Smyrna times., 1933-05-17
COUNCIL GIVES
SAFETY ADVICE
Operator Should be Seated Di-
rectly Behind Steering Wheel
for Maximum Efficiency
HIGH SPEED HAZARDS

According to the Delaware Safe
ty Council the automobile opera
tors compartment should be de-
signed in such a manner as to as
sist him in his operations and not
to interfere with them. It is as
sumed that maximum steering eftlc-
iency can be obtained if the opera
tor is seated directly behind the
steering wheel. The widening of
the front seat to admit three peo-
pie has tended to force the driver
to the left of the steering wheel if
he is to find an arm rest and desires
to lean up against the side. In all
probability automobile manufac-
turers will soon make the side OF
the drivers compartment, as well
as the back, adjustable. Many op-
orators have experienced difficulty
because of insufficient clearance
around the outside of the wheel
from the windshield, coWl, door,
gear shift lever, and the individual
himself. At high speeds the haz-
ard of having your hand or elbow
jammed even momentarily is quite
obvious. Other serious interfer-
ences with steering are projections
which catch the sleeve of the Oper-
ator when he is about to make a
turn. There appears to be no log
ical or economical reason why the
window and door handles cannot be
so located and designed as to make
this impossible and still not inter
fere in the least with opening and
shutting the door or window. Light,
gas and spark levers mounted on
the steering post are also sources
of interference. The light levers
ar probably the worst offenders be-
cause at night they are not only
apt to catch the sleeve and inter
fere with steering but at that cru
cial moment they may also turn
out the lights. Furthermore, they
provide a dangerous place into
which one of the operators thumbs
or fingers can become wedged.
Braking is perhaps the next most
important feature of the automo
bile 1t is the factor which has
probably been hit the hardest by
our increased speeds and it has
been natural that the stopping dis
tance for greater speeds has gone
up. This condition, however, has
undoubtedly increased the hazard.
The "safe approach" speed to any
intersection, curve or hill where the
visibility is obscured is simply a
question of how far you can see
and how soon you can stop. For
example, if you are approaching a
blind intersection where you can
not see a car coming out of the
cross street until you are within
fifty feet of it, you cannot safely
approach it at speed higher than
will permit you to stop within fifty
feet. At the old speed of twenty
five miles per hour at such points
it was possible to stop, but at the
new speeds of thirty and forty per
hour it is not-at least not with
present braking equipment. The
frailties of human nature are such
that as comfortable, economical
cruising speeds have gone up, the
motorist has taken advantage of
time and has failed to slow down at
such dangerous points. Now while
there is a human failure for which
which the vehicle is not response
BILE, still it indicates a demand for
mobility and the industry should
try to help the motorist by giving
him all of the braking power possi-
BILE and thus increase the safe ap-
proach" speed.