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On This Day in Automotive History: December 15

On This Day in Automotive History
December 15

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Birthdays: Winfield Barndollar (1883), Walt Ader (1913), Bob James (1922), Bill Pitt (1926), Bill Mackey (1927), Al Grinnan (1929), Claude Aubin (1939), Alain Flotard (1950), Wido Rossler (1950), Skip Pannell (1956), Marty Roth (1958), Jan Leaty (1959), Jan Nilsson (1960), Ricky Bilderback (1965), Max Angelelli (1966), Kelly Kingery (1967), Chris Bingham (1971), Bryon Chew (1971), Werner Lupberger (1975), Sergio Paese (1975), Chris Oddo (1976), Erwin Creed (1980), Joshua Schoonover (1980), Borja Garcia (1982), Mario Romancini (1987), Rich Dubeau (1988), Conor Daly (1991), Chase Briscoe (1994)

1924: In Washington, DC, Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover convenes the National Conference on Street and Highway Safety, the first national effort to minimize injuries and loss of life from traffic accidents--22,600 deaths in 1923 and 678,000 personal injuries, representing an economic loss of $600 million. Over 900 representatives of municipal and State police departments, automobile, educational, and civic associations participate. Chief Thomas MacDonald, Herbert Fairbank, A. T. Goldbeck, and E. W. James represent Bureau of Public Roads.

1967: The U.S. 35 Silver Bridge between Point Pleasant, West Virginia, and Gallipolis, Ohio, collapses at approximately 5 p.m., killing 46 people and injuring 9 when 31 of the 37 vehicles on the bridge fall into the Ohio River or onto the Ohio shore. The collapse, the first major collapse since the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapsed on November 7, 1940, prompts national concern about bridge conditions and leads to the establishment of the National Bridge Inspection Standards under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1968 and the Special Bridge Replacement Program under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1970.

1969: The Silver Memorial Bridge opens at Henderson, West Virginia, replacing the Silver Bridge, which collapsed 2 years ago to the day. Administrator Frank Turner comments on efforts to ensure the lessons learned prevent future tragedies: "Involved are complex secrets of the physical sciences not yet completely understood and thus not readily detectable. But within your government, dedicated men and women are seeking the answers to these and many other problems . . . . When we build upon tragedy . . . and find new solutions to increase safety for others, we then can perhaps find small consolation that such a loss has not been in vain. It is really this effort which we dedicate here today."

1988: At a press conference sponsored by The Road Information Program, former Administrators Ray Barnhart, John Hassell, Norbert Tiemann, and Frank Turner join in denouncing a proposed gasoline tax increase for deficit cutting. Hassell says the plan, if adopted, "would only exacerbate the dilemma facing our nation's surface transportation system." Barnhart says, "It is blatantly discriminatory to single-out motorists from the entire population to bear the brunt of deficit reduction."

2000: 007 Racing was released on the Sony PlayStation in the EU.

2003: Great Wall becomes the first Chinese automaker to become a publicly traded company with an initial offering on the Hong Kong stock exchange.