THE DEATH ROLL

Hokitika Guardian, 29 July 1931, Page 5

THE DEATH ROLL

WHAT STATISTICS SHOW. ENGLAND AN2I AMERICA; The following is from the “New York 'limes”:-oi-cat Diitain s steadily " mounting toll oi accidents and Dualities on the load, especially Oi casualies. due to nutor-cars, is revealed m the figures recently made public bv the Home G.nee. in ten years the deaths in road accidents have risen from 2687 in 1921 to ,31.5 in 1930, the total casualties in the same period rising from 62,62] to '185,200. The deaths in 1830 increased nearly, two a day over 1929, and the total casualties for the year by nearly 8000. , ■

In the United States during 1830 the number of accidents involving motorcars increased 12 per cent., the number of deaths 4 per cent, and the total number of those injured 13 per cent. The deaths numbered 32,500, as against 31,215 the preceding year, an increase of about three and a half daily. The American increase is all the rhore impressive in the face of extensive safety oninoaigns and the decrease of .15,000,000,000 miles in motor-vehicles mileage as compared with the record olf tlie previous year. THE .MOUNTING TOLL. In Great Britain the deaths from road rteciUeim in 1930 totalled ,306, an iuorva&e over the preceding ye-.r of about 600, The British figures, however, include niotor-cycle, bicycle ,ami street railway accidents, ns well as those involving horse-drawn \ eludes, the fata.lines'involving motor cycles being much the largest single group. The total British fatalities in road accidents for the teii-.vear period 1921-1930 inclusive is about 40,000—more than 10,000 less than the fatalities from automobile accidents only in eighteen months in Ihe United States. Recent figures for the preceding eighteen months, as compiled by the Travellers Insurance Company, placed the total of automobile fatalities in the United States at 50,900. as against the 59,510 men of the A.E.F. killed or fatally wounded in batt'e dur ng the eighteen months of the "World War, or the 110,070 soldiers of the Union Army killed in battle or fatally wounded during the four years of the Civil War. The Metropolitan Police District of London, with almost the same population as New York, reported 1398 killed in all road accidents—lncluding street railway, bicycle, and horse-drawn vehicle accidents. In New York deaths from motor-vehicles alone reached 1276, a decrease from the 1418 of the preceding year. Many interesting sidelights emerge from the cold.statistieal analysis of the road, accidents. .. The ißritishi: figures show that more than half the casualties were pedestrians, and more motorcve'lists', were killed riding alone than With side-c-ar or pillion passengers. Pri-vately-owned motor cars and motorcycles werp involved in about twic a a« nin.nv accidents as all 1 other vehicles together. RESPONSIBILITY OE DRIVERS. The American figures are cited to show that drivers were responsible for more than three times as many accidents as pedestrians. In 28,000 of the fatal accidents of 1930 there whs nothing mechanically wrong with the vehicles. In nine-tenths of the cases of fatalities the drivers had bad more than a year’s experience. Most of the accidents occurred on cleat- days, but 42 of every 100 fatalities occurred at night. Sundays took the heaviest toll. Most of the drivers at fault committed one of three offences—driving on the wrong side of the road, exceeding the speed limit, or failing; to grant right of way. In this country, as in England, the toll was heaviest, among pedestrians, who incurred 122 per cent more fatalities than the occupants of colliding cars.

About 10 per cent, of the New York automobile victims of 1930 were children, and 60 per cent, of these were hoys. For several years, according to the Health Dennrtmont. deaths from automobile accidents in New York have exceeded the combined mortality of tvnhoifl, measles, scarlet fever, diphtheria , "imoninor cough, meningitis, and hrnchiUs. While the general death i-efe in the oitv has h«f»n reduced sine" 1910 ‘’roni Of to 10.76 the nuto"'ab’V death rate has more than doubled.