Drive on the right side of the road.
Don’t drive drunk.
Children can’t drive.
Don’t back up in traffic.
No U-turns in the middle of the block.
105 Years Ago
Our traffic laws are so ingrained that it’s easy to forget that those rules had to be invented. The September 18, 1919 Colorado Transcript announced that Golden’s City Council proposed to impose our first traffic ordinance. Their plan was to put several traffic laws on the books, but to enforce them selectively, as needed.
The new rules stated that no one under fifteen could drive unless a competent driver was supervising. Drivers should stay on the right side of the road. No one under the influence of liquor could drive. One rule that mystified me was “a provision forbidding siren whistles and those operated by the exhaust gas of a car.” I’d never heard of an exhaust whistle, but apparently they’re still around (and still obnoxious).
83 Years Ago
A September 18, 1941 Transcript article described a typical session of Golden’s traffic court. “After listening to several cases charged with speeding, reckless driving, backing and turning (also overtime parking) you will be convinced as we were, that the city council, police department and this court have only one object in view–that is to make the Golden streets safe for those who use them.”
The goal of the article was to convince the public that Golden was ready for its first traffic light, proposed for the intersection of 12th and Washington. Mitchell Elementary was located at 12th and Jackson at that time, and hundreds of school children used that intersection going to and from school.
These lights are something that every citizen of Golden should insist upon now before some little tot gets hurt–money or no money, budget or no budget. Surely $160 to $200 is a small premium to pay to insure the safety of these children against accidents which are almost certain to happen without this protection. If you don’t believe it come down any morning, noon or night and see for yourself.
Golden’s first stoplight was installed at 12th and Washington in 1946.
Many thanks to the Golden Rotary Club for sponsoring Golden History Moments for the month of September.
