Evening star., 1927-05-24
RHODE ISLAND AVE.
! MOTOR CHAOS ENDS
Becomes Arterial Highway
Excepting for 7th Street,
Which Takes Precedence.
BY WILLIAM ULLMAN.

Acting decisively within week
after taking Office. Director of Traffic
William II. 1arland has eliminated
one of the most serious traffic hazards
in the National Capital by bringing
order out of chaos on Rhode Island
avenue, which barely more than Il
week ago was characterized as
"half-and half" arterial highway and
the most dangerous thoroughfare In
the city.
AS result Rhode Island avenue to-
dav has definite. understandable
right-of.way rule for the first time
since 1t was designated as an arterial
highway. Stop signs spell warning
at every intersection instead of merely
at those which are not bisected by
stret car tracks.
Under the new scheme Of traffic reg
,ulation Seventh street takes prece-
tence over Rhode Island avenue where
the two thoroughfares intersect, While
all forms of transportation, including
street cars, recognize Rhode Island
avenue as an arterial highway and
come to a halt at all other crossings.
Street Railways Agree.
The high point of the new arrange
ment is that the street railway COM
panies have agreed to halt their cars
before crossing Rhode Island at
Fourth, Ninth and Eleventh streets,
and at Florida and New Jersey ave-
nues, The arrangement is temporary.
pending the installation of signal
lights along Rhode Island avenue.
The conditions which Mr.. Harland
moved so summarily to end were
pointed out in The Evening Star the
day after the new traffic director took
office, The revelations followed an
investigation by The Star after it had
received complaints from scores of
motorists.
The investigation disclosed that be.
cause cross traffic at six intersections
was not compelled to stop at Rhode
Island avenue. even with the arterial
highway ushers assumed to have the
right-of-way, the resultant traffic
tangle at all hours of the day con-
stitutcd a grave and growing menace.
Inquiry at that time revealed that the
stop signs were not erected at such
points because the street cars did
not obey them and the traffic authorl-
ties believed, under the circumstances,
it would be unfair to impose such
restriction upon motorists using the
same streets.
Investigates Situation Himself.
One of the first Of Mr.. Harland's
actions was to investigate the situa-
tion for himself He found the con-
dition Of confusion and danger to
be as amazing as described and one
which he recognized as calling for
summary action. At Seventh street
and Rhode Island avenue conditions
were particularly serious due to the
heavy volume of travel on both thor
oughfares. No stop sign stood at
the corner to apprise motorists that
the intersecting highway was "arteri'
all The same situation existed at
Eleventh and Ninth streets, New
Jersey and Florida avenues and
Fourth street, all of which are ira.
yersed by car lines.
Inquiry disclosed that the motor
vehicle regulations exempted street
cars from obedience to the arterial
highway regulation, despite the fact
that Congress especially ordered obedi-
ence.
: TO clarity the situation, Mr.. Har-
land went first to officials of the
CAPITAL Traction Co. and the Wash
ington Railway & Electric Co. Ap-
pealing to them on the ground that
safety demanded their compliance
with the arterial stop regulation. he
won their partial consent, in that
they have agreed to stop their cars
at five of the intersections, while
at the sixth-Seventh street-traffic
on Rhode Island avenue is stopped
and right-of-way given to vehicles on
the other thoroughfare.
Absolute Precedence Needed.
In the first revelation of the danger
at this Particular intersection, it was
suggested that this corner, of all
those involved, needed marking, and
that If Seventh street traffic justified
such an advantage it should be
given the right of way. It was
patent in even a cursory study Of the
situation that absolute precedence
should be accorded to one line or
travel or the other. Compromise
proposals that all four corners be
marked with "slow" signs were re-
jected on the ground that they would
serve only to adj to the confusion.
AS a result of Mr.. Harland's work,
thousands Of users of Rhode Island
avenue have been freed from the un-
certainty of travel on an arterial
highway upon which no right-of-Way
rule actually existed.
In final analysis, motorists have
yielded the right of way at one inter-
section, where it existed in theory
only, and have been given absolute
precedence at five others where. 10
days ago. traffic was swirling in a
dangerous maze marked by number
of accidents.
Commissioners Are Gratif1ed.
Both Commissioners Dougherty and
Taliaferro have indicated their graft
fication with Mr.. Harlands activities
during his first week in office. Both
were acquainted with the danger
existing along Rhode Island avenue
and the condition presented by the
refusal of the street railway COM
panies to yield, despite the fact that
the traffic code passed by Congress
puts street cars under control of the
traffic director.
In establishing concord between the
traction companies and the traffic
Office on the vital arterial highway
regulation, and in remedying what
was regarded as one of the worst
traffic situations in Washington, the
Commissioners feel that Mr.. Har-
lands first week in office was at
tended by the happy solution of two
long standing and difficult problems.