Germany Knows How To Tackle the Traffic Problem
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A Progressive Outlook Characterizes Treatment of a Growing Problem. High-speed Coach Travel on New Motor Roads UNDOUBTEDLY one of the most impressive features-• . of ' a tour through any part of the new Germany is the practical expression given to national road-mindedness. Transport by road is regarded as one of the facts of life, just likel the -water supply, and, therefore,
to be developed for the public .weal.Con•
trol there is and must . be, but the leaders have realized that ' a network of laws and regulations is no -substitute for a network of efficient roads; hence the autobahnen.
• These are new high.
ways for the exclusiveuse of mechanically
propelled vehicles. As the accompanying map
shows, they are planned to cover a big part of the country. Up to July 1, 860 miles, out of 4,930 miles -.planned, had been opened to traffic.
Their construction is undertaken by a 50,000,000-mark subsidiary company of the state railways.
It has the monopoly of filling stations, workshops, loading ramps and advertising on the new routes. The railway influence has been introduced for two main reasons; (a) to employ their accumulated experience in organization work, and (b) because "increasing motorization would undoubtedly cause the partial removal of certain goods from the rail to the road." I quote from the official book on the subject; what a comparison with our pathetic " status quo " methods! • On these roads there must be no cross-traffic on the same plane, sub ways or bridges being used, and enter ing traffic is physically bound to join the streams obliquely and slowly. No pedestrian or bicycle traffic may use these highways ; again bridges or subways cater for their needs.
-Dual carriageways have a central dividing strip .planted-with 'shrubs to minimize dazzle at night. In lowland areas, the maximum gradient allowable is 4 per cent., in hilly regions 6 per
B28 cent, and in mountainous districts 8 per cent.
Recently I had the opportunity of. gaining personal experience on these roads, being one of the party of 120 attending the summer meeting in Germany of the Institution of Automobile Engineers.
High Average Speeds.
Motorcar speeds on the autobahnen are not nearly so high as might be imagined-40-45 m.p.h.' being the
normal. Big coaches use their overdrive fifth speeds and consistently pass the older and smaller cars, For miles at a time, I watched the Speedometer Oneach coach I used hovering about the 45 m.p.h. mark. Some remarkably high averages are put up by even the biggest vehicles, because the drivers can maintain a consistent rate of, speed, knowing that there will be no lateral interference.
The surfaces are excellent and free from -waviness. The absence of trees on many stretches of autobahn deprives passengers of the shade that they enjoy in the heat of summer onthe older roads, but one can tolerate a great .deal when the whole efficiency of transport is raised by such a big percentage.
Fuel consumption and brake wear are greatly improved and the practicability of using high gear ratios makes for really quiet travel. Radio recepticth..at 45 m.p.h. was 'good and free from . interference.
As to road behaviour in general, conditions are everywhere easier than in Great Britain, because of • the much smaller number • of vehicles met per mile. The German-. view is that every person on the highways, whether on foot or on wheels, is a traffic unit and must behave with a sense of responsibility; a pedestrian stepping off a kerb against • a traffic-light signal or a policeman's signal can be fined. There is, therefore, a greater degree of certainty at all controlled,. points and everybody benefits.
Mechanical signalling indicators are universal on motor vehicles ; those on some of the coaches and buses oscillate -through 90 degrees when in action, thus ejectively catching the eye.
As to German coaches, I travelled exclusively in oil-engined vehicles, for the simple reason that all of them used by the party were of that type. Modern lorries of over 30-cwt. pay-load and all coaches and buses of recent date are oilers, although the home-fuel urge now being experienced may, to some extent, alter this position.
While on this question of homeproduced fuel, there are many signs of a check to the development of the oil engine for road work. Many of Berlin's four-wheeled buses have gas cylinders slung alongside the chassis frame, but most of the six-wheelers still retain their oil engines.
Ante-chamber-type engines have always been a feature of German design. They are likely to be retained, because they permit easy conversion to fuels other than imported hydrocarbon oils.
For example, the ante-chamber may be taken out and another much larger one inserted, which reduces the compression ,radio and allows the use of compressed gas, with, of course, spark ignition instead of compression ignition. Again, a small ante-chamber may be removed and one of medium size inserted to deal with liquid fuels which demand a medium compression ratio.
I was forcibly struck by the stability of oil-engine design with regard to combustion systems. Little seems to have been done since 1934 in the way of new developments. One of the causes of this state of affairs is that whatever money is available must be concentrated, so far as possible, on matters calculated to improve export markets, which are subsidized.
How " Development " Money is Used.
Whatever existing machine tools, manufacturing processes and engine designs can be regarded as commercially satisfactory, they must be retained, so that " development money can be concentrated upon entirely new products for fresh lines likely to open up new overseas busi
ness. The result'is that engines for home use tend somewhat to stagnate in design.
This home-produced fuel . policy possesses a possible future advantage, in that there will undoubtedly he a call all over the world for compressionignition engines with a much wider " taste " in fuels than have existing types. Therefore, the policy may, in a few years' time, be of great benefit to the export trade of Germany.
Reverting to 'roach matters, the engines are slower running than English units, but top gears or overdrives are much higher. When idling, the power units struck me as rather more noisy than we are accustomed to, but at cruising speeds they were entirely unobtrusive..
The up-to-date coach invariably has glass from the waist rail right up to the runners of the sliding roof.
Whatever one may think of other affair's in Germany, the forward policy with regard to road transport is an eyeopener and Will in time make for efficiency with safety, which cannot be said of countries, the eyes of which are directed to a bygone " basic year."
Prr.o4rm.