The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-11-23
TRAFFIC DEATHS REACH 9o 6nA UUHUu LL,VVV
 1923 LIST SHOWS
Commerce Report De. plores Lack Of Ade-
 quate Statistics

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 fort to secure accurate and complete data regarding traffic accidents, their types and causes, and methods of pre- vention," declares the committee on sta tistics of the conference on street, and highway safety, in q report to Secre- tary of Commerce Hoover based on a thorough survey which revealed an an nual loss in the United States due to street and highway accidents i'll 1925 of 22,6OO persons killed, 61S,OOO se- rious injuries, and an economic loss ot $60O, 100000.
 In states where centralized agencies have been created to investigate such accidents, it has been possible to attempt a systematic remedy of the conditions. But 34 states have no adequate system for securing such information.
 Such facts, the committee says, "are fundamental to the adoption of ade- uuate methods of traffic control, if the present situation is to be improved | And the committees recommendation, which will be submitted to the confer ence on street and highway when it meets in Washington on December 15, i 16 and IT, provide that:
 Statistics regarding street and rail way accidents are so vital to any com prehensive understanding and treat ment of the safety problem that their collection and analysis in every state and community is essential:
 Where such do not exist, statutes should be passed in every state which should make it the specific business of some state agency, preferably that clothed with authority to issue and re- yoke licenses, to receive traffic acci- dent reports and investigate all such accidents, whether occurring within or without the corporate limits of munich palities.
 It should be made, by law, obligatory for those concerned to report all traffic accidents, and an adequate penalty for failure to report should be provided.
 Reasonablye uniformity in reporting and tabulating data is essential. and some competent body should undertake the compilation of standard definitions of terms.
 Sufficiently detailed information should be gathered to indicate clearly whether the accidents occurred because of: Recklessness, carelessness or in capacity of persons; fault of mechan.. ism of vehicle; physical conditions of the locality where the accident oc- cured.
 In it's study of fatal accidents the committee found from records of the census bureau that highway fatalities are growing at a more rapid rate than accidental deaths from all causes, and that automobile fatalities are growing more rapidly than highway fatalities as whole. For example, the tota! number of accidental deaths increased 1O.7 per cent, between 1922 and 1925 whereas the total number of highway fatalities increased IFS per cent, and automobile fatalities increased 2O.3 per cent During the six years from l9lI to 1923, the total number ot acclden- tai deaths from all causes decreased, and automobile fatalities actually in- creased 80 per cent, or from 9'o9I Tn 1917e to 16,452 in 1923. Where the 1922 highway fatalities were in the ratio of 17.6 per 100000 of population the rate for 1923 was 20.4 per 1OO,- GOO. The results of the Interstate Commerce commission were supplied to show that in 1922 grade crossing accl. dents cost 1910 lives. while for 1923 this had climbed to 2,26S. These did not take into account the number of victims who had died of their injuries 24 hours or more after the crash.
 The dearth of anything like com plete figures was most sharply real ] ized by the committee in it's investlga- tion of the ratio of nOn-fatal to fatal casualties. Here the figures for grade crossing accidents of steam and cleo tric railways were supplemented by fig ures compiled by the American Electric association, the National Bureau Of Casualty and Surety underwriters, the state figures from Connecticut and Massachusetts, from the Wisconsin state trunk line highways and a dozen large cities. In those studies, the fla tality ratio ranged from one death to | 11.4 non-fatal casualties up to one death to S3 non-fatal casualties, but combining all the available statistics and weighing each group roughly ac- 'cording to the total population covered the committee estimated the average as about 30 to 1.
 After comparing the accident records with the registration of motor vehicles, the committee found that in 1917 there were 19O moor ve- hicle fatalities per 100000 motor ve- hicles registered, while for 1923 there were 106 per 100000.
 In studies of the records of Massa- chusetts and Connecticut, where efforts have been made for some time to ana lyze causes, the .scincipal causes were found to be reckless driving, inatten- ton, or careless operation on the part of the mOtOrist.
 Figures supplied to the committee by the National Bureau of Casualty Sure ty underwriters regarding 2,02O accl- dents which resulted in 52 fatalities and the non-fatal injury of 2,346 other per sons, indicated nearly 32 per cent as being due to the motorist and 2S per cent the fault of the pedestrian.
 In it's estimates of the $500, O,0O0,0OO economic loss, the committee points out, figures were based on $5,0O0 per life, and an average of $175 for each per sonal injury, and an added actual prop erty damage of $50 in all accidents in volving either personal injury or prop erty damage. The committee took no account of losses which obviously arise from delays and congestion or such minor property damages as bent lenders, broken tail lights or similar mishaps. ..
 "Whatever the basis of calculation. It is evident, that the economic loss due to street and highway traffic accidents has become so great as to warrant large expenditures towards their proven tion."
 The committee found that eight states require personal injury cases to be reported to the commissioner of motor vehicles or an equivalent officer. These were Connecticut, Maryland, Massachu- setts, Vermont, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Virginia. Montana gets a centralized report of all convic- tions. In California, Kansas, Idaho, Iowa, the District of Columbia and South Dakota, the law provides that reports shall be made to the nearest police officer.
 In it's efforts to secure all available information as to traffic accidents, the