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Show Speed Eats Gas, Ups Costs Third Economy and safety go together in driving. Harold T. Hamxond, proxinent traffic engineer of the National Conservation Co-nservation Bureau, accident prevention preven-tion department of the Associa.tion of casualty and surety executives, gives three outstanding exaxples cf this rule. 1. Moderate speed' saves wear and tear of the engine and reduces tire gasi'line and oil consumption. This is confirmed by careful estimates showing that on the basis of a 1,000 xiile journey the cost per mile for o'il, gas, tires and maintenance is two .and one fifth cents at 45 miles an hour. When the s; eed gees up to 55 'miles an hour the cost per mile mounts to three and three tenths cents, cr about one third greater and each hour saved costs over $2! Death's Best AUy Moderate speed also tends to cut down accidents. Statistice show that high speed is th greatest single element in the nations toll of high-11: high-11: y deaths. Authoritative figures indicate, also that the higher the speed the more serious the accident at 40 to49 'miles an hcur one injury accident in 30 is fatal; but at 50 'Xiles and faster one injury accident in 13 is fatal. 2. Easy starts and stops save gas, tires and brakes. It has been figured fig-ured that a flashy get-away uses up double the gas of an easy one, and that every time you stop on a dime ycu waste a dollars worth of rubber. Take It Easy At Crossings Easy starts and steps also help prevent collisions at intersections. 'In cities, rr.lore than half of all injury in-jury accidents occur at intersections. Many of these are collisions between two vehicles unable to stop in time, and rear-end smashes caused by sudden stops. Hence the driver who would avoid mishaps should take it 'easy at crossings. 3. Inspection of the car before a trip may save possible delays and breakdowns. A charge of $15 for ta.Ving a disabled automobile five miles is not unusual, and this does net include the cost cf repairs. By foUowing these three rules Moderate speed, easy starts and sto.'s, and saife car maintenance the Bureau's traffic experts point out, the motorist will achieve tie double purpose of saving money and avoiding avoid-ing accidents. |