TERRIBLE MOTORING

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 112, 14 May 1930, Page 10

TERRIBLE MOTORING

(To the Editor.) Sir,—Quite recently a noted : English ■ motorist, writing of ' his experiences o£ driving in America, referred to New York as the "City of Terrible Motoring," where people drove ears at terrific speeds, etc., seemingly oblivious to all, except to get there; but I -wonder what .that same gentleman would think, were he to stand and watch the traffic passing through Lower Hutt, en route' from the Trentham races, where cars appear to be almost" touching each other.. He would probably, marvel that there are not more accidents, " and so have I, many times. However, so much for good driving. Recently," while travelling from Upper Hutt, I was forced to drive my ear with one wheel on the . macadam for several miles between Silverstream and Haywards, and had I not done so i would, surely have been smashed up by. would-be Segraves charging one at high. . speed, breaking all the rules of the road, seemingly safe in their over-powered, over iarge -vehicles, and scorning the very idea that my diminutive roadster should be on. thin i m6n at, all- Bllt. sir, can this tnmg. .go on definitely—this changing' about, cutting in, close formation driv- '■' ing, passing and repassing at excessive speeds? Can these people who do such too hardy things get away with it, and still retain their licences? I do not speak, sir, _as one who has had but little experience, but one who has motored," olr and on (mostly on) since 1913, and who has never been invlved iv even a minor accident and who has yet to be brought before the .Bench on any bylaw breach. Imclty! Yes, perhaps, but careful, too. During Christmas I motored to-Lake Tanpo, and was amazed at the number o£ cars I saw over the bank, smashed on the road, and otherwise damaged ami abandoned. Can all these be purely accidental, or otherwise? lam convinced that probably two-thirds of them were due to carelessness, perhaps a bit of bravado ona corner, a little bit of "show"'in overtaking another car,-.or .perhaps, just sheer i eussedness. However, there it is—speeding' along the road one minute and in the ditch the next.' '■',';. .;■..■' ,' ■• .-. ■ '■:'. A' great deal has been said lately about level crossings. If a few "road hogs" (agood definition) care to risk their precious^ necks, in preference to stop (or slow' down), look, and listen, why should every one else be put to,!the expense of costly, ramps, etc., for just these few, who must, at all costs, keep the foot hard down on the "gas"? I fear the slaughter will still go on; people will still be killed) maimed, and property damaged by the unthink-■ ing few, unless some legislation is passed, to eliminate them from the ranks of sane motorists and the speed check is put on, a u few of our speedsters, who ride twowheeled contraptions and often carry a "flapper" on the bracket. I refer to the person who disregards1 every road rule known, and rides the countryside equip- ■ ped with leather jacket, leather helmet, leather gloves, and leather brains, and'-is especially a menace to the community in, our "Age of Speed.". _ _ ;■■ It has been proved that fines, publicity, and even imprisonment are-inadequate punishment for drunken drivers, and I venture'to suggest that a .'person convicted of being drunk while in charge of a motor-vehicle should not only have all the former punishments; but be also deprived of his idriving licence for life. I 'must admit, sir, that in these modern times one must get an extra bustle on, but when it endangers the life and limb of fellowbeings, is the extra hustle ■worth the ■ candle? I think Hdwever,in the near future, let us trust that this glaring chapter of accidents that has been so vividly thrust before us of late will be a lesson to one and all who drive on the socalled open road to think twice, before "stepping on it once." It rests with the individual. —I am, etc.,,. ' .

SORT 'EM OUT.