Evening star., 1940-10-25
Maryland Plans
Own Stations
To Test Autos
Legislation Sought
As Move to Cut
Traffic Mishops
BY JACK ALLEN,
Star Stan Correspondent.

BALTIMORE, Oct. 25.-Striving
for reductions in highway fatalities,
property damage and insurance
rates, Maryland officials will en-
deavor to obtain approval of a bill
calling for State-owned- and OPP
Grated motor vehicle inspection sta
tions at the l94l legislative session.
Motor Vehicle Commissioner w.
Lee Elgin told group of so news
papermen. radio commentators and
automotive club executives at
dinner last night that such benefits
have been derived by every State
which has established its own sta
tions.
Mr.. Elgin. who branded the pres
ent system Of inspections by private
ly owned garages an utter failure
and said the draft of bill would
be begun shortly, was supported in
his claims by the motor vehicle ad-
ministrators of three areas where
the proposed plan already is in ef-
feet.
d. c. Official Backs Plan.
They included w. A. Van Duzer.
director of vehicles and traffic for
the District of Columbia: Michael
A. Connor and Arthur W. Magee.
commissioners of motor vehicles for
Connecticut and New Jersey, re-
spectively. and James J. Stanley,
chief of the testing division for the
latter State.
The four visiting officials said
there could be no doubt that State
or municipal owned inspection sta
tions have contributed materially to
the reduction in traffic deaths in
their areas.
Mr.. Magee. in whose State traffic
deaths dropped 80 per cent after
State stations were opened in 1888,
predicted that the induction of a
similar plan in Maryland could cut
automobile fatalities by upwards of
$50 annually.
Commissioner Elgin said garages
now doing the inspections are
eager to turn the work over to the
State because they have neither the
time nor the proper equipment to
make adequate tests
The commissioner said that popu-
lar belief is that only per cent of
the accidents in this country are
caused by defective mechanism, but
stated that this is wrong.
Cars more often than not are so
badly damaged in accidents that
about the mishap," he declared.
He cited his own case as an ex-
ample of the inadequacy of Mary
lands present system, explaining
that although his car was passed
by a garage in Hagerstown. it was
rejected in trial inspections in both
the District of Columbia and New
Jersey because serious steering
mechanism defects were discovered.
Mr.. Van Duzer said that doubtless
the establishment of a municipal
owned inspection setup in the Dis
trict OF Columbia had contributed
to traffic death reductions in Wash
lngton. He said that whereas there
were 50 deaths in Washington at
this time last year. there have been
only SIS during the same period
in 1910.
"Of the 10000 tested in WASH
ington last year, 3,7O0 had to be
'junked' because they were not fit
to be on the Streets" he stated. I'VE
found 81 per cent of the machines
to be faulty in some respect or other
The belief that per cent of acci-
dents are caused by defective
mechanism is fallacy. Accidents
cover up cars faults"
Commissioner Magee estimated the
initial cost to Maryland of the pro-
posed new system would be ap-
proximately S130,000.
Charge to Be Nominal.
All of the speakers emphasized
that the new system is not being
designed to make a profit for the
State and that only a nominal in
spection charge would be made for
the semi-annual checkupS.