Evening star., 1942-10-27
Tire Inspection
Order Declared
impractical
Traffic Council Soys
Nation Cont Comply
With 0PA Ruling

w sb VII sN0sIuS
Asserting that an OPA, tire in
spection order cannot possibly be
complied with either In the District
Of Columbia or elsewhere" the
Commissioners Traf1ic Advisory
Council last night urged retention
OF the present system of one an
nual inspection for passenger cars
and two annually for taxicabs, to-
gether with present examinations
for retreading, recapping and new
tires.
The OPA regultions, effective De-
cember l, require tire inspections
every 120 days for A gas ration hold
ers, every so days for supplemental
holders and every 80 days or 5000
miles for trucks, whichever occurs
first.
Whitney Leary, council chairman
and OPA District director, was re-
quested to ask OPA to change it's
regulations, following council adop-
ton Of survey report which as
serted that the Distoct lacks tire
inspection facilities capable Of con-
forming to OPA regulations.
Traffic Act Change Asked.
Another resolution, unanimously
adopted. urged the Commissioners
x, ask Congress to amend the Traf-
nc, Act, 50 that next year District
automobile owners would have to
turn In one of their two license
plates to Director of Vehicles and
Trafnc William A. Van Duzer. The
legislation to be sought would en-
power, Mr.. Van Duzer to decide
whether to surrender the tags as
scrap. or retain them for processing
into District tab strips for attach
ment to single 1914 license plates.
A special committee composed Of
B. A. Stone, chairman; Lester B.
Powell, Washington I. Cleveland,
Stanley Horner and Arthur Sund-
lum, submitted the following report
after studying local tire inspection
facilities: 49,.
"A study of the, 1941 records of
the municipal inspection stations
disclosed that 144 per cent of all
vehicles inspected were found to
have some front-end mechanical
adjustments requiring a reinspec-
ton. I, We made an adjustment for
these reinspections and determined
that 900,592 total inspections could
be anticipated annually. OF this
total not more than 10 per cent
could be made in conjunction with
the annual District inspection,
which 1ouid leave 810,533 inspec-
tions to be made by commercial
stations.
Mechanics Lacking.
"A preliminary, survey q Of all
alignment Equipment indicates there
are in the District exclusive of the
D. G. government stations) not
more than ~ ramp type or cor
rective machines and "a portable or
'scuff' type. These only indicate
misalignment, but do not indicate
the cause and cannot be used in
making the corrective adjustment
or repairs.
by simple mathematical pro-
cesses 1t is evident that making
8l0,533 inspections on the AZ ma
chimes available would necessitate
ga inspections per machine each
working day of the year. It may
readily be seen that this is impos-
sible. BY using, in addition to the
AZ Ramp machines, all of the "a
portable units and applying the
foregoing process we find that each
machine of all types must handle
S6 inspections daily. This also is
beyond achievement"
The special committee said most
stations possessing such equipment
are reluctant to undertake such a
program for two reasons; first, the
scarcity Of sufficiently skilled labor
and second, the financial loss that
would be incurred by them inasmuch
as a minimum of one-half hour
time for a skilled man would be
required to. perform an operation for
which they would receive only Is
cents"
OPA Consultation Sought.
The committee added it is con
hdent that inspection facilities in
the District are as good or better
than in any jurisdiction in the
United States, and it is evident that
the OPA order relating to inspection
cannot possibly be complied with
either in the District of Columbia
or elsewhere"
In asking OPA to discard it's regu-
iations as being impractical, the
committee report suggested that
before deciding on any additiona.
inspections which might be neces-
sAry, officials of OPA call in local
representatives of the industry fol
consultation on a workable plan.
Richard Murphy, director of the
District Motor Vehicle Parking
Agency, said tire inspection should
be. put on q mileage rather than
time basis.
Harry Wender offered the motion
designed to reduce the number Of
District license plates from two te
one. He submitted reports from
New York and Georgia authorities
declaring that single license plate
on cars does not interfere materially
with law enforcement, although
police prefer both front and rea,
license plate display In checking
trAhhc law violators.
20 ,.sFs