A STUDY OF TRAFFIC LAW VIOLATIONS

THIS STUDY OF TRAFFIC PRACTICES AT A NUMBER OF INTERSECTIONS IN WASHINGTON, D. C. WAS UNDERTAKEN FOR THE PURPOSE OF ACCUMULATING DATA UPON WHICH ANALYSES COULD BE MADE OF THE REASONABLENESS OR UNREASONABLENESS OF VARIOUS REGULATIONS. DATA WERE SECURED AT FOUR INTERSECTIONS CONTROLLED BY TRAFFIC LIGHTS FOR THROUGH TRAFFIC ON ONE STREET. THE LAW OBSERVANCE WAS BEST (85 PERCENT) AT LIGHT CONTROLLED INTERSECTIONS AND POOREST (51 PERCENT) AT THE STOPSTREET INTERSECTIONS. VEHICLE SPEEDS WERE STUDIED ON UNCONTROLLED SECONDARY STREETS, ON ARTERIAL STREETS PROTECTED BY STOP SIGNS AND ON STREETS CONTROLLED BY TRAFFIC LIGHTS. A STUDY OF THE DATA INDICATES A REASONABLE SPEED WHICH A LARGE MAJORITY OF THE DRIVERS WILL BE WILLING TO OBSERVE UNDER THE DIFFERENT CONDITIONS. IF THE SPEED LIMITS ARE SET ON THESE BASES, IT MAY BE POSSIBLE TO CURB THE SMALL NUMBER OF DANGEROUS DRIVERS WHO EXCEED THEM. IF THE LIMIT IS UNREASONABLY LOW, THE VIOLATORS ARE SO NUMEROUS THAT THE POLICE CANNOT COPE WITH THEM. CAUTIONS SIGNS ARE DISCUSSED. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  https://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrbproceedings/12/12-024.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 12, Pt1, PP 369-379, 4 FIG, 5 TAB. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Van Duzer, W A
  • Soule, D A
  • Dickinson, H C
• Publication Date: 1933

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Twelfth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board Held at Washington, D.C. December 1-2, 1932. Part I: Reports of Research Committees and Papers
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Board Proceedings
  • Volume: 12
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Arterial highways; Intersections; Speed limits; Stop signs; Streets; Studies; Traffic regulations; Traffic signals; Traffic speed
• Uncontrolled Terms: Traffic laws; Violations
• Old TRIS Terms: Speed studies
• Subject Areas: Highways; Law; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00220999
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Jun 1 1971 12:00AM