The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-06-18
MOTORISTS SHOULD
NOT GET ALL BLAME
Third Of All Arrested Under
Eight Foot Law Drive
Horse Vehicles.
"TAX ROAD USERS ALIKE"
Coffin Thinks All Who Benefit
by Highways Ought to
Pay for Them.

Since the Police Department has been
enforcing tho eight foot lceway ordi-
nance, relating to vehicles passing street
cars. In connection with the campaign
lnstigated by the Safety First Society.
many arrests have been made, but by
no means all are OF motorists. Between
January 1 and April 80 1855 arrests OF
autcmobilists and III arrests OF horse
drawn vehicle drivers We're made.
Most OF the cases naturally wero in
Traffic District G. which In north of
Twenty-thlrd street and south OF Eighty
sixth street from river to river. including
four posts on the greensboro Bridge
plaza, Queens. Here 304 automobile
cases and es horse vehicle cases were
reported Below Twenty-third street in
Manhattan there were 80 horse cases to 25
motor vehicle cases. In Brooklyn there
were 81 horse cases, against 20 OF motor
car operators.
"Soon or later all vehicles. whether
horse or motor driven, must be taxed
for road maintenance" says Howard T..
Coffin. vicc-pres.dent OF the Hudson Mo-
tor Car Company. Appropriations for
road building are being made generally,
but little attention is being paid to finan-
cling a proper road maintenance year after
year.
This subject is pertinent at the pres
ent time because OF the general awaken
Ing In every corner of the country TO
the great value of good roads TO every
kind of community. II is obviously I'M
fair to burden motor vehicles with a
maintenance tax without subJecting horse
drawn vehicles to their just share OF the
wheel tax as we'll The sooner We ar
rive at this point the more nearly We
will have solved the road maintenance
problem In this country"
Mr. Coffin was supposed 10 have been
instrume ntal In the preparation OF a
piper on AN Engineering Bass for Taxa
B ton Of Automobiles" that is down on tho
programme of the Society Of Automobile
Engineers meeting at Cape May. n. j.,
next week. and which IL has been init
1 mated embodles some exceedingly radical
suggestions. Mr.. Coffin. however. dis
claims al responsibility az to the paper
stating that II Is entirely the work OF G.
| -. Egerton and S. !. Fekete. who are
members OF the Hudson engineering stan
| At the same time he indicated plainly
| ais familiarity with the subject AMI his
own personal convictions as 10 the cor
rectness OF the principle of taxing all
users OF the highway on the basis OF the
| benefit derived.
r. G.. Harris. head OF the Firestone
motor truck tire sales Is In town this
week ~ look over the situation here and
| TO call upon many of the companies
which operate large delivery systems
He Is an authority on motor truck tire,
/ and service.
John l.. Clifford. for the past two year,
! representative OF the General Motors Ex
I port Company at the Buick factory al
F1!ai. W" sail from v ncouver July 8 or
! the steamer Makura for Sydney. Aus
! tralla. 10 take general management fol
Australia and New Zealand. Buick bust
ness in this territory last year was abou
! 1000 cars.
An automobile race across the CONT
ncnt Is now practically an assured even
In connection with the Panama Pacific
Exposition. to be held at San Francisc,
next year. W l.. Hughson president o
the Pacific Kissel Kar branch. who Il
chairman ~ the exposition racing com
mittee ls authority for the statemen
that the most important prelminare
have already been arranged. although
there OF course remains Il vet amount o
work In obtaining rights OF way acros
the various States and counties Thi
will be- the longest road race ever hell
ami will undoubtedly enlist all the grea
N.g 4