UlMIVtKSI I Y Or ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN - . '~"Z.V ' > " ALL DEFENSE COUNCILS Pr^a.y yo>: There follows material for a brief talk (6 minutes) on “New Government Policies Affecting Automobile Transportation,” which it is hoped you can ar¬ range to have delivered before November 22nd, to as many meetings in your area as possible: of luncheon clubs, lodges, women’s clubs, labor unions and other organizations. It is, as you will see upon reading it, a vital war message giving information that is needed and will be welcomed by all citizens. New Government Policies Affecting Automobile Transportation A series of rulings has come out of Washing¬ ton in recent weeks of great interest and im¬ portance to automobile owners—particularly to owners of the nation’s 29,500,000 passenger cars. I have been asked today to explain these policies briefly with the reasons for them and to ask your cooperation in making them effective. There are two basic parts to the policy. First: driving of all cars is to be cut to essential mileage, with reduced speeds and periodic in¬ spection to prevent tire abuse. Second: the Government intends to keep all cars provided with gasoline and tires for their essential miles. First step in the program was the order of the Office of Defense Transportation establishing a national speed limit of 35 miles per hour. This will double tire life over what it was at pre-Pearl Harbor speeds. Second step will be nation-wide mileage or gasoline rationing which will become effective November 22nd on order of the Office of Price Administration. This will cut national average annual mileage to 5,000 miles, which means only 2,880 miles for holders of A ration books. Third step will be compulsory tire inspection. This will prevent tire abuse and increase tire life. Fourth step will be production of a substantial supply of all reclaimed rubber tires, approved by the Rubber Director. These will give probably 10,000 miles of service when driven at not over 35 miles per hour. Fifth step will be to bring all idle tires over 5 per passenger car into a government pool, a plan initiated by the War Production Board, planned by the Office of Price Administration, financed by the Reconstruction Finance Corpora¬ tion and approved by the Rubber Director. Taken together these five steps can keep all cars provided with tires for essential use, remov¬ ing the transportation worries of millions of Americans. Pleasure driving will be out, but use of cars for essential needs will be assured for the duration. Pooling of all tires in excess of 5 per car is the purpose of the Idle Tire Purchase Plan, which went into effect October 15th and which on No¬ vember 22nd will become compulsory, for after that date, persons owning more than five tires per passenger car may not legally use gasoline. Certification by car owners that they do not own over five tires per passenger car must be made before that date on Tire Record Forms available at post offices, garages, and in other convenient places. In areas where gasoline al¬ ready is rationed, ration books will be revoked if certification is not filed with local rationing boards by November 22nd. In areas where gasoline will be rationed for the first time on November 22nd, books will not be issued until certification is made. The machinery for collecting tires is simple. You just call or write the nearest Railway Ex¬ press Agency office saying: “I have tires for Uncle Sam. Come and get them.” The express man will call, giving you a simple form to fill out and a receipt. You list on the form your excess tires and state if you wish to give or sell them to the Government at ceiling prices. You also state if you want to be paid by U. S. Treasury check or by War bonds or stamps. Payment will come to you by mail. If you live outside a zone in which the Express Agency gives “pick-up” service, you deliver your idle tires to the nearest Railway Express office. There are 23,000 in the country; one in almost every railroad station. Ceiling prices will be paid by the Government for all tires and tubes, less cost of repairs, if needed. What is the correct ceiling price and repair cost for each tire or tube will be deter¬ mined by expert tire appraisers at government warehouses. Only usable tires are wanted; but difficult repairs will be undertaken, if a tire can be restored to use. Tires beyond repair should be sold to scrap dealers. In case of doubt turn tires in to the Express man. If examination proves a tire good only as scrap, scrap prices only will be paid. Passenger car owners are advised to keep their luOC. Pr b3.4Qa^-* M53»9l. five best tires per car, selling the others to the Government. All passenger car tires are in¬ cluded but those for cars owned or leased by Federal, state, local, or foreign governments and tires on taxicabs or cars for hire, save that when the owner also owns a private car he must turn in all his excess tires. Tires in the hands of dealers, jobbers or manufacturers bought or made for sale are excepted. This includes automobile dealers’ extra tires. Passenger cars on which truck bodies have been installed are considered trucks, but cars with passenger car bodies, even if used for goods delivery, are not excepted. Neither are salesmen’s cars. All such cars, however, will be provided with tires, according to the Government’s plan, if and when they are needed. Station wagons are considered passenger cars, unless used for hire. Passenger car tubes and truck tires and tubes are wanted and will be bought by the Govern¬ ment, but gasoline will not be withheld to force their being turned in. Sale of passenger car tires in excess of 5 per car was made compulsory so that patriotic citi¬ zens w’ould not be called upon to make sacrifices not required of others. It puts everyone on a basis of equality. In closing, I want to emphasize what I tried to make clear at the start: The Idle Tire Purchase Plan is part of a 5-point Government program, the purpose of which is not to take cars off the road, but to keep all cars on the road—for essential mileage. It will help get workers to jobs, farm produce to markets and keep the life stream of traffic flowing, which is essential to the winning of the war. The whole program is reasonable and sensible. The people of America must see to it, through their universal cooperation, that it does not break down at any vital point. MATERIAL FOR ANSWERING QUESTIONS Q. What is an Idle Tire? A. An Idle Tire is a passenger type tire in excess of those mounted on running wheels, plus one spare per passenger car. Q. Must all Idle passenger car tires be sold to the Government? A. All save those on cars owned by Federal, state, local or foreign governments and those on taxicabs or cars for hire, save that if the owner also owns a private car he must turn in his excess tires. Tires in the hands of dealers (including automobile dealers), job¬ bers and manufacturers bought or made for sale are excepted. Station wagons are pas¬ senger cars unless used for hire. Q. What will be paid for tires? A. Ceiling prices, less cost of repairs, if needed. Q. Where can I find out what I will get for my tires? A. Expert tire appraisers in Government ware¬ houses will determine the correct ceiling price for each tire or tube, and fix repair costs. You will be paid by mail. Everyone will have to trust his Government to pay him all the law allows. Q. Is it true no one will get gasoline after No¬ Today, seven out of 10 typical industrial workers depend on cars to get to work, two use public trans¬ portation, and one walks. At a large aircraft factory, 92 per cent of 50,000 workers use private cars to get to work. At one Navy yard, 3,000 workers travel daily 60 to 85 miles round trip by automobile. In 749 Michigan war production plants, 75 per cent of 434,600 workers go to work in private cars. By next January, it was estimated before gasoline was rationed, out of every 10 tires on workers’ cars vember 22 if he owns more than 5 tires per passenger car? A. Yes, if he or anyone in his household related by blood, marriage or adoption, does so. Q. How will the tires be redistributed? A. Under rationing, through regular tire dealers. The Government is buying the tires and selling them at ceiling prices, standing the cost of collection and redistribution. Q. Where can I get an official Tire Record Form, on which to certify I do not own in excess of 5 tires per passenger car? A. At post offices, garages, and other convenient places. Q. Must I sell Idle Tubes also? A. The Government wants and will buy them, but there is no compulsion to sell. Q. Must I sell my spare tire? A. No; the Government wants only idle tires. Q. Must truck tires be sold? A. No. The Government will buy them, but there is no compulsion to sell. Q. Will I get a tire later, if I need one? A. It is the intention of the Government to give everyone recaps or tires if and when they are needed for essential driving. today, four would be worn out. And by August, 1943, eight out of every 10 tires would be worn out. The American Automobile Association estimates that cars (before nation-wide rationing and the 35- mile limit) were going off the road at the rate of three a minute. Already over two million passenger autos are “missing.” There were 29,418,300 registrations in 1941, but today, the Baruch Committee found, only 27,000,000 cars are still running. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2018 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Alternates https://archive.org/details/newgovernmentpolOOunse -