Evening star., 1925-01-07


Ball. chairman of the committee, sug-
gesting certain changes, in a thorough
analysis of the legislation.
The board suggests that the boule-
ward stop system as practiced in Chi
cago, Detroit and st. Louis be en-
bodied in the legislation, and funds
apportioned for it's installation; that
the ban against all-night parking be
eliminated from the bill: that addi-
tional uniformed traffic policemen be
provided; that physicians be exempted
from the parking time limit, and that
abosiute prohibition OF devices for
engendering smoke screens be in
cluded, with the heaviest possible
penalty. Several other revisions are
suggested.
Impound ding Is Scored.
Disparaging comment is expended
on the proposed pound for motor
vehicles and on the proposed citizens
| complaint card. Regarding the pound,
the letter states:
I'VE are convinced that the enact
ment of legislation of this kind Will
not accomplish the purpose sought.
The idea of the Police Department
| having to provide for the physical
towing away of car which may have
been parked beyond the limit strikes
us as being out of all proportion to
the benefit to the community which
Will result from this practice. 1t will
be an expensive proposition for the
Government to maintain, in that 1t
will have to provide for sufficient
space for impounding and, In addition
! thereto, towing facilities and the like.
There is opportunity for imposition.
for stealing of cars and for confusion
T that will be appalling"
Wants Headlight Law.
Declaring that an adequate head
| light law for the District is "one of
our most urgent and crying needs, "
| the advisory board announces that it
has requested the Bureau of Standards
to draw up. headlight law to meet
! requirements in the IL States in the
| East where a uniform standard head
| light Law has been enacted, and sug-
gests that the Bureau of Standards
| proposed draft of this law be inserted
in the bill in lieu of section IL of the
committee print.
| Regarding the boulevard stop sys-
! TEN the board says:
| This bill does not apparently pro-
vide for the boulevard stop system
| which has been so successfully op-
| Grated in Detroit Chicago and st.
Louis. We are heartily in favor of the
| boulevard stop system on such
| arterial streets and roads in the Dis
trict of Columbia as Sixteenth street,
connecticut avenue, Wisconsin avenue
and -Bladensburg road or on such
/ other streets as may be selected from
/ time to time by the District Commits
| sioners.
| I'VE are under the impression that
this plan of traffic control may be
permitted by section 13 of the pro-
| posed law, but in order to make ii
| possible for the District Commit ssi ion
| ers to install this system it will be
necessary to provide sufficient funds
with which to erect stop signs on all
streets and roads which intersect the
| boulevard stop system"
Fnyors Tran1c Court.
! Warm Endorsement is given to the
Tafic court proposal The board calls
It the most desirable element of the
| bfll," and adds:
The difficulty heretofore has been
! that men and women of refnement
! who have committed some minor in
! fraction of the traffic laws have been
! forced to mingle with those persons
! who are brought to the Police Court
! for grave misdemeanors and crime of
various kinds and have been com
| PEELED to wait for trial there until the
| entire Police Court business could be
disposed Of
There is no reason to expect any
| betterment of these conditions unless
there can be created court, separate
and apart from the Police Court, which
will make a speciality of traffic work
| The creation OF a traffic court will
! mean specialization in traffic cases
| resulting in far more accurate and
| omplete records being kept of traffic
conditions and persistant traffic
violators, and will, in the long run
make the judges of this particular
| court specialists in their own proper
domain. The right of appealing from,
the courts decisions does not appear
| to be provided for
Change for Driving Permits.
| A suggestion for a change in
| the regulations regarding proposed
drivers permits is made, as follows:
I'VE object to the white, blue and
yellow drivers license cards as pro-
vided for in section 5-b, and believe
that this should be replaced by a
| plan whereby a. notation is made on
! the back of the operators permit card
/ of any violation of the traffic regula-
tions of which the operator is found
guilty. We do not think that three
violations of every kind of the traffic
regulations should require revocation
| of the drivers permit. This should
undoubtedly be the case, however
where the driver is convicted for
reckless driving, driving while in
! toxicated, etc.
The operators permit card with
notations on the back showing con-
victions for traffic violations will
afford a more complete record, in our
| opinion, than the three card system
and will indicate at a glance to any
traffic officer or to the court officials
0ffenses which may have been pre-
viously committed by the driver
| Opposes Parking Ban.
| The alI-night parking prohibition
is objected to on various grounds by
the board, as follows:
"Inasmuch as our chief parking
problem in Washington is that OF
1inding space in which to park our
cars during the daytime without
seriously interfering with business
and that all night parking is not
seriously objectionable, we wish to
expressl our opinion as being opposed
to the all night parking prohibition
provided for in section 10.
| During the hours specified, the
J streets are not used for any other
purpose and there is no legitimate
reason for clearing them unless it be
In connection with the sweeping OF
/ the streets. There are two methods
! Of sweeping streets, in Washington
| Downtown in the business district
rotary street sweepers are used and il
the streets were full of parked cars the
machines would interfere with the
| sweeping, but there are very fe"
parked cars in the downtown busi-
| d;e+riot rtrban fhp rotary street