CONTROL OF MOTORS

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12458, 28 May 1926, Page 9

CONTROL OF MOTORS

THE DELAYED REGULATIONS REPLY TO CRITICISM “REGULATIONS WON’T STOP ACCIDENTS” “There are over 130,000 motor vehicles now on the road, and the daily killing and maiming of people and destruction of property goes ou whilctho Department of Internal Affairs docs nothing whatsoever to discover what remedies may be applied to reduce the slaughter.” To that extract from an article in a Wellington paper the Minister for Internal Affairs (the Hon. R. F. Bollard) yesterday replied, that in spite of any regulations which may be brought down accidents will continue to occur and that the Act, quite apart from any regulations, provides for the imposition of heavy penalties for reckless and negligent drivers of ears. “I must- admit,” said Mr Bollard, “that there has beer, delay in issuing the regulations dealing with dazzling lights, brakes, etc., of motor vehicles, but the delay can be fully justified. When the proposed regulations were prepared I did what I thought was proper by sending a cony of the regulations to all local bodies and motor unions, and received a very large number of suggested amendments, mnnv of which suggestions conflict. My difficulty is to reconcile the conflicting suggestions and to get proposals which it is thought will bo accepiahle and reasonable to all interests. A further reason for tho delay in issuing the regulations—a mnlter I announced some time ago—was that I wanted to see the report of the Parliamentary Larv Draftsman hMr J. Christie), who on his visit to England and America was specially instructed to obtain information as to the control of. motors iu those big centres of motor traffic which would he of considerable value in completing the regulations. Mr Christie recently returned to New Zealand. and his impressions and recommendations are now under consideration.” DAZZLING LIGHTS AND BRAKES Mr Bollard said he had observed iri the article alluded to that questions had been raised as to whether the remedies proposed for dazzling lights and the requirements for braking had beeen tried out by the Department, but no assurances that that was the case was forthcoming. “T am unable to ray a t the moment,” the Minister said, “what requests may have been received in regard to this matter, but I do know that the motor associations were trying out vancus systems iu regard to headlights with a view of submitting a report, which report has not .yet come to hand.” CARELESS DRIVING AND ACCIDENTS The Minister said that the writer of the article in question had overstepped the mark of temperate criticism when he stated: “There are over 130,000 motor vehicles now on the road, and . tlio ’ daily killing and maiming of people or.d destruction of property goes on while tho Department of Internal Affairs does nothing whatsoever to discover what remedies may be applied to reduce the slaughter.” “In that, sentence of the article,” said Mr Bullard, "the Department is apparently being held more or less responsible for the motor accidents that are happening. I regret that there will stil' continue to be accidents in spite of any regulations which may be brought down, and the vital point which appears to have been overlooked by the writor of the article is the provision contained in section 28 of the Act regarding reckless or negligent driving of a motorvehicle or the driving in a manner or at a speed which, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, is or might he dangerous to the public or to any person. Iu other .vords, thy law already lays down the principle that careful dvivii g is essential.” UNIFORM SPEED REGULATIONS “Judging from the trend of the last part of the article,” remarked M# 801-> lard, “it. would appear that the main object of the writer is to endeavour to get uniform speed regulations; throughout the Dominion. This, in my opinion, is a matter that should be dealt with by tho local body concerned, as' whatever may apply in other countries it would lie a most difficult tiling to lay down uniform speeds throughout tlie Dominion, more especially seeing, that if a speed, limit is fixed there is always the desire to run up to that limit irrespective of other conditions. • I believe that the present provision in the laiv, as referred to, is as good as can bo obtained. That is to soy, a person can only drive a motor-vehicle at such a speed, tak-i iug all tho circumstances into consid-, eration, as is not dangerous to the public or to any person. “I assume that the writer of the article expects that when regulations are made tlie court will not inflict penalties which ho considers ‘ferocious.’ 1 see no justification for this belief, as it appears to mo that the only way to make a careless or negligent motor-driver obey the law is to lino him heavily, and, if necessary, cancel his license. Tlie motorist will, when the new regulations are brought down, have further provisions which ho will require to obey or run tlie risk of being fined.” As far as the recommendations of the conference held in the United States was concerned Mr Bollard understood that in some at least of the States there was no examination of drivers, nor did that phase of motor control appear to he considered essential in England. As far, however, as New Zealand was concerned it was essential that every driver should satisfv the local authority by examination, if necessary, that he was capable of properly controlling a motorvehicle.