Evening star., 1935-11-18
D. c. TRAFFIC HELD
GOTHAM'S EQUAL
Capt. M. D. Smith Believes
Car Situation Here Also Is
as Well Handled.


Washington traffic is fully as heavy
during the rush hours as on many OF
the famous streets in the New York
metropolitan area-and is as we'll ham
eiled-in the opinion of Capt. Milton
d. Smith of the District Traffic Bureau.
In a letter received by The Star
Safety Council from New York, Capt.
Smith reported that he has been drlV-
ing around New York and Newark, N.
J., observing traffic conditions there.
Il can't say they have anything on
us when it comes to handling traffic"
he said. For one thing, the light
cycles are too .ong-seems as though
you wait five minutes for the change,
though in reality it is only two minutes
at most points.
drove over the Pulaski Skyway in
New Jersey and the new express high
way on Lower Manhattan, across the
busy Forty-second street and Broad
way. I find it no worse than Four
teenth and F streets, Fourteenth street
and PENNSYLVANIA avenue, or along
Constitution avenue during our rush
periods"
Capt. Smith described highway safe
ty campaigns being conducted in New
Jersey and said he has covered about
1900 miles so far in New Jersey, Penn
sylvania and New York.
THE new No. New Jersey route, |"
he said, has no main crossroads
they are all over or under. At one
point on No. you drive over one
crossroad and another is over your
head-three levels of travel. New
Jersey has some very wide, level roads
Route 20 from Lambertville direct to
Holland Tunnel has no main cross
roads for about 80 miles. Traffic cir
cles take care of intersecting main
highways"
The letter from Capt Smith is one
of hundreds received by The Star
Council in connection with the pres
ent traffic safety drive. Excerpts
from some of these letters follow:
Owing to the fact that 90 deaths
have been officially recorded. We, the
National Round Table Guild. wish to
Join in your safety campaign.
I'VE pledge ourselves to obey all
traffic rules and regulations implicitly
and to be more cautious in our driv-
ing as well as in our perambulations
about the streets. We shall do every
thing within our power to make this a
safer city to live in and to decrease
the number of accidents.
HOWARD WYATT,
corresponding secretary"
"I wish to report what is, in my
opinion, one of the most deplorable
traffic conditions in the District Of
Columbia, in the hope that your or
ganization, which is behind the pres
ent safety drive, will investigate and
possibly do something to correct It,
This condition exists on West Ex-
ecutive avenue, bordering the White
House, and is as follows: Official signs
plainly state that parking is prohibited
between the hours of and 9:15 am.
and that parking is permitted two
hours the balance of the day. Every
weekday morning without exception,
cars are parked on the east side of the
street between $3.50 and $50 am, two
and three abreast. To make matters
worse, policemen may be seen watch
ing cars struggle to get through, but
making no effort to force the parked
cars to move on. About 10 minutes to
9 the cars parked double or triple, as
the case may be, start making U turns
for the west side of the street, where
,.lr,x t. at cr1n
,but not before 9:15 ann. Frequently
tenders are bumped or Scraped in the
mad effort to get parking space on
that side, and no regard is shown for
the driver going south through that
street.
The reason for my informing you
Of this condition is that I drive
through this street every morning and
feel very fortunate If I get by with
out some sort of an accident, as I
know others are not quite as lucky.
Also, have often wondered why the
Police Department allows this condi-
tion to exist
RUSSELL L. DALE"
and am heartily in cooperation with
the Safety Council of The Evening
Star. JOHN c. PAINTER"
"As the police force is too small to
do more than what they are doing,
and the City of Washington has not
the funds to employ more men,
think it would be good plan to al
low Maj Brown the right to appoint
special officers who offer their services
free.
I'm this way he could get them to
report all careless drivers, also report
the citizens who cross in the middle
Of any block.
1T has come a time when all good
citizens have to help and report all
who are guilty. Then the guilty ones
will be more careful in the future.
s'IIApDv 7 TyrrNIrcroNY prrrn