Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-12-02

BOSTON, December / (SpeciaD I'm
putting into effect the first Statewide
system of uniform signs and markers,
through legislation that takes the power
to establish any future ones out of the
hands of city and town officials. plus
the right Of the Department of Public
Works to designate through way
routes on the State highways and ap-
prove others in municipalities, MasSa-
chusetts is again leading the way In
progressive motor action. This Is in
line with what many delegates attend
ing the first Hoover Safety Conference
at Washington learned when after lot
OF discussion about what should be
done 1t was found that many suggeS-
tons were not original, as they had been
worked out practically In the Bay State
previously.
For some years there has been talk
about uniformity in signs and signals
in Massachusetts. More than two years
ago traffic officers from many cities and
towns went to Boston where they
studied the code originated by Capt.
Bernard Hoppe of the Boston Police
Department. 1t was felt that it was
unfair to motorists to find signals
meaning "go" in one place and "stop"
in another, and some rather ragged
hand movements which were meaning
less, while Boston policemen were doing
good job.
From that point came talk of uni
formity of signs and stop" and 'go"
signals. In some places they were on
the right-hand side of road, just be-
fore an intersection; at others on the
other side of the cross-street; again in
the middle of the road hung from a
wire. There was no uniformity as to
height, either, so that drivers had to
rubberneck repeatedly, and often while
doing so passed signal.
Committee Appointed.
Gov. Alvan T. Fuller finally appointed
safety committee that in this case
had some real automobile men on it,
people who had driven hundreds Of
thousands of miles here and abroad.
They had practical ideas. and when
they sat down they also sat upon the
theorists. They recommended that the
State Legislature appoint safety COM
mittee, lone of whose duties it shall be
to study and work out uniformity OF
signs and signals on the highways"
The Legislature passed law giving
the Department of Public Works the
right to establish through routes"
where traffic had the right of way, and
compel traffic to come to stop, like
boulevard stop laws in the West. This
nullified on the through routes the
present "right-of-way law" allowing
precedence to those coming from the
right, but did not do away with that
law entirely. 1t is applicable elsewhere.
Also the Legislature passed the uni
form signs and signals law" that went
into effect last June, after which no
devices could be erected without being
approved by the Department of Public
Works. Meanwhile members of the
committee, and traffic engineers of the
Erskine Bureau, together with those of
the public works, began studying their
job, They made a survey Of nearly all
the cities and towns Of the State.
Data on Law Issued.
A few days ago Commissioner william
F. Williams, head of the department,
issued a statement giving some data
about the new law and copy of the
regulations embodied in bulletin. This
document is regular State pamphlet
and is official, containing all the facts
for motorists, as well as for cities and
towns. When extracts were published
motorists were pleased to learn that
markers were to be uniform; that they