greve i Ver) stionsl eriie w conterence of Uil wnt would e entiiely feasibhle Ya ponstbilities rown open by hiese Wnternstione) Suee el the Smoginution Bob i) fally reannection of eighi comuirier by telephone e B0 8chieve Faent Uhst enlaiges \he common Jife, Diplomatic | Accidents Decrease Because Drivers Must Be Skilled Before Permits Are Granted--High School Students Have Excelled in Road Tests—Ten Thousand Applicants Rejected Last Year—Traffic Signs and Silent P8licemen. who cannot identify red and green | The per- and amber by names and color, but such is the case. % x ¥ | THE reading tests have brought :to light similar lack of fundamental | education. Some of the candidates for permits are unable to read and under- | stand the various trafiic signs hinged | against the and shifted this way | or that during the test by the examiner “Detour” £1gns especially are stumblin blocks; while “Closed.” “No parking, “Do not_enter,” and “One way street” | are the Waterloos of others [ The District school authorities are co-operating with the Trafic Bureau | in the training of applicants who are unable to read the various traffic signs which speckle the curbside and street: throughout the District. Those wk “flunk” the reading test are sent to| night school at several of the junior | high schools, where they are given frec | instruction in reading. After they have mastered the American language 50 that they can read, they are permitted | to return to the Trafc Bureau for re- | tests. Only 5 or 6 out of 1,000 appli- | cants fail on the original reading test. | There are 286 licensed Instructors in the District at present who are quali- fied to teach hezinners how to drive motor cars. These instructors win | “teaching permits” only after passing severe examinations. These teachers have a fixed rate of pay for lessons, the usual charge being $3 an hour They furnish the machines for the lessons. Generally their “practice grounds” are the outlying strects where the traffic is minimum. They teach their pupils how to start, stop, drive, Y ol reverse and turn the automobtle around ]'p'l::‘ ) They also inform the scholars ebout signaling when making turns, when about to stop or when, starting out from the curb. At the expiration of the 30-day period for which the beginners’ permits are bse sued the newly schooled orivers are required to report at the Traflic Bu- reay for a practical road test For- merly policemen examiners in uniform sccompanied the epplicants on these runs through the congested sections of the city. This plan was unsatisfactory and the six examiners who test the skl of new drivers now wear civillan clothes o) Mnny drivers fat'ed I the eatly tests because they were the vietims of & curi- endows man with a new power snd gives promise of even better things come-— planetary ntercourse, perhaps Buch & suggestion may seem far- fetched today, but certainly 1 s no | more of u dream than the iden of trans- | mitting speech from Mexico City w The | 1 Haugue would Lave been 100 years ago T pulls out from skill in driving {stops on signal, reverses, turns around and docs everything else that the in- structor requires ble. | tended N B SPECTOR ROWN. ous psychology. It proved too much {of a mental hazard for them to tempt to drive when a uniformed police man accompanied them. |apparently are police-uniform shy. Fur thermore, other drivers on the street who met or passed a car in which a po. liceman in uniform was riding accord r_extraordinary trafic privi- at- Some driver rd Trac policemen sometimes ex- unusual courtesies vehicle when they recognized a brother officer as one of the occupants, to such a | MRYROROLTAN POLICE DESWRTMENT CFFICIAL HEADLIGHT TEST The road test consists of a drive for he lency driver, of the on 10 or 15 minutes office -examiner during which the tests the “driving pro- applicant order, Lthe thoroughly starts the car curh, shows his through dense traffc, In some cases the drivers are so nerv- us W heen War hen in they begin the tests that their hands shake #nd their knees trem- ‘The examiners use common sense upon the telephone as A war-preven- tion device that had today's complete, continent-covering system of telephones existence prior there would hive been no war to the Civil Commerelally the advantages of the international line are self-evi- went | dent | the lntest ext Historieally 1t ston of the world's In s of Interest an And certain, o, It 15 that the possl- Lillty of geting in touch with our | ternitionsl telephone service celertinl neighbons by means of w i | LA W sny one of them I8 not now was In 18RS, seven years after given werions considergtion, for Jenders of scientific thought are of 1 optnion thst i planetary Wtercourse 1 0 be wecomplished at all, 1t Wil come: | ¥ Urough vome method of communication | % h"‘,:,‘“,‘,""'“”"” by snna |yt Politically the porsibtiitics of the new |G e Bewehiig Gerimay, Wken oo | Jusction with those wlieady Wnking six | U D other couniies W the United Bl Jusve been made the basis of prophecies | of \he most optimistic nature. Miny profess W see I Lhem i imeans of pre- cerving pence sid Promoung beller uis derctanding, echolng Uie senthments of Frestdent Calles, exprersed sl the Ume | the Mexdenn Jine was opened Thie evenl hus w beneficisl effect [ ana will undoubledly mprove inter vatnal relations between Mexioo and he United Bvates, for it 1s & well known thing thet closer relations wnd greater | comprenension of aifficulties nsturally veuch b fayor of the Tespective govern ments " I Whis connection 14 hss bheen point - ( ed oul repeatedly by Uwse whi Juok h heing | 1 that the and (e telephone Alexunder Graham Bell had spoken the first words ever heard over w wire, thit s e was run from Brownsyille JusL wcross | Mexico which In mny Innguage, began i soglish=-Hpanish . conversations But that was only a “short-distance” i1 was an International one, and the Dist resl “long-distunce” Uinternational Hne wes eut dinto wervice 11 JHBY hetween the United Htates and Cuanndas. 1t was quite appropriste and natura) should Canada ireat world 1n he the first Hhe muilion and a half elephones i Interconnected a bl million miles of wire, teprenent 122 nstruments for every 100 people whille the 18,000,000 telephones i the United Blates, 000,006 instruments for Bittahn these two countries, which lead telephone developiment fiterconnected miles of wire, every the per cupita telaphone development, has thus connected hy three ana by 81 represent 1007 poprlation third country i L) [to attempt | improving the automobile driving situa- | teats after they FREE TEST HEADLAMP ADJUSTMENTS when they meet such persons. Usually | the officer, noticing that the driver is unduly excited and nervous, will say, “Pull In to the curb for a_minute and et's calm down a bit. This fan't a matter of life or death or anything to | get flustered about.” Occasionally the |examiner will advise the driver to take a short smoke and quiet his excited ine hefore the test Is resumed. On the other hand, the business of trying to blufl these police examiners gels you nowhere. ‘They know their “ontons,” or rather driving rules and ‘They are adept In It doesn't pay business with pride in trafic regulations. “rpotting” the cheaters. any funny them. They take personal tlon around the Natlonal Capital by making sure that new drivers merit the full privileges of an operator's permit before they are awarded such cards. | Pt ()10 people who arpire o drive motor cnrs are particutarly persistent in leaming back dgain and again for re- but three Instruments for each group of 100 citizens. Once the horder line between the United tates and Canada had been reduced to w mere geographical diviston ad fur as telephoning was concerned, Amoricw’s enterprising engineers turned thelr attention to the problem of bring- g Cubi within speaking distance of the United Hiates Atter years of study and experimentn ton, three submarine oables, each 110 s I length and costing a total of 000, were lald betweon Key Wes the miles #1.600 and Mavana, Theno cablen are Jongest of their kind in the world cepl at the terminals, they are nev n miles wpurt. They welgh 3,500,000 pounds, and I some places arve ap- proximitely & mile under water, I which position they are subject to ¢ pressire of mhout @ lon per square neh Kach of the eabloa can transmit one telephone message and - sev Marse telegraph messages at the same tme, The fnAUGUIANK these cables on April 11, 1071, was accompanted by im- pressive ceremonies and unique tele- phonte demonstration. At 5:30 In the afternoon Prostdent Harding, (ogether with the members of his cabinet and several hundred invited guests, inelud- ng dllnlnmnu reprosenting 39 forelyn prlen, ansembled I (he Pan-Ameri- can Bullding, while at the same hour similar distinguished gathering, hended by President Menncal of Ouba, convened 1 the office of the Ouban- it gives the applicant ample opportu- nity for added practice and also enables him to recover from the excitement of his first practical examination in run- ning an automobile along the broad highway. The examiners travel six different routes in the driving tests. thl’el route of each man being changed dally. One of the chief executives of the New York City Traffic Department re- cently spent several days in Washing- ton inspecting the activities of the lo- cal bureau. This official came to the | Nationai Capital after a round-up trip | to many of the leading Eastern and Middle Western cities. After a detailed investigation of the District Trafic Bu- | reau, he ranked it a8 the best now In |operation in the United States. His analysis was made from the standpoint of all-around efficiency. There we | certain aspects of the work in whic, |other cities excelled Washington, but {on the general average the local bireau | eclipsed its assoclates, according to his statement. The curtafiment in accidents and deaths demonstrates that the reforms now standardized in the District Traf- {fic Bureau are meritorious. Last year, | the total traffic accidents amounted to 3,144, as compared with 4,928 the pre- vious 12 months, a decrease of over 30 per cent. During the same period traf- fic deaths fell about 10 per cent. There were 36,128 persons arrested for traffic | violations during the last fiscal year and the great majority of them were fined or given prison sentences. ¥ x % % | | IT isn't all hard work and monotonot repetition at the Trafic Bureau. f | every once in %o often something ludi- crous occurs which gives the force an | opportunity for a hearty laugn. For | example, a colored man appeared st the headquarters not so long ago who | had had his driver’s permit revoked because of a major traffic violation And he does not understand yet why everybody laughed when he said. askin’, boss. how long before you'all is | through provokin' my permit.” | In replying to the examiner's inquiry concerning how close he could legally park his car to a fire plug, an applicant replied, “Not nearer than 1000 feet.” | The authorities forthwith decided that it would be difficult for the man to ifind a stopping place for his car in | Washington, so they refused to issue a | permit | "Not to mention thoss who translate a “detour” sign as meaning “go” and a “closed” sign as meaning “stop.” The “caution” sign to many signifies either “comscience” or “kosher” The word “nationality” on the application blank |is a remarkable “poser.” 1t draws such ritten replies as “gentile,” ‘Baptist.” “Protestant” and so on | One lady when asked what the would do in case of an accident hesitated a moment and then replied. “I'd get ready to be called a fool and then would apologize.” Which is not exactly the procedure required by District law. It is only after you “listen in" on a few of the traffic examinations and watch the road tests from the curb that you can comprehend why 10,740 of the 30434 applicants for drivers’ permits during the last 12 months were refused. This small Army of “rejects” is now studying road regulations, car operation, and having its eyes improved by giasses with hopes of better luck | when its members will trek once more the well marked trail which leads to the Traffic Bureau During the last fiscal year the free headlamp testing station operated in the rear of the Trafiic Bureau examined the lights on 5,071 Dis; . The headlamps on only ese motor cars complied fully with the local regulations. All the other lights needed focusing, adjustment or repair. If these cars are representative of the 90.000 machines now owned and operated in | Washington the headlamps of 97.6 per cent are dangerous to other cperators because of glare and blinding beams in the approac] driver's It takes less than five minutes to stop at the test station and have the headlamps on your machine examined and adjusted. Every time a new bulb |is placed in a lamp such readjustment is necessary. This is a safetv measure that eliminates certain hazards of night driving which every auto owner should utilize. Approximately one-fifth of the headlights tested provide insufficient l- | lumination for the driver to have full visibility of the road ahead. Last vear the brakes on 464 automo- biles. many of which were involved in traffic accidefts, were also tested. A small device placed on the floor of the | car registers the efficiency of the brakes during driving and stopping tests. Ap- proximately four out of every 10 of these machines were equipped with de- fective brakes. the majority of which needed relining. These cars were un- safe to operate on District streets ana avenues. There are probably thou- mdi&!hmngdm’ x? the District to- ¥ which need similar inspectio: mechanical rehabilitation i |, In an effort to prevent commercial trucks from transporting illegal bur- dens which exceed the maximum loads authorized to travel District streets the Trafe Bureau has stopped vehicles tn various parts of the D t and Jected them to locometer tests. ‘The lodometer is an accurate device which weighs the trucks and their cargoes. Sixteen trucks out of 50 examined were found to be overloaded Overburdened motor trucks not only wear District streets prematurely but they menaces to trafic in that the: liable to break down due to overia and cause accldents . xow o l URING recent months the Trafic Bureau has weighed every piece of fire-fighting apparatus in the District to make sure that these vehicles were VISION, COLOR. andl | | | {original road tyals. |during the recent year | fourscore years In age. eiting experience for most 50 3 have exi It s an ex- of them this task of piloting a car in & driving | test under police napection One gen- tleman 85 years dropped dead in the |'TraMe Bureau last Summer after com- American ‘Telephone Havana, of the guests I bo with headsets 1 heard Col. € dent of the Amerioan ‘1 announee that they wer In length, from Havana, € entablishy tance Ve trnnsmbaton Catalinn Inland, he e connected with the main with Key West, Fla, by under the sea The wives tnvolved, it stralght 1ne, wii reach from London cutta, or, If exton nglon, would pans thy Central Amerloan count LR points, Col. Onrty & he would “eall the voll," saying: "Hello, Havana Tnstantly, In & fashior came the answer Ouba. Batterthwaite Then, one by one, { Company, explatied, I, Col. Carty aanert to Peking or Oals aonth from Waah- ith cltles were hrough which wraph Co., speaking from Waahington connected t # wire-cable-vadio clreuit, 5500 mile b, to Cata- W Island, Calif, and tat this elreutt A n new record for long-dis was land by radio telephone, the continent was erossed by Jund wires, some of Which, i the nelgh borhood of Denver, Colo, ahove sea lovel, and Cuba wis unlted were & mile vable a wile extended In ¢ the nto ough all ries and Houth America as far as Peru, l AVINQ briefly touched upon thess nnounced that and bogan by v that seemed uneaniy to the Washington audience, “This I Havanna, king othier operas | have fafled on the | pleting the test and being presented A number of th with his driver's permit Youngsters from 16 to 18 vears old wually are the best dri who pass through the mill. They learn quickiy and generally develop shortl” into pro- fictent drivers because of love of the operation. High school boys and glrls ordinarily win their permits on the first READING GAGE AFTER BRAKE TEST. | ROt too heavy to traverse all the local bridges without lability of causing J:' - :1;~m.1 du:flu\ overioad. The invesiiga- | Hon proved that the dn::ug trial. They handle high-pow-|in use are strong :n-‘n ered motor cars with the skill of the | date the heaviest t well-trained taxicab operator and bus | District dfml’!‘m‘fl?{" ST driver | A corps of 20 mechanics manufas In case a candidate falls on his initial | MANY thousand trafc signs driving test. tha District regulations re- | Spectal shops operated by the Tram 'quire that he wait for three davs be- Bureau, while they also paint about fore he teturns and applies for a sec- 170000 feet of whi n ctreet éphone With Seven Other tors along the coast from Key West to New York and across the continent to Lo Angeles, anawered as thelr stations were called Finally, a8 a theilling climax, came the words: “This i Cata- I Ialand, Calif. Spicer speaking.” Col. Carty then dir S will ask vou (o talk o Havana" and “stood by versed, wa follows Hello Hploer, vou are to Hovana 19 you hear mel Yea Cleanly “Whete I3 Cataling Ialand located “Catalinn Taland fs located - the Pactfie Ocenn, about 30 miles west of Long Heneh, Calit. Where 1s Havana located Ihe nudi talking plied - UHavana s located 11 miles aonth of Koy Weat, Fla." Following this demonstration, the tn- atrumenta were turned over to Preal- denta Harding and Menoval, who ex- ohanged official greetings and were followed as 1s the custom on such ovoas slons, by brief conversations botween other officiala of the two conntries ‘The 15,000,000 telephonea on this alde of the Atlantlo were made acves- siblo to the 1400,000 tn Creat Hiltaln and northern lreland early last yoar with the opentig of the flrst trana- atlantio telophone service on_ January 7, when President Walter 8. Qiftord of the Amerioan Telephone & ‘Telegraph Co. i New Vork, talked with Hiv P Evelyn (. Murray of the Hritish Post Ofice Department, I London, wn (he (wo distant operators con- | | tals, e i Washington laughed, | but the operator i Cubi serlously ve- | ond. fest. This system works well, as - markings and safety so The details of that oceaston are still fresh in the public mind and the T-mile | wave antenna, the 2-foot amplifying tubes, the supersensitive receiving aps | paratus and other remarkable instrus | ments which are used i that “line” | have all been repeatedly deseribed 1t was the completion of the line be« tween Lavedo. Tex. and Metieo Clty (hat made posaible the vital cord k= g the Mexiean and American capls | 35T miles apart, on- September | Of 1ast year There was no dvamae | toll calling” on that oceaston, and one ar mare points in each and every clty, town or place with one Or more points in each and every other city, town and place 1 the United States. and in Canada and Mexteo: and also, by cable or other ADpropriate means. with the rest of the known world ‘ Those were brave words at a fime when the telephane was considered o have reached the ultimate lmit of its usefullness by cartving & wice 300 miles, but evidently the poneers i the new industry had dgundiess faith jand confidence i thetr Bevice The Phrase “other appropriate means” s proot of that, and incidently those words have turned out to de mast fors tunate, for radio, the higgest fackor W the connection with England and the continent can come under this classis fleation The u‘:nm. af the line to the Neth- erlands s the last specific provision of the charter of 40 years ago to be ful- Alled, but the dwwr (o development re- maAls wite open. far there are suill many partions of “the known worid" atill unconnected Another Mak W the ukrhum e that b fast binding the world eloser together will fn all proba- bUIY be added I the not very distant future, for 1t has already been an- nounced that other tpartant cities of Burope will be added to the New York- tle the cercmontes attendant upon the in- auguration of Mexteo into the “tel phonte entente cordiale” have also | been fully and trequently reported ! The new line o the Netherlands s | another wive-cable-radio - combination, the calls belug routed by vadio via Lon- don and then through the submarine cable under the English Channel to the Netherlands. 1t will coat 7823 for & Washinglon subsoriber to talk to polnta i the Netherlands for (hiee wminutes, and $26.23 for every minute additional The rate 1o Landan s $73 for the first three minutes, and $33 for every min. Ute thereafter. The overseas “lines™ vperate only tn the daytime, calls bee g accepted from 7 30 am W & pm, eastern atandard tme. M view af the recent achievements I international telephony, the charter of the American Telephone & Tele- | Landun-The Hague aystem, making Eraph Oo, granted In 1885, seema to | posaible verbal communication between Bave been prophetio, for thiough 1t the Fan even greater number of the fers ounpany gatned permisaion “lo connect of the warld In case of an emergency.