Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-24
Plant Warning Posts in
Roads at Crossings
To the Editor of The Star:
The 6,epl0ra hlo aocidapf

To the Editor of The Star:
The deplorable accident at the Ber-
wyn crossing of the Baltimore and
OHIO Railroad is the second there in
the last 10 years. The one at Lake
land last month and an incident at
College Park, where I reside, and in
which at that crossing about two years
ago escaped with my life by q two
second margin, inspire me to renew a
campaign for more safety at road-level
crossings with railroads
AS auto speed increases more and
more, we should study the psychology
of driving. The driver should con-
centrate mind and eye straight ahead.
He has no time to look to right, left
or rear. The rear is well provided for
by the simple extension of the left hand
and by the operation of automatic lights :
now attached to the rear end of cars.
Railroads do not recognize this neces-
sity for Straight-ahead vision in auto
driving. but place their warning signs
and signals to the right of straight
ahead vision, just as they did in the
days of old Dobbin. In many places :
these signs may become partly OBJ
scured. The experimentation rule
Is excellent and absolutely safe, but
does not harmonic with present auto
mentality, especially when signals are
set 1000 feet away from the tracks,
thus meriting some efforts to beat the
train to the crossing. While there are
many automatic and mind-controlled
barriers installed by the railroads, they
are generally of considerable cost. With
the mounting financial difficulties Of
the railroads, they cannot be blamed
for hesitating to install expensive SAFE
guards at every country crosSroad.
Now, my plan is simply to set :
series of heavy posts exactly in the
center of the dirt road about feet
apart and extending from, say, about
4 feet of the railroad bed to each
outside line of railroad right of way.
This would cover about 20 feet, re-
curing six or seven posts on each side,
extending in line along the center OF
the road. Warning signs, movable sig
mails and the like should be placed on
the end posts at right-of-way edge at
the usual height
Now, the mental phase involved IS
that DRINKS, absent-minded, careless
and inexperienced drivers will see the
obstruction ahead and slow down. Few
there are now who would not drive to
the right, being already slowed down.
They will drive slowly along the line
OF posts. The panic-stricken driver
would more likely swing to the left into
the posts than to try to cross ahead Of
the train. 3
In my interviews two years ago with
railroad officials found the Baltimore
& Ohio management and the A. A. A.
heads Indifferent to the suggestions.
The Southern Railroad, found, had
already put the plan in operation to the
extent Of placing traffic signals in the
center of dirt roads. They were well
pleased with the results, but said they
found State laws very conflicting on
such procedure and were not making
much Roadway with the plan.
If the public can be interested through
line of discussion in the columns Of
newspapers and suff1cient interest
aroused for q trial of the plan at some
crossing, I believe that much benefit
would result In lowered casualties at
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