Evening star., 1935-11-12
DR.. H. c. DICKINSON
DISCUSSES SAFETY
Suggests Three Rules to
Reduce Hazards of Auto
Collisions.

Three suggestions designed to re-
duce the hazards of automobile col
lisions were advanced last night by
DR.. H. C. Dickinson, chief of the heat
and power division of the Bureau Of
Standards. in addressing the Wash
ington section of the Society Of Auto
motive Engineers in the University |
Club.
DR.. Dickinson, well known traffic
expert. said the hazards virtually
could be eliminated by:
l. Preventing motorists from driving
in the wrong traffic lane to pass other
vehicles.
2. The abolishment of all grade
crossings.
8. The removal of bridge ends, trees
and other objects an automobile might
strike after leaving the road.
Passengers in automobiles equipped
with modern all-steel bodies, he said,
are seldom hurt when the machine
leaves the road unless it strikes a
tree or some similar object.
Cites Dangers in Passing.
DR.. Dickinson emphasized the danger
of driving in improper traffic lanes,
pointing out that it takes approx
mately $40 seconds for an automo-
bile to pass another going the same dl-
,rection. Before passing another car
he said, the driver should estimate
how far he is going to travel in the
time required to pass, and then allow
a safety margin of several seconds.
~, ctyiof q
traffic hazard. declaring an automobile
travelling at very low rate OF speed
is apt to kill any one it strikes. He
cautioned pedestrians against walking
into the street from behind parked
cars and stressed the need of good
brakes
Head-on collisions. he said, are a
source of potential danger, but de-
clared statistics show only one fatality
from this cause in 1000, ,0O0,0 900 pass
ings.
Speed, he said, should be governed
by the drivers ability to stop upon
seeing danger in his path. Although
$4,000 persons are killed annually in
the United States in traffic accidents,
DR.. Dickinson said the time saved by
? motor vehicle travel is too important
to permit of its discontinuance. The
remedy, he indicated, lies in safer
driving.
Urging a program of education
rather than strong-arm methods to
make safe drivers he also suggested
system of reporting unsafe drivers by
civilians. and then informing them
how their driving was unsafe.
Following DR.. Dickinson, Traffic
Director William A. Van Duzer said
four or five hundred men to report
bad drivers might be an aid in safety
education similar system was
employed some time ago.
Urges Gathering of Evidence.
Burton w. Marsh, director of the
safety and traffic engineering de-
partment of the American Automobile
Association, urged police to gather
all evidence pertaining to causes OF
traffic accidents for use in prose-
cutting the driver responsible.
Other speakers included E. D. Mer-
rill. president of Washington Rapid
Transit Co.; DR.. F. A. Moss of George
Washington University; w. o. Wheary,
director of safety for the Works
Progress Administration: H. v. Schrei-
ber, safety engineer of the Capital
Transit Co.; Lowell Mellett, news
paper editor; Everett c. Scott vice
president of the Sterrett Operating
Service, and Assistant Traffic Director
M O. Eldridge.
PhilliD r Wheeler chairman of
the section, presided.