Evening star., 1954-10-15
Greater Staggering
OF Work Hours Seen
In Keneipp Report

Traffic Director George E.
Keneipp will give the Commis-
sioners today an extensive re-
port on private and Government
employment hours which he pre-
diets will lead ultimately to a
greater staggering of working
hours.
Mr.. Keneipp, addressing a
luncheon meeting of the Wash
ington Junior Chamber Of Com
merce, yesterday, disclosed COM
pletion Of the report as one of
six points to ease downtown
traffic congestion.
In addition. he disclosed that:
/. He will ask the Commission.
ers late today to adopt a regula.
ton defining the mo standing
bans on downtown streets q.
meaning motorists cannot Stor
to pick up passengers unless tn,
passengers are actually waiting
on the curb.
New Crossing Markers.
2. His department, for tht
first time, will permit pedestrian
crossings in the middle of some
of the city's long blocks. The
first such crossing markers viii
be painted within the next 10
days on Connecticut avenue be-
tween Van Ness and Albermarle
streets NV. and on Massachu-
sets avenue between Macomh
street and Ward Circle.
8. He soon will begin a study
to determine feasibility of re-
placing present fixed time"
traffic lights with lights that
would be controlled completely
by traffic volumes approaching
the lights. \
4. Under the city's new point
system" which rates traffic
violations before motorists Ii
censes are revoked, the city has
revoked only one-sixth of the
number of licenses it did under
"the old rock 'em, sock 'em
system"
5. His Office is seeking a
"longer and better" driver test,
designed mainly to rate appli-
cants' "sense of traffic response
bility and safety"
City officials already have
made public data showing the
sharp imbalance in the volume
Of Federal employees who report
for work at certain times. Ir
the morning, for example, only
5,278 report at 7:45 am, with
23.458 reporting at 8 am. In the
evening, 8,480 leave at 4:45. and
$3.50 leave at S.
The idea of the new study il
that II the spreads were reduced
fewer would be on the road al
any one time and congestion
would be cut.
The report today, Mr.. Keneipr
said, viii include data from the
Washington Board Of Trade
Merchants & Manufacturers AS.
sociation. private parking oper-
ators and bus companies or
private employees working habits
The decision to permit pedes-
trians to cross in the middle o1
some blocks was made after
police reported success of a
similar plan in Cleveland. Mr.,
Keneipp said. The traffic CHIEF
also, commended another down
town experiment, which permits
pedestrians to cross in any di-
rection while red lights hold ur
all traffic.
Walk at Own Risk.
He said he would not recon-
mend, however, that diagona,
crossings be permitted at these
intersections. While there is ne
law prohibiting diagonal cross.
ings, pedestrians who use then
do so at their own risk, he said
The study to determine feas.
ibility of doing away with fixed.
time traffic lights contemplate
a system by which street treadle'
/ would control the lights accord
i ing to the volume Of traffic II
any one direction. Such sys'
TEN would let light timing var!
constantly during the day i
traffic demanded it.
While the proposed new sys'
tenn would be very costly. Mr.
Keneipp said. he thought il
would ''be q shame to invest mil
lions In new highway facilities
only to have their utilization
impeded by limitations Of oul
existing signal system"