Evening star., 1923-03-25
MILLIONS PROFIT
IN MOTOR TRAVEL
Great Caravan Spent $43,-
$4,000 in Southern Cali
fornia Last Year.
OLD RECORDS SHATTERED
Tourist Cars During 1928 Are Ex-
pected to Pass the 10000
Mark.
OLD RECORDS SHATTERED
BY AUSTIN r. BEMENT,
Vice President, the Lincoln Highway
AssOciatiOn.

1t is conservative to say that au-
tomobile traffic to the Pacific coast
has increased by 200 per cent every
year since 1914. 1t broke all records
in 1922 and Will probably do SO again
this year. Seventy-tive thousand ears
is moderate estimate for this sea-
son.
Automobile clubs and associations.
chambers of commerce and civic
bodies. banks and newspapers from
Vancouver to San Diego can and Will
prove to any one just what this an
nual western migra ton means TO
their community. county and state. in
dollars and cents. The Automobile
Club of Southern California estimated
that motorists arriving in southern
California over the tranScontinental
highways spent S4S.5l0 0,0o0 there last
Year. That sounds like lot of
money. but II isn't-it's only 50 day
for each OF the individuals the south
ern clubs records indicated arrived
by motor. Neither is it big d all
compared with what it might be. In
fact it's a piking sum compared with
The amount which will be left along
the Pacific coast annually when the
roads connecting from the east to the
Pacific can be classified more at
tractively than merely ''pasSable" or
"impa SSab BILE"
At Mercy OF Reads.
There is no section of the United
States so Importantly affected by road
conditions in other states. be they
good or bad, as are the states OH the
Pacific coast.
California, Oregon and Washington
may broadcast their attractions TO
the nation: they may invest hun
~ S,, RI RI -ni. 49, :
of magnificent highway systems yet
they must realize that TO the extent
of tens of millions of dollars annu-
ally their tourist business, with all
OF It's corollary benefits in the way
Of new population, greater develop
ment and increase in fame. is de-
pendent upon the nature of the roads
which bring this traffic and this
A great many connecting roads
leading from the east and middle
west to the Pacific coast cannot he
built in the near future. few
into proper condition.
widely known and more or less con
nectedly improved, now reach the
Chicago via Milwaukee, Minneapolis
and Aberdeen, through Montana and
across northern Idaho into Seattle or
Portland, Via PendIeton or Spokane.
most direct route from New York and
Chicago across the continent into
central California by way of Omaha,
Cheyenne, Salt Lake and Carson, is
Kansas City via Trinidad, Colo; Albu
QuerQue, n. Max; ElagStaff, AriZ.
and Needles, into Los Angeles. is the
third. Nearest to completion, most
centrally located, best known, best
marked and most travelled is the Lin
coin highway between New York
and Salt Lake City
The Pacific northwest i. well served
by the yellow stone trail. and tourists
seeking that section CIa get there in
California is still better served the
year around by the National Old trail
and tourists desiring to follow that
route from the Missouri river can
readily do so, and do so in increaS-
insly large numbers yearly.
Central Route Traffic.
Now, how about that traffic which
wishes to reach, most directly. CEN
trail California? 1t takes the Lin
splendid road, which is being rapidly
brought to completion. stretching all
the way from New York city to Salt
Lake City. over @.f50 miles. upon
which more than $47,00o.O00 have
been expended in the past nine years.
tremendous volume of traffic
takes this route to Salt Lake City.
1t leads on direct TO Reno, Carson.
Lake Tahoe, Truckee, the Yosemite,
Sacramento. Stockton and the bay.
Utah State Automobile Association
Touring Bureau at Salt Lake City,
covering 1922 traffic. show that
23.260 motorists arrived at the Utah
nonths-71 per cent of the total
over the Lincoln highway This