Evening star., 1938-12-10
Traffic Deaths Sliced
4O% by Drives in
10 Of 35Cities
10 Others Cut Their
Toll IS to 35%,
Survey Shows
D, the Associated Press.

Intensive, methodical safety cam
paigns have slashed sharply into
the Nations traffic death toll this
year.
A survey of IS cities-all but one
of them among the top 40 in popu-
lation-showed today this situation
for the first week of December:
Ten cut their death toll by 40
per cent or more, compared with
the same period of 1887
At least 10 of the other Is re-
ducing their traffic mortality rate
Is to IS per cent, with many others
showing improvements; and
Only five apparently heading for
an increased fatality list
The Nations population centers
have accepted with the three E's'-
enforcement, education and engi-
neering-the challenge of the reck-
less driver, the jaywalking pedes-
trian.
No Fatalities in Ill Days.
The 50 per cent slash for Provi-
dence, r. l., where there we're no
fatalities for 11l-day stretch,
".
there were reduced to Is miles an
hour throughout the city and en-
forced without exception. Twelve
persons have been killed to date
this year, compared with 80 for the
corresponding 1887 period
Columbus. Ohio. among the lead
ers with 58.3 per cent fewer deaths
than the same period last year,
takes offenders to court Immediately.
Other leaders, and their approx
mate percentage decreases in traffic
deaths, included:
Cleveland, 1872; Birmingham. Ala.
481; Louisville, KY. 47.2 Detroit, As;
Dallas. Al: Milwaukee and Buffalo,
40. Newark, N. j., where as in New
York City figures were available
for only the first 10 months, showed
so per cent slash.
What are cities doing to reduce
deaths?
Drive in Cleveland.
Cleveland convicts SO per cent of
all persons brought into court for
traffic violations, uses theaters,
schools. radio and signs which warn:
Fast drivers make slow professions.
The city conducted memorial serv-
Ice this month for its 1888 traffic
dead.
ST. Louis has developed non-
skid, anti-glare resurfacing mixture
for dangerous intersections In
Pittsburgh an unpaid Traffic Plan
ming Committee. many of its 20
members prominent business leaders,
works closely with police
In Kansas City. one of the few
cities where deaths may go above
last year. drastic enforcement meth
DDS have been adopted. Sound
trucks reach accident scenes few
minutes after crashes and blare out
warnings.
Two cities. Memphis and Min
neapolis, already have surpassed
their entire 1887 toll and Atlanta
and Portland, Greg. are close to
the old figure.
Carelessness Blamed
Pedestrian carelessness was blamed
for the jump in Memphis, which
last year was designated by the
National Safety Council as "the
Nations safest city" Twenty seven
of this years AZ victims were pc
destrians and the motorist was alb
solved in each case.
Memphis traffic campaign con-
tinues unabated, officials declare.
and vehicles are tested three times
year.
In Louisville Police Judge B.
Brachey gives g and 10" sentences
nine days in Jail and SIG fines
for drunken driving Kentucky law
provides no appeals of sentences
under 10 days, and fines less than
$40
Acting on the theory that speed
at intersections creates most acci-
dents, San Francisco has detailed
60 motor cycle officers to do moth
ing but slow down traffic at cross
streets New Orleans and Kan
sas City, among others, claim to
have stamped out fixing of tickets
given violators.
The latter citys manager, H. F.
McElroy, has directed in aggressive
fashion its campaign When he saw
one offender he stopped the auto
mobile, took the drivers keys and
turned them over to police.
New Methods Installed.
Detroit and several other heavily
populated cities have installed acci-
dent-prevention methods of 1t.
Franklin Kreml director of North
western University's Safety Institute.
Many cities send some police there to
learn safety drive methods.
Women's clubs in Los Angeles in
struct both children and adults in
traffic rules. Child education is
drive. Oakland (CalifD details three
officers to full-time safety instruc-
tion in schools, two more to lectures
to adult groups.
New Orleans fines 200 or more
violators daily.
Additional funds received from
parking meters was cited by Port
land (Oreg) authorities as helping
with their traffic problems.
In Seattle. Wash. where the traffic
toll has declined more than II per
cent, danger spots are painted white
for safety and pedestrians are urged
to wear something white in their
after-dark apparel
In Atlanta, proposal was weighed
to slash speed limits to Is miles
an hour. Denver uses "co-opera-
tive plan''-requiring every person
involved in an automobile accident
of any kind to report to police, re-
ceive a lecture first and second
offenses) or a fine.
Figures Are Shown.
Latest figures for leading cities
follow. The first figure is the death
toll into the first week of December,
the second the total deaths for the