Evening star., 1924-09-08
THE TRAFFIC PROBLEM
BY ERNEST GREENWOOD
Secretary Highway Safety

night or day. There are more gaso.
line filling stations to the square
mile than there were saloons in pre-.
| Volstead days. On many highways
one can find a telephone at intervals
| Of mile or so, with which the mo-
torist in difficulties can summon help
quickly from some nearby garage.
State after State is giving more
and more attention to the traffic
problem. adopting the latest fashion
in street and highway practice. add
| ing to their motor cycle patrols,
passing drastic legislation. fnf1icting
penalties of increasing severity, and
yet the fatalities mount higher and
! higher. Cities add each year to their
| traffic forces and try a variety OF
expedients, such as special markings,
| rotary systems, isles Of safety, safety
| zones, segregation OF tratfic-yet
more and more space Is required OF
the police blotter to record the daily
list of accidents.
| A large portion of the inventive
genius of the country seems to be
| engaged in drives on legislatures to
make this or that device compulsory
on automobile manufacturers, deal
| ers and on the car owners them
selves. There are devices for traffic
control, speed control OF the car
| itself, patent bumpers, rear signal
lights. brakes. grade crossing warn
ings and a host of other special
equipment, all designed for accident
prevention.
Our cities are faced with the prob
| lem OF making street facilities de-
| signed for the little creek accom-
modate the flow of the mighty river.
In very few cities are the main thor
| oughfares particularly in the bust
ness districts. susceptible OF very
| great change Here and there will
| be found cases of wide sidewalks
| which can be narrowed to give the
| roadway greater width. but they are
| rare in comparison with the number Of
| streets where this possibility does
| not exist. Rural highways present
no such problem. 1t is simply a
question Of widening the surface
| and constructing 1t to stand the
strain Of traffic. It is in the city,
narrow sidewalks and valuable build
ings, that any change for securing
greater width seems almost impos-
sible. Is 1t conceivable that the time
| is coming when great business blocks,
| in spite of their value, will be cut
back? Or will the situation be met
| with simpler expedients. such as
|
| parking in congested districts, rout-
ing of special classes of traffic, de-
| Capitalization, distribution of such
buildings as theaters, which add
| heavily to the congestion at the peak
hour. and the like?
& K + 4
With it all the automobile is here
to stay and in constantly increasing G
| numbers. 1t has completely altered
the social life Of the Nation. 1t is
no longer a luxury; it Is a necessity.
people. 1t brings the recreations of
the country to the city dweller and
the recreations of the city to the
farmer and his family. 1t has simpli-
fed transportation and makes pos
sible the decentralization of great
industrial centers into smaller COM
munities where life is certainly
healthier and more pleasant for the
| workers. The benefits which 1t has
| conferred on the American people
can hardly be measured in terms of
wealth, comfort, convenience, health
or relaxation.
But its rapid development has been
followed by the crisis in the traffic
situation with which we are faced
today. In this series of articles it is
hoped that some practical sugges-
tions may be made for the solution
of the problems involved. At least
they will be suggestions which will
serve as a basis for discussion. They
are based on the personal opinions
and conclusions of the writer after
talking to scores of men who have
been devoting much of their time and
thought to the subject. They are not
offered as specifics or cure alls. They
are merely ideas based on the ex-
perience and observation of author
tiles.
iGopyright. 1924. by Current News Features,