Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1959-07-10

COIlSlSleIlCN VI SPCCu HILLS
on VeirS Mill I'd, between
Georgia ave-, and Rockville.
Donald E. Ryan, who also is
director of safety for the Wash
ington Gas Light Company,
made specific mention of the 55
miles an hour speed zone be-
tween the Rockville city line
and Wheaton Woods. The re-
mainder of the traffic artery is
governed to 35 miles an hour.
1t wasn't the high speed that
bothered Ryan so much as the
abrupt difference between 80
and IS miles per hour.
you get people rolling into
Rockville at So miles an hour
and it's going to take them at
least a thousand feet to slow to
49," he said. The road is limited
to 35 inside the city.
The same condition applies to
the southern end of the IS mile
zone, he said. Ryan's comments
came after the Sentinel received
one of many complaints from
drivers who feel that the IS mile
limit on Veirs Mill I'd. is too
slow.
"On the other hand" Ryan
said, 81 think the speed limits
in the whole Metropolitan Wash
ington-and that includes parts
of Montgomery County-are too
slow and ought to be revised"
He based his statement on the
fact that Washington set its
speed limit at % miles an hour
many years ago when the ma,
jority of cars on the Capitals
streets were model T Fords. He
noted that the limit has been
increased only three miles an
hour and that relative speed
limits in the city and its neigh.
boring areas have increased pro.
portionately.
Our cars today are 20 much
safer than they were, with bet
ter brakes, etc, that these limits
are not reasonable in many
cases." he said.
He remembered that during
the Washington transit strike
of 1856, policemen on Sixteenth
st. and Connecticut ave. waved
rush hour traffic on at speeds
of more than 40 miles an hour
and that fewer accidents re-
suited than during normal times
when 30 mile limit obtained.
At the same time, Arthur
Johnson, ex-chairman Of the
Safety Board and an officer
with Travellers Insurance Co
for many years, said: Person
ally, l don't think speed limits
on Veirs Mill I'd. should be in
creased.
you have to keep that pace
(S5 miles on hour) in order ia
keep alert. Going more than 81
miles on hour In built up areas
Is asking for trouble" Johnson
serves as a member of the Safe
ty Board.
Official police statisti C S
showed that from April 1855
through March 1859 there were
156 accidents on Veirs Mill rd.,
the majority due to excessive
speed. OF the total, II were be-
tween Dodge ST., Rockville and
Randolph rd., while 70 occurred
between Randolph I'd. and Geor
gia ave.
Thus, almost exactly as many
accidents occurred on the north,
ern section of the road that in,
cludes the SIS mile limit and has
fewer houses.
Nevertheless, police reported
that the total number of acci.
dents on Veirs Mill I'd. was con.
siderably below the number ex,
perienced on Georgia ave-,
Colesville I'd, and Rockville
Pike.
Ryan also commented on
East-West hwy. that ties Silver
Spring and Bethesda together
with a snaky, up and down four
lane ribbon. ~
He said that it was his impress
sion that when the road was be.
ing built that developers were
TO put in service streets parallel
to the highway, cutting down
access roads into the main
stream of traffic He deplored
the fact that this was not car.
ried out in all cases. The busy
road is limited to 80 miles an
hour.
II guess you could blame that
on bad planning. but It's too late
now" he said.
What amounts to the last
word, at this point, is preferred
by the traffic engineering de.
partment of the State Roads
Commission.
Ernest w, Bunting, assistant
to traffic director George Lewis,
said that the State Motor We.
hicles Code restricts the speed
on dualized roads to IS miles an
hour when proceeding through
thickly settled communities.