Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1936-12-31
AS WE SEE TT
By MoNTCO


SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE
about the numerous automobile fatal
tiles occurring in Maryland. Several
organizations have made studies of
these accidents and have arrived at
certain conclusions. For instance:
A clear Indictment of Maryland's
main highways is detected by Mr.. C.
M. Falconer, President, Automobile
Club of Maryland, and Vice-Chair-
man, Highway Users Conference of
Maryland, in the fatal accident fig
ures of the State in November, the
last month on which the Office of the
Commissioner of Motor Vehicles has
reported.
OUT OF AZ FATAL ACCIDENTS,
in which 46 persons were killed, the
Conference notes that 81 fatalities
were on the highways. Of the total
number, A deaths were on dry pave
ment and 40 in clear weather.
MANY of the figures" said Mr..
Falconer, "speak for themselves of
dangerous road conditions. For ex-
ample, 20 people were killed after
nightfall, despite the fact that traffic
volume is greatly decreased in those
hours. People who travel the States
narrow main roads know the difficult
ties of avoiding head-on COLI xon on
one side and narrow shoulders on the
other, particularly when headlights
glare.
"In support of this, consider the
fact that Is people were killed on
straight stretches, against 13 at in
tersections and eight at curves. Con-
slider, too, that eight people were kill
ed in head-on-collisions in eight such
accidents, two in side-swiping acct
dents and seven struck fixed objects.
It is not difficult to see why people
crash head-on on one side, or side
swipe in passing, or else run off the
road when their wheels drop off the
pavement on narrow highways"
Of the 46 killed, AZ were riding on
hard-surfaced roads, and % were said
to be driving too fast for conditions
which, according to the analysis, does
not necessarily mean high speeds or
even violation of the speed laws.
"There are not many primary art
cries in Maryland which warrant
speeds even of 40 or 45 miles an hour
in their present widths and fire.
quencies of hazards" was the COM
ment.
OF the So drivers involved in the 43
fatal accidents, So were in normal
condition, and only three had been
found to have been drinking, from
which. it is deduced that even the
best drivers are subject to road dam
gers. And in support of this is the
fact that % of the drivers had been
driving for five years or more, seven
teen for one to five years, while only
three had been driving less than six
months.
IN SPITE OF THE FACT that
Baltimore City and the rest of the
State has about an even distribution
Of population, IA per cent more coun-
ty residents were killed in the total
than city residents, despite the sup
posed dangers of big city traffic, it
was disclosed.
truck drivers today must be the
most careful of drivers if they are to
hold their jobs" said Mr.. Falconer.
"The strictest of qualifications are
demanded by motor truck owners and
operators of their drivers. Yet we
find that of the vehicles involved in
the 46 deaths from automobile acct
dents, ten were trucks and two were
buses. 1t is an extremely high ratio,
but we must remember that most Of
the States main roads are too narrow
and too tortuous to accommodate COM
mercial traffic comfortably, despite
the fact that it is an indispensable in
dustry and growing every year. The
lack Of right of way where trucks
may pull off the pavement is partly
responsible.
at WOULD SEEM that the
States Anticipated main roads are not
only uneconomical from the standpoint
Of their huge maintenance bills, but
that they are uneconomical from the
standpoint of damage bills and hos
pital bills. But, greatest Of all, they
are uneconomical from the standpoint
Of human life, which comes so high
that no one would dare to place a
cash estimate upon it.
"'Stop This Killing" is slogan
we see often on the roads. We will
never do it until we have safer high
ways"