Evening Star Newspaper, October 6, 1929, Page 83

THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, OCTOBER 6, 1929—PART 4. In the Motor World ADAMS HOWARD. BY G. S was to have been expected, ot William H. Harland, direc- tor of traffic, is not in ac- cord with the recent traffic survey and recommendations made by J. Rowland Bibbins, consulting engineer, which was forwarded to the traffic council for its edifica- tion. While Mr. Harland is apprecia- tive of the magnitude of the work undertaken by Mr. Bibbins and his sincerity of purpose, he is of the opinion that it does not represent | an accurate compilation of local conditions and existing needs. The director of traffic states that the table of speeds attained on various streets is far below the average running time experienced by most drivers. Questions Speed Average. According to Mr. Harland, Mr. Bibbins admitted to him that his check-up was the result of leisure motoring with no attempt to pass any machines, even at a legal rate of speed. If Mr. Bibbins had done this, Mr. Harland stated, the engi- neer's table would have shown a much higher rate. Mr. Harland’s views do not coin- cide with Mr. Bibbins’' in regard to the time required for pedes- higher than a year ago, but the increase is less than the national average. “These three cities are examples of fact finding plus action. “In each case the city has spon- sored an elaborate survey of traffic |and then has acted to improve facilities and regulations. “There is no value in compiling |a beautiful report and then plac- | ing it on the shelf. Similarly there |is "little merit in building new streets and making new ordinances |unless one has used scientific methods to learn what is needed. |In San Francisco, for example, | test trips were made on a num- | ber of leading streets to determine | the average miles per hour which could be made in the thick of traffic. “Such a study indicates at a glance which streets are the most congested. Figures were alsc | gathered indicating the number cf seconds delayed on each street. Analysis Necessary. | “There may be many causes of ;de]ay in congested areas but only !a thorough analysis of the traffic will indicate these clearly. The chart showing the traffic com- | pared in downtown Boston is an i1llustration of this point. It de- trians to cross the street in safety. | picts the comparative number cf It would seem that he would limit | trucks in different areas of the the pedestrians’ time in propor-|city. Commercial traffic, for ex- tion to the number of walkers and |ample, is negligible in Boylston automobiles on the streets, Mr.|street but a major problem on Harland declared. This could not |Dock Square. The authorities be done with safely and would may know these conditions in a| compel crossing pedestrians to run | general way without a survey, but | across each intersection if they when hundreds of thousands of would get across before the lights ' dollars of public money are there- changed. | by spent for relief, general knowl- | Another thing Mr. Bibbins would | edge is not adequate. | have, Mr. Harland declared, would | “Similarly the authorities need | be separate timing devices for full data on the actual physical most of the intersections. The |structure of the city. It is not cost involved would make this plan | enough to know that streets are| impossible, the director of traffic narrow and crooked or that there | averred. For example, Mr. Bib- are too many blind corners. - The bins points out that with this plan | city must know the exact dimen- on one street alone traffic could ) sions. Pittsburgh, for example be speeded up one mile an hour. | has this information immediately I have figured the approximate a\'g&%;‘ble.a it i cest out in round figures, and for | When ity has at _han £ allowing an increase of speed of €ngineering and traffic data one mile per hour, the cost to the | (Which must be up to date to be clity would be $60,000. of permanent use) it is then and | | then only in a position to make| Safety Before Speed. |sound regulations and physical “While I believe in speeding up ;,‘,“j{fi;,",{,’:f';‘;: ;le‘?:m;k:jregg]e?vl;;; traffic as far as reasonable, mV iinica] exam: 1eghec'\use there are | first thought is of safety for aii. | t"jeast a dg’zc;\ More (doing Bim= Then, too, I have to consider the j g costs required,” he said. | ilar work. M. O. Eldridge, assistant director | U S of traffic, has returned recently | “qu many ciuzeqs today are from a long motor trip into Can- |$atisfied with the opiate of regu- | ada. Mr. Eldridge was impressed with the number of “no-left-turn” signs he saw in the various cities lation. You cannot make more street space by the mere passing of an ordinance. You can, it is true, make the street somewhat and towns he passed through. “It seems,” hel stated, “th?‘t the ma- jori ce. m neces- J were of x casual nature, but con- | ton IS seen most clearly in deal- troversies over traffic lights are|ing with parking. Let us suppose | certainly not only found in the that all cars are forbidden from | National Capital.” certain streets. That does not Nr) Harland T waiting wnh‘provide space for them. If there interest the installation of traffic lights at Connecticut avenue and| Albemarle street. Although held | up by last week's rain, it is/ thought likely that this week will | see them in operation. Consider- able pressure has been brought to begr to have the speed limit on Chnnecticut avenue restored to | 30 miles an hour. It was reduced | to 22 some time ago following a fatal accident. Mr. Harland ex- pressed himself as being favorable to inereasing the speed again, but said he would not make any {;commendatlon at the present me. more safe by making traffic more orderly, yet this is only a tempo- Tape for Markers. Tape, said to be self-vulcanizing, : is being tried out by the Traffici Bureau to ascertain its economy over the steel discs now being used to mark the various crossing lanes. The metal markers were thought too expensive at first over the white painted lines and not much | more durable. Lately, however, it is believed they are satisfactory and thore have been ordered and placed. Much has been said concerning different inventions of traffic light signals, which change when an automobile approaches the inter- section, due to pressure of weight or vibrations. Success of these present novelties has not yet been proved. There is one installed for ex- | perimental purposes in Baltimore out Charles street. It has been re- garded more or less as a joke, but is still allowed to stand. The in- tersection, normally, is not one of great traffic and so any temporary lapse of the equipment is of no great importance. The other night a party was re- turning from one of the Maryland country clubs. The driver of the automobile approached the inter- section from a side road, drew his car up toward what appeared like a microphone attached to a pole, stopped and honked vigorously. Nothing happened. The light re- mained green for Charles street traffic—and there was none—and ominously red for cross traffic, which the one car totaled all. Something was wrong, either the “microphone” was not in tune to the Baltimore car, or was peev- ish, tired or something. The driver got out, walked up to the signal and in no uncertain tones bawled out, “Oh, go to the devil,” or words to that import. In- stantly the light changed, seem- ingly aroused over such a rebuke, or maybe it recognized its master’s voice. The driver got back into his car and the ride into the Monumental City continued. Anent Traffic Relief. An interesting treatise on ascer- taining traffic relief is given in the monthly bulletin of the National Automobile Chamber of Com- merce, published in New York City. “One bridge is worth a thousand regulations,” says Robert P. Pagc, jr., member of the street traffic committee of the N. A. C. C.,, who continues, “The bridge across San Francisco Bay from San Francisco to Alameda is an example of America’s discovery that facts and facilities will solve traffic. | “san Francisco has the proud record of reducing its motor fatal- _ities 30 per cent under last year. Boston, which already had a low record, is also somewhat under last year's total. In Pittsburgh the number of fatal accidents oc- curring within the city are slightly h S 14th Street ing at low speeds. Peerless. RESTRAINING THAT IMPULSE . TO YOUR GUEST’S DARLING is room on nearby streets for parking or if there are public or private parking lots or buildings near at hand then the regulation may be a help. But if the parking demand exceeds the existing facil- ities, then new construction is the only valuable answer. “In this fact-finding program we must not neglect the study of human nature and of accident data which are closely related. Some authorities believe that the unprotected nature of our roads with many intersections is the greatest cause of accidents, others contend that it is the heedless- ness of human nature. These points of view are merely two aspects of the same situation. Certain it is that the training of drivers and the education of school children can do a great deal toward improving the quality | of attentiveness to traffic. W.A. T. A. Meeting. The Washington Automotive Trade Association will hold its first meeting of the season tomor- Ec;wbnlght at 8 o'clock at the City ub. STRANGLE 7 7 355 1 -BY FRANK BECK fEel W///////I///////é 7 LEGAL POINT OVER STOLEN CARS | DISTRESSES ENGLISH JURISTS W FITTING PROGRAN LONDON (#).—British motorists and jurists are becoming not a little con- cerned over the question of how to dis- tinguish between the theft of an auto- of one. Under English law it 1s impossible to convict a person of larceny without proving not only that the property in question was fraudulently taken, but that it was the taker’s intention to de- prive the owner permanently thereof. mobile and the unauthorized borrowing | | it it can be proved he did not furnish gas and oil at his own expense. It is highly irritating to the motorist who had been without his car for 48 hours to have to listen to an argument over whether the man who took it was acting “animo furandi” or merely “cepit et asportavit” the automobile from its alleged resting place beside the curb. So there is a growing demand for amendment of the existing law. Meanwhile it is possible for the vic- The culprit in whose possession the | timized owner, if he wants to go to the missing car is found need only declare, “I didn't steal it; I only went for a | joyrider—to sue him for the inconven- So far, however, no such case has come to prove him a liar. ‘ into court. Police Court cases show the “borrow- ing” habit is on the increase, and mag- et Tates have frankly admitted that a : strict_interpretation of the law does Test for Dragging Brakes. not_permit bench or jury to assume | Here's a way to find out whether that “theft was in the mind” of the your brakes are dragging: Speed up person who ran off with the car. to 30 miles and hour on & smooth, level Unless there is evidefice to show he | road. Then shift to neutral and let the liked it well enough to keep it indefi- |car coast. When the speedometer nitely or definitely planned o sell it as | shows 25 miles an hour take out your | Joot, there is small chance of convict- | watch. If the car is not rolling five ing him of anything worse than the ' miles an hour or faster at the end of peity theft of a little gasoline and oll— one minute have the brakes inspected. CCRL Peerless Supreme Uur. edan '1;95—:]1 prices at at P in the Thousand-Dollar-Field 9 Unafraid to be different—there you have the key to Peerless progress, to Peerless supremacy in the thousand-dollar-price-field. Peerless is as different as day is from night—dares to be different and dares to be new. Peerless, on the threshold of its thirtieth year, now pro- duces this great New' Six as its Jubilee Car. § Riding the flood tide of popular national appeal, sweeping all before it, the 1930 Peerless “61-A” Jubilee Six brings you values ten months ahead of the industry—values that forced other makers to slash their prices overnight. zoBig Motor (3-34" bore) with 7-bearing crankshaft— seventy miles an Peerless-Stromberg’s New Assimilating Carburetion stops buck- 9 Peerless Mono-Control (coactive) one-hand operation of the entire car—the nearest -Kpro-ch to the “Robot” the industry as produced. § Ventilated Cran bearings at high speeds, no lubricating oil dilution. § Latest type bodies in New Colors with New French Interior—a veritable drawing room on wheels—just match this Peerless interior with any $2,000 car you have in mind. 9 Peerless is the car of New Beauty and New Distinction, fashionable, swanky, smart. Peerless gives more—costs less — watch Roadster $995, Coupe case to cool the oil—no burned-out $1095, Victoria $1145, Six Passe: factory. PEERLESS, CLEVELAND. PEERLESS MOTOR COMPANY A FACTORY BRANCH Decatur 3400 trouble, to bring civil action against the | ride,” and it is up to the prosecution | ience and mental distress he has caused. | OPEN MOHAWK TRAIL | On saturday, September 28, the Mo- hawk Trail, which has just been re- | constructed at @ cost'of more than a | million dollars, was reopened with ap- propriate ceremonies to traffic, reports the Automobile Club of America, New York City. The ceremonies were held on Whit- comb Summit, and the participants in- cluded representatives of Franklin and | Berkshire Counties, which the famous highway links; high officials of the | State Government, townspeople from the surrounding localities and tourists | who had so arranged their itineraries to take advantage of the opportunity to_go over the new road. While the whole stretch of road ex- | tending from Boston to Willlamstown, | route No. 2, is often referred to as the | from the confluence of the Deerfield | and Cold Rivers to the town of North Adams, and this been widened and rebuilt. | original motor car. Your Hupmobile dealer LUTTRELL MOTOR CO. 2921-23 M Street N.W, Decatur 3999 BY H. CLIFFORD BROKAW. Schools and.colleges are opening their doors to millions of students in the | early Autumn and the automobile is in- creasingly a factor in the carrying of the vast educational system as it ob- tains in the United States. To begin a discussion of this topic it should be stated that the Summer vacation can- not be entirely disassociated from the school year. It is the period during which students and professors recuper- ate from a strenuous season of study and get in splendid physical and men- tal condition for another period of edu: cational effort. In this connection the automobile has been of tremendous service. It has been the medium of vacation transpof- tation for endless thousands of students and teachers. It has carried them everywhere and brought them back to their studies refreshed and ready to get down to the business of learning and in.parting knowledge. ‘When the public schools open through- out the United States there is mobilized a large number of automobile busses for the purpose of carrying children to and from their school buildings. Due to the fact that the automobile is available it has been possible for many of the smaller district schools to abandon their inferior buildings and have their pupils carried to’ larger centers of learning. ‘While the automobile may appear to be sounding the death knell of the little red schoolhouse, the virtues of which patriotic orators have given themselves | to extolling, nevertheless, there are great advantages from the standpoint of the | coneentrating them in larger school | buildings. In these larger places they | naturally have at their disposal much better equipment and the quality of the | instruction is higher, since the larger schools can afford to pay higher salaries. | Larger School Methods. | 'The larger schools also enable the children to get the instruction of spe- clalists, rather than being taught the | whole range of grammar school subjects | by one or two persons. Consequently, school _ districts is being manifested throughout the Nation. The result of all this is that motor trucks are seen stopping at houses in these outlying | districts to pick up the children and carry them to school. Even if those school districts were not consolidated. the influsnce of the automobile would still be felt in re- ducing the attendance at the smaller district schools. Parents of children realize that there is much advantag> in their offspring having ths benefit of | Most | | the better educational facilities. of these parents own automobiles and | | are willing to drive their children back and forth to school daily over a con- siderable distance in order to give them | the better advantages. There are also improved education of the children in | | this tendency toward consolidation of | b AUTOMOBILE HELD GREAT AID IN PROMOTION OF EDUCATION Stud'ents and Teachers Enabled to Recu- perate From Strenuous Duties in the Out-o0'-Doors—Small Schools Unite. being_eliminated and the larger oncs are taking their places, all of which is made possible by the rapid and con- venient,_transportation furnished by the | autemobile. * Many of the high school students are of an age and in localities | where it is legal for them to drive an iauwmoblle themselves, and their par- ents permit them to use the family car | to_get back and forth from their high | school classes. This same convenience , which is available to the older high | school students is also at the disposal | of all the teachers and members of fac- ulties and other officials. For instance, he work of a county superintendent of chools is greatly increased in effective- ness due to the fact that he can get | around to all parts of the county with | great facility through the use of his | automobile. What applies to these edu- | cators applies in a lesser degree but | substantially, nevertheless, to instruc- |tors who live in the same community |in_which they teach. | There has been a good deal of dis- | cussion as to whether or not college ! students should be allowed to take along |an automobile for use while attending one of these institutions of higher |learning. There are undoubtedly two he | sides to this question. It is quite con- | cetvable, however, that, given the right {kind of student body, which would | be a group of young men coming from | intelligent homes and given college au- | thorities who know how to deal with youth, there should be no unpleasant | complicatjons growing out of a student heving an automobile with him at col- | lege. Auto of Practical Service. 1 have known of college students who | have found an automobile of great prac- | tical service to them in connection with | their college work. At times they used | the car for pleasure purposes, but used at the time a good deal of ordinary |common sense. On the other hand, those young men who take automobiles to college and use them only to get info trouble of one kind or another woyld | doubtless be better off without them. | As a matter of fact, these young men | might be better off without any college education whatsoever. ‘There is one feature of university life which certainly requires the use of hun- "dreds of automobiles. This is their athletic programs. and particularly their | series of foot ball games in the Fall of each vear. Not only does the automo- bile frequently take the players to the field where the game is to be played, but it enables endless numbers of alumni and friends and rooters to see | these big interschool foot ball matches in all parts of the United States. (Coyright. 10201 Record Tourist Traffic. Four wheels and a concrete road ha@ all and more of the old lure for tite vacationist, judging from the amount | now establlsh;d on mc;‘slnhx:sglg-ays [ of tourist traffic over the Susquehanna | public_motor buses in which it is &n | and Horseshoe Trails and through the easy matter for children to get trans- | ity of williamsport, the converging Mohawk Trail, the trail proper extends | Again Hupmobile has produced an respect—beauty, comfort, control, performance—it advances all stand- ards by which motor cars have been judged . . . Today, at Hupmobile salesrooms, this new 1930 Hupmobile Eight is on display. Seeit...ridein it...driveit.. .assoonasyou cando so0. By no flight of imagination can you anticipate the thrill that awaits you. | smaller high schools are gradually | portation from a point near their| '} | homes to a point near their schools. point of these two great Eastern high- | Other Advantages Enumerated. Coming into a_consideration of the ways. The past Summer was the heaviest touring season ever experi- enced. the Lycoming County Automo- is the section that has high school situation, we find that the | bile Club of the American Automobile Assoctation reports. REVOLUTIONARY ... in its new and advanced type of beauty, its extreme comfort and roominess, its velvet- smooth performance. . . its speed of 80 miles an hour. .. and in its sensational low price . 1595 F.0.8. FACTORY And in every Presenting,the new |OO |1.p. HUPMOBILE - EIGHT HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NEW 1930 HUPMOBILE EIGHT 80 miles per hour . . . 100 horse-power. Acceleration from 5 to 50 miles in 16 seconds . . . The first motor car ever designed to present a unit of harmonized beauty. A single style motif is used throughout . . . Dual elimination of vibration by counterweighted cramkshaft ir addidicn gn oibration damper . . . Oil delivered under pressure to 53 points in engine . . . New hydraulic shock absorbers, desp invites you. DISTRIBUTORS ASSOCIATE DEALERS NORTHEAST HUPMOBILE SALES 50 H Stree: N.E. Franklin 3306 cushions, more width, greater comfort. —_— ODY TYPES § Passenger, 4-door Sedan $1595 . . . 4-door Town Seden $1670 . . . Coupe $1595 . . . Comvertible Cabriolet $1670 ««+ 7 Passenger Sport Phaeton $1650. Custom equipment for all models at slight extra cost. All pricesf. o.b. factory. cwmd ~ MOTT MOTORS, Inc. 1518-20 Fourteenth St. N.W.—Decatur 4341-42-43 'CHEVY CHASE MOTORS Bethesda, Md.