Evening star., 1938-10-30
Does a Red Light
Mean STOP? -


state recurring the red light to be above the
green.
The Illinois Automobile Club thereupon
sent out a scout to investigate trafflc lights
throughout the city. He discovered:
That every one of the 288 traffic lightslnthe
loop" - the business heart of the city -
was exactly the reverse of what the law said 1t
should be.
That more than lOOO of the 800 stop
and 90 signals under city control violated the
state law.
That in one stretch of four miles on an
important boulevard there were six different
traffic-light arrangements - some with green
at the top, some with red, some with amber.
The City Council, startled by the report,
Immediately set out to make uniform - and
law abiding - all traffic signals in Chicago.
Throughout the rest of the nation traffic
lights are being standardized to save lives and
property Within the last year or two ten
more states have adopted uniform regulations
for traffic lights - requiring the red signal at
the top, amber in the center and green at the
bottom making twenty six in all.
Leading the campaign is the National
Safety Council whose tests show that STAN
dardized lights aid all motorists and benefit
color blind drivers particularly. The normal
driver reacts to signal not only by its color,
but also by its position; and if the latter. is
uniform, he reacts more quickly and more
certainly - and therefore more efficiently.
The color blind, it has been discovered,
drive almost entirely by position, and where
there is uniformity of light placement, color
blind drivers are considered as safe as any
Others Many know they are color blind, and
as an additional safeguard they watch the
traffic at intersections and travel with it. But
anunknoWn number Of drivers are color blind
only to degree and when in doubt take a
chance.
During the six months before this was
written, Chicago had sixteen deaths at cross
ings where traffic lights were misinterpreted.
1t is estimated that the city has 5OOOO color
blind persons many OF them drivers.
Tests here and abroad show that four men
are color blind to one woman. and that most
color blindness is hereditary. From three to
five per cent of men are color blind
Several years ago the United States Public
Health Service studied the vision of 1000
healthy men and women of different classes.
and found that 3 per cent of the men were
dangerously color blind" Two per cent
could not distinguish between red and green
at all
All classes are affected by color blindness
The president of a large trucking corporation
cannot distinguish colors at all. A noted
comic strip artist who makes millions laugh,
knows no difference between red and green,
He drives only when another person is along
to tell him the colors.
"Green-blindness' is the most common
form, and red blindness is the next. accord
ing to the Metropolitan Life Insurance Com
pany, which says that color blindness is a
congenital condition and is incurable." 1t is
common in the white race and rare among
Negroes.
1t is estimated that there are 300, GOO red
and green color blind men in the United States
and 325,OOO women - total of l,625,0OO
persons OF these. at least 10000 drive cars.
The importance of giving them every pos
sble aid is obvious All can see light. even
if they cant distinguish it. The right position
will aid them, and in most cases all that is
necessary is to shift the red and green lenses
in the traffic lights, without electrical adjust
ments, unless series of lights are synchron-
lied.
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