Evening star., 1934-11-15
TRAFFIC REFORM
CAMPAIGN URGED
Drive Like That on Crime
Needed Here, Mass Meet
ing Is Told.

A drive to reduce traffic fatalities
similar to the current crime crusade
was urged last night by Mai. e. w
Brown. superintendent of police, at q
mass meeting on trafic safety In East
ern High School.
Pointing to the 1l3 trafic deaths
here during the past fiscal year, Maj
Brown compared it with the 81 mur-
ders which have aroused the public to
organized action.
The Police Department will strive
to the utmost to put down crime, the
official assured his audience, but II
still considers traffic enforcement as
one of its first-ranking problems.
The meeting was called by Charles
G. Gilliken, chairman Of the Public
Utilities Committee of the Lincoln
Park Citizens Association. Other
speakers included Assistant Trafic
Director M. o. Eldridge, Fred A. Sa-
ger, chief engineer of the Public Util-
ties Commission; H. v. Schreiber OF
the Capital Transit Co.; B. S. Foster
of the Aetna Life Insurance Co., ano
representatives of other citizens asso-
Citations.
Personnel Lacking.
Maj. Brown said his department i
handicapped by an insufficient per-
sonnel, which has not been increased
for 10 years.
The traffic situation, always serious
now is further aggravated, said Maj
Brown, by the increase of drunken
driving since repeal. The number oi
automobiles travelling the streets also
is constantly increasing, he told the
citizens.
He advocated the gradual abolition
of all-night parking on city streets
saying the $4,000 to 10000 cars left out
every night are direct and indirect
causes of many accidents.
If all the automobiles which trave
in and out of the downtown area every
lay were placed end to end, they woulc
extend for 600 miles, Sager told the
gathering.
He estimated that the downtown
traffic includes 268,000 cars, which
if travelling at 25 miles per hour and
with a distance of 81 feet between ve-
hicles, would require more than foul
days to pass given point.
Jay-walking Is Scored.
Jay-walking was described by
Sager as one of the major causes OF
traffic injuries.
Motorists drive too rapidly and
pedestrians walk too carelessly, Ed
ridge declared He said II per cent
of fatal accidents during the year in
which pedestrians were to blame oc-
CURED in the middle of block rather
than at an intersection. .
He said the large number of taxi
cabs also contributes to the high &C.
cident rate. Twelve per cent of &C.
cidents here involve taxis, he in
formed his audience, adding that cat
drivers are not worse drivers thar
private motorists, but they increase
the accident rate through theil
greater use of the streets.
Included in the discussion from
representatives of civic groups anc
persons from the floor, as means oi
lessening the number of trafic acci.
dents, we're the following: More pub
icity of traffic fatalities to make the
public accident conscious, removal oi
some of the traffic signs which were
said to confuse motorists, traffic safety
education campaigns, the raising oi
the age limit for drivers, a period al
intersections when all four light sig.
mails will turn red to give the pedes-
trian chance to cross and cross.
walks in the middle of the block, since
there are only two ways to look fol
oncoming traffic.
Joseph Gammen presided.