Evening star., 1941-01-15
Men and Machines

In the wake of the shocking series
OF traffic fatalities in Washington
in recent weeks has come a multitude
of suggestions for remedial meas
ures, Many of these proposed "cures"
for the city'S traffic ills presumably
will be discussed today at the special
conference called by Acting Chair
man Schultz of the House District
Committee, for in attendance will
be District officials most concerned
with the veXing problem of making
| the streets safer. That problem
involves human as well as technical
| factors
Much already has been accom-
! pliShed here in the technical field.
Cars are inspected regularly, signal
| lights have been installed at i'm
pOttant intersections, streets have
been widened and provided with
better lighting, grade separation pro-
grams have been undertaken, park
| ing has been restricted and other
improvements have been made or
planned-to the limit, of course, of
appropriations. When all factors are
considered however, it becomes evi-
! dent that, regardless of how much
! progress is made in the technical
field, the human element continues
to be CT paramount Importance in &C
! cident prevention. And it is the
human factor upon which officials
/ must concentrate their attention if
! there is to be any real hope of obtain
| ing immediate results in the safety
| campaign. An inspected and ap-
proved automobile remains a public
hazard if a reckless driver, or a
physically handicapped one, or an
immature or otherwise incompetent
person is at the wheel. Signal lights
and croSswalks cannot protect the
pedestrian who is willing to risk his
life by lodging moving cars in the
middle Of the block. There are
dozens of regulations designed to
control the human factor. Effective
ness of these regulations depends
largely on two things-education
which is preventive step, and strict
enforcement, which is punitive pri-
marily but also preventive in it's
| psychological effect on Others Civic
organizations, the press and the
radio have joined with traffic au-
thorities in extensive educational
work in recent years, with good re-
suits. There is room for improve
ment in the realm of enforcement,
however, and here the police, the
prosecutors and the courts must
share responsibility.
The Stars analyses of fatal traffic
accidents over a long period have
revealed strikingly the dangers of
crossing street midway of the
block. There is regulation for
bidding this practice whenever a
hazard is created, but it is rarely
enforced by police. Major Brown,
superintendent of police, has taken
steps to correct this laxity on the
part of his men. He has stressed also
the urgency of curbing speeders,
drivers who weave" in and out of
traffic lanes and others who operate
cars in reckless manner. A COM
mittee of the Traffic Advisory Coun-
Gil has advocated revival of the
"vigilante" plan, under which picked
citizens watch for and report to the
police fragrant violations of the traf-
fic laws. This plan was tried out
here several years ago with indif-
ferent results and was dropped after
numerous protests by citizens who
objected to what they termed "Ogpu"
and "un-American" tactics. Major
Brown is opposed to renewal of the
experiment and in The Stars opinion
should be supported in his opposition.
Additional policemen could accom-
plish much more than citizen in
formers, and this is one way in which
Congress can render assistance. The
Commissioners provided for twenty
five new policemen in the 1912 budg-
ct, but Major Brown declares he
needs at least hundred more to en-
force the law properly. Heavier and
more uniform penalties for major
offenders of the traffic rules are de-
sirable. Periodical examination
| of drivers for physical or mental de-
fects would avert many serious ac-
cidents. A compulsory training
course for certain violators of
elementary rules of safety might
have Salutary results. These and
similar proposals are worth careful
study in connection with the present
crisis, for they are directed toward
the controllable human factor in a
safety equation involving men and