The Independent-News, Volume 87, Number 18, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 2 May 1963 — Page 4

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THE INDEPENDENT-NEWS — May 2, 1963

A Vast Network Os Growth and Progress

An interesting piece of information came to us from the Indiana Highways f”r Survival. Inc, this past week which hiid some facts and figures that truly fascinat'd us It started off; "In less than ten years you can get into your automobile and, except for voluntary st< ps and or excursion's, drive uninterrupted to New Yelk, Ij«’S Angeles. Miami or virtually anv other point of the compass metropoiilan destination you may choose." This is through the continually glowing sy tem of interstate highways i gut country This t rem-nJeus sy 'em, con reived in 1956. will Is in knutl 41.(160 miles of Inter tato highways and is st heduhd to be done in 1973. More than onethird 11500 miles, i already in use. Another 4 400 miles is under construction and engineering woik or right-of-way acquisition is start'd on an additional 11,000 miles. Combine with thi? the thousands of miles of new primary and socondaiy road- and streets that will also be added in this time. Yet. ac or hng to the report, tli*n? is les; than 24 4 feet of highway for every mt tor vehicle in the nation This fact is staggering. Nearly 79 million vehicles are being driven 740 billion miles each year in the United States. There are more than 2,200.00 * registered in Indiana alone. This i compared to only 336,000 in 1920 All of these figures are far beyond expectations of a few years ago. Highway ccnstructii n was at a standstill fur prolonged period , during the two World Wars an in many states for periods after the wars when revenue for roadwork was short for the needed requirements. In 1956 the States and Federal government were finally able to launch a coordinated finan'<■ program to improve our highway system. This was done over strenuous objections of many critics.

May - Again Is Car Safety Check Month

May is Safety Cheuk Month. This annual .safety check of vehicles stalled several years ago through the cooperation of the police and several civic organiZations to make automobiles safer to drive in anta ■pation of cut tailing some of the needless automobile accidents tliat happen all the time on otir nation's highways. It felt that safer cars could lead to safer driving. Wuth the death rale alarmingly idgh earn year on our highway*, any aid to safety is a worthwhile thing Many accidents are caused by faulty vehicles that do either personal damage or heavy property damage (Die safety check includes ten points that can be checked on the spot wherever the safely check lanes are set up that could pi event some accidents Included in the check are lights The head lights, tail lights and the turn signal-,. Nothing is more di gusting than to meet a car with only one headlight, or follow a car with no tail lights. Nut only is it disgusting, but very dangerous Headlights and tail lights are stnctly a necessity. In the period of a few years, turn signals have come from an extra to a mon important item Signaling a turn Is a law and most people depend on the turn signals for thi«- duty Even before they were put on cars and trucks, many people used the hand signal only rpartnrh The automate signal has rehcv«-d Uu driver of this chore of rolling down a window and stioking out the hand The turn signals are also used to signal change of

Highways are not expensive when weight'd against the value received for the finished product Today it costs only slightly more than twice as much to build a mile of highway as it did 60 years ago And certainly the quality of the road n d the traffic it takes is considerably more than could have been imagined at that time In the face of a generally inflationary trend, the roadbuilding index actually has declined during the past six years. When the inerstate system is completed, the motoring public will save an estimated $9 billion an ually in reduced travel time, lower operating costs and properly damage accidents it i., als > • timated that the limited access s; Tem will save 5.000 lives annually I^ast ye ar traffic accidents in the Ur.ited States killed over 40.000 persons. Highways are truly an important part of our country. They play a basic and all-im-portant role in the nation’s growth and prosperity. One out of every Rix businesses in the United States is automotive. Most of th^m are small such as serviie stations, repair shops, car dealers, etc. However, some are big. Os the ten largest industrial coiporations in America, six are motor manufacturers or oil produ< ers. A seventh produces steel, and auto manufacturers are that industry's best customer. At present there arc 90 million licen ed drivers in the United States. More than 2 million persons are reaching driving age every year By 1976, there will be 151 million operators driving 111 million cars and trucks more than 12 trillion miles. Highways are truly the backbone of our corm try for service and convenience The expanded road building program is a necessity and the vast network of roads being planned and built will again seem obsolete if a continued expansion program isn’t carried out.

lanes on a dual lane-highway and in some areas this is law. A safety check lane will check all light If they aren't in proper working order, the owner of the vehicle is given notice to correct them. Also checked are other points that are important, such as brakes Bad brakes cause many accidents. The brake lights are part of this along with the bt.ikes themselves. The check lane show’s lack of brakes or a grabbing of one wheel if the vehicle has a tendency to pull sideways. The check include* the glass in a car and the rearview mirrors Seeing is most important and included also is the windshield wipers that keep the glass clear r? inclement weather. Also included is the horn, an item many take for granted but one that is put on a car for a reason. It can be most helpful. The steering Is checked on all vehicles and alto the exhaust system. These ten items, often seem minor by themselves, but the currer Mon of any one item could be the difference between an accident and safety. It i« your duty to yourself and your family as well as ever v< me that takes to the road to make driving as safe as possible M t of 'he garages and filling is’atfonj will cooperate with the safety chin k Take advantage of this check in May and keep your vehicle wife twelve months a year in an effort to curb the high raising total of accidents that occur in onr modem speeded-up way of living.

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Record Deaths ' Reported In *62 On U. S. Highways Motorists in 1962 raced down the nation's highways on th ii way to a new’, and tragic, death record which for the first time exceeded 40,000 fatalities. Thu number of people injured in traffic accidents also took a sharp turn upward The report is bas»d on information provided by state motor vehicle departments. U. S. highway deaths in 1962 totaled 40.500, a j^ven por cent increase over 1961. Not since 1941. when 39.969 persons lost tlieir lives, has the traffic fatality record be«?n so high. The report also reveals a nine per cent jump in the numbtr of injured in 1962 compared with 1961. In all. 3.345.000 m^n, women and children were hurt in auto accidents last y<ar. As it stands, last year's recon! is truly tragic, but what makes it even more disheartening is that it comes on the ho.di of what we had hoped was a downward trend beginning in 1961. Excessive speed again led the way as tho primary cause of accidents. Nearly 13.000 people were killed and more than 1,145,000 were injured as a dinot result of speeding violations Other major causes of accidents included driving on the wrong side of the road and reckless driving. MIU W .1 I- ..!■ Mil .1— - Speak with authority, tout don’t try to prove everything you say - it”s not worth it. HEIIWVB^ 1 PACKS I E?oweri6i

Looking For Work? Try This Means

With May now here, gradua- i tion isn't tar away. As soon as tne classes of 1963 graduate, hundreds of graduates of this area will be looking for work Mary will have training in typing, stenography, bookkeeping and shop work. Others will take to agriculture for their vocation. Quite a few more will be waiting for the fall months to conic when they travel to colleges of different levels, some in business colleges and others in colleges and universities around the nation Also, another month will produce the many atudents of both high school and college age who will be looking for summer work. These student'; are many times very dependable workers for that part time work needed during the vacation months. The State of Indiana haa an i

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agency that may be very helpful to some of the above mentioned students, the Indiana State Employment Service, with a regional office in South Bend Thia agency of the state is affiliated with the United States Employment Service and is used by many persona each year. To use this service for either end, the employee or the employer, is very simple and no charge is made. Many businesses have been turning to this type of help ia securing workers and usually a satisfactory applicant can ba found. Os course it is not always true as the individual involved still has to be willing to worts and have the proper attitude. However, if you could benefit by this service, use it whether you are looking tor work, or for a worker.