Page:Motoring Magazine and Motor Life November 1913.djvu/17

 November, 1913.

��MOTORING MAGAZINE AND MOTOR LIFE

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���A. I). I'liiiihdft in the hifili iiicrrus in Ins Overland.

��"It is only until recently that the mo- torists have appreciated touring in the high Sierras," says A. D. Plughoff. "The great improvement in power and con- struction in the motor car has made it possible for others than experts to at- tempt to negotiate the steep grades of the high mountains. The improvement of mountain roads by the State has also opened up many new sections to touring. By the opening of the Fair, it will be pos- sible to drive anywhere in the high Sierras."

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The following from Bradstreets, con- tains another argument for good roads :

"According to the data gathered by the Department of Agriculture, where good roads replace the bad ones the values of farm lands bordering on the roads in- crease to such an extent that the cost of road improvement is equaled, if not ex- ceeded. The general land values, as well as farm values, show marked advances following the improvement of roads. As the roads in no way affect soil fertility or quality of the farm, advances are as- serted to be due essentially to the de- crease in the cost of hauling products to market or shipping point.

Farms are now regarded as plants for conducting the business of farming, and any reduction in their profits through un- necessary heavy costs for hauling on bad roads naturally reduces their capitaliza- tion into values. With reduced costs for hauling, profits are increased, with the result that the farm plant shows satisfac- tory earnings on a higher capital value. Immigration is particularly marked where

��road conditions are favorable; in fact, the figures of the department seem to indi- cate that good roads indirectly increase the demand for rural property, and the price of farm land, like that of any other commodity, is ruled by the relations be- tween supply and demand. <5 'S '6

T® IPir©v®M AccniiiloDnfts

While actual statistics show that only one and one-half per cent of automobile accidents occur at railway crossings, nevertheless this one and one-half per cent is so large that automobile associa- tions are co-operating with the railroads to minimize the number, and bring about a greater exercise of care on the part of pedestrians and drivers of motor vehicles.

In making an effort to ascertain where the responsibility for crossing accidents might rest, some observations were re- cently made by one of the railroads with offices in San Francisco, and the state- ment of the result?, involving 16,522 mo- tor vehicles, 4,246 teams, and 4,526 pe- destrians, shows that 69 per cent of the drivers of motor vehicles took no precau- tions whatever to prevent being struck at crossings, 21 per cent passing at a high rate of speed.

It is pointed out by railway officials that the millions necessary for added grade protectio"! would levy extra toll on the rates paid by shippers and passen- gers. There would be less necessity for this if more precautions were taken by pedestrians and drivers at the crossings.

The observations were made in San Francisco, Lodi, Sacramento, Stockton and Oakland. The total of the pedes- trians and drivers of teams and motor driven vehicles who crossed tracks dur-

��ing the period of observation was 25,296. Of this number, 35 stopped and looked in both directions before crossing; 8,950 kept moving and looked in both direc- tions; 1,694 kept moving and looked in one way only, and 14,617 kept moving and looked straight ahead.

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London is at present suffering from an epidemic of women motor car drivers. Every one thought that motor driving for women, never a very popular pastime, had quite gone out, when suddenly :t has become the fashion. The Duchess of Westminster always drives herself now in a big yellow car, and may often be seen coming up to town from her sub- urban retreat near Richmond, a smart chauffeur by her side to act in case of accidents. Miss Pauline Chase, the American actress, is another ardent mo- torist, and frequently threads her way calmly through the busy strand, and drives up to the Savoy grill room for luncheon.

Many of the prominent militant suf- fragettes employ female drivers, Mrs. Pethick Lawrence's able-bodied woman at the wheel being a particularly well known figure about the West End, and the fair taxicab driver threatens to be- come a fixture in the near future. Princess Mary, while at Balmoral, had some les- sons from her brother, the Prince of Wales, who is a keen motorist, but the Queen absolutely declines to hear of her taking up the sport seriously. A num- ber of the chorus lights at the Gaiety and Daly's are expert drivers, and can be met with on Sundays on all the main drives leading out of London.

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