The Idaho Statesman from Boise, Idaho • 5

FINAL Station Operators Expect Deluge of Gem Motorists Seeking Safety Stickers By DAVID ZARKIN Statesman Staff Writer Southwest Idahoans in increasing numbers this week got state vehicle safety inspections but area safety station operators felt the last week of the year would bring them a deluge of stickerless vehicles More than 200000 vehicles registered in the state lack in-s i stickers Harold Davis supervisor of motor vehicle inspection pro- 'ram estimated A 1967 state aw requires the inspection at some time during the calendar year of 196S and provides for no extension of the Dec 31 deadline Davis said The Statesman surveyed 12 state-licensed inspection station operators in the Treasure Valley from Mountain Home to Payette Many stated that the last week of the month would be the start of a safety sticker rush that could continue into January Motorists who do not have little blue stickers on their windshields by Jan 1 are guilty of misdemeanors according to the state law The state law enforcement commissioner may revoke the registration of a vehicle registered and operated in Idaho that does not display a current label The Boise Bus Co coaches and the taxi cabs in Boise have been safety-inspected spokesmen for the firms said It was difficult to determine if Boise Motor Coah Co buses had been inspected since the firm does not maintain an office in Boise The week after Christmas will being a of motorists who have been procrastinating about safety stickers and the rush could continue into January Bill Narver manager of a Boise inspection station said Inspections tripled this week compared to the past business but the safety check business amounted to a small percentage of the total business he added Several operators said motorists would need to make appointments during the last week to get inspections and others said they are now taking cars for inspection only on an appointment basis Narver said it takes 20 to 30 minutes to inspect a vehicle and it was necessary to schedule checks a few days in advance The number of stickers being issued per day ranged from 3 to 12 for the 12 stations throughout the valley Paul Andregg a Boise operator said he was issuing four or five a day and suspected that the number issued at his station have picked up a in the past few days He expected quite a few late comers at the end of the month but thought the and owners of will not license or operate their vehicles after the first of the year The service department manager in a Boise new car dealership said if the motorists do not get the stickers will be their own Not being able to afford to get the work done to pass the safety check is deterring a lot of people from getting the stickers he added Another Boise station operator said sticker issuance was going with about three or four per day and he expected a last minute deluge A Nampa operator was scheduling checks one per hour for five to jsix days in advance starting last week He was issuing 10 to 12 stickers a day he reported and expected business to increase as the month nears an end The service manager of a Nampa new car agency said the older cars need a great deal of work and the owners are reluctant to spend the money His service department was booked up a week in advance for safety checks Early model cars in many cases need new brake linings and ball joints in the front end suspension a Caldwell station operator said but the later models do not need much repair Another Caldwell station operator said brake work was a large item He did not think all of the motorists would get stickers before the end of the month A Meridian gasoline station was issuing eight to 10 stickers a day and was scheduling appointments for next week the attendant said Brake work and front-end repair were the most prevalent faults because motorists ignore them in cases where they are not noticeable he added A Mountain Home station and a Glenns Ferry station were averaging about three stickers a day and the operators expected a rush towards the end of the year Exhaust system problems headlights out of adjustment and faulty brakes were cited as frequent problems An auto dealer in Payette was handling 10 to 12 safety inspection customers a day and expected more as the end of the year approaches The garage was not making appointments but was handling the inspections in the order that the customers arrived THE IDAHO BAIiy STATESMAN New Highway Connector Section BOISE IDAHO FRIDAY DECEMBER Pace Onm Links Boise Interstate Boise West Connector Dedicated at Ceremonies Thursday It you havo a question or problem to bo solved largely involving any governmental agency or bublic matter write to Action Post co The Statesman PO Box 2640 Boise Idaho 83701 To the extent possible queries will be investigated and a reply made in this column Questions must be submitted in writing and contain vour full name and address (which will be withheld from publication on request) Source Given for Information on Gun Rules I can't seem to find out anything about the gun law that was just passed Gary Bass USMC Free copies of the laws and rules are available by writing this address: Internal Revenue Service Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Division US Treasury Department Washington DC 20224 New Soil Delivered to Equalize Payment I gave a man a $20 bill for top soil and fertilizer and all the change I got back was $2 The estimate for the materials was $10 Mary Horsewood Boise Action Post learned that additional soil has been delivered to settle the account AN HISTORIC UNK in Boise Valley transportation was opened Thursday morning after dedication ceremonies for the Boise West Connector and Interstate 80N Highway from the Maple Grove Interchange to Meridian Acting Boise Mayor Ansa Hettinger standing center traced the improvements in Boise air rail and highway transportation during past decade About 150 persons attended the event including the Meridian High School Band Traffic Eased From Downtown Into Meridian Cloud capped snowy Boise foothills were the backdrop Thursday for the dedication and opening of the $95 million Boise West Connector and Interstate 80N Highway from downtown Boise to Meridian is probably the longest connector to a freeway in the Doyle Symms chairman of the State Highway Board told a group of about 150 officials and spectators who attended the ceremonies at the Franklin Road Interchange The four and a quarter-mile gentle curving connector with three interchanges and three grade separations was one of two sections of roadway being dedicated during the morning event in mid-30 degree weather The other section was the portion of Interstate 80N from the West Connector to Meridian which has been completed for some time Symms said Begun in 1965 Copstruction of 45 miles of the interstate four-lane divided highway from State Highway 69 at Meridian to Maple Grove Road west of Boise began in July 1965 This section was the first modem concrete highway constructed in the Boise Valley officials said The opening of the two sections allows motorists to drive from downtown Boise to Ontario practically without any stops Symms said The route was built with federal funds and Idaho Highway users taxes paid by motorists when they buy gasoline he added The highway board chairman supported retention of the one-cent in crease per gallon of fuel in the users tax to be matched with federal funds for state highway construction He said there is 580 million worth of highway construction needed in the state in the next two years Growth Cited Lt Gov Jack Murphy said the connector was a transportation service tied to the future growth of our capital He said there is a in the road system and the state was meeting the challenge One million cubic yards of excavation was involved in the project Murphy said as he commended die contractors for their work Robert Christensen assistant to Ellis Mathes state highway engineer said the State Highway Department worked closely on the project with US Bureau of Public Roads Mathes was scheduled to speak but was unable to due to a case of influenza Christensen said Acting Boise Mayor Anna Hettinger traced the improvements in air rail and highway transportation systems Highway Board Members Urge For US 95 Over Lewiston Hill at Boise Parley Rost Defends Procedures in Handling of Mail A person who works at the Boise Post Office told methat the employes who distribute mail at Borah Station on the midnight shift have to mark every letter they put in the boxes They were ordered to do fills to determine who is making the errors Does the postmaster think he can improve service by encouraging fear among the employes? VerdirccL Boise Postmaster John Rost says this is one of several quality controls used in postal operations Test letters are mailed to assure proper pickup and handling of mail records are maintained showing who handled certain mails at a given time or place sometimes employes strike across a handful of mail with a colored pencil to identify mail distributed by that employe average good employe is not fearful of these Rost said it is the inefficient and indifferent employe who wants to remain Such procedures are used only when situations indicate the need several miles east of Lewiston on a route that would allow four-laning the full -75 miles of the cutoff to a point just south of Genessee Both Thomason and Director Ed Flandro held that a more direct route such as the-North Fork plan would be to the bei-efit all of Thomason said the people at Moscow St Maries Coeur Sandpoint and Bonners Ferry preferred a more direct road to Southern Idaho and Flandro said the traffic engineer told the board that at an informational meeting in Lewiston officials of that city voted in favor of a proposed which would have the same termini at the bottom and top of Lewiston Hill but eliminate the switch-back curves of the present road Keep Money in Idaho Director Howard Thomason of Sandpoint said he believed that should keep the highway users and revenue in He noted that the route would extend from US 95 Idaho Highway Board -s spoke out vigorously Thursday for a routing of US 95 over the Lewiston Hill without giving consideration to Washington State traffic The board authorized the Highway Department to retain a consultant to determine if the benefits of the more direct routing exceed damages to Lewiston whose city officials prefer a route connecting with US 95 near the Washington State line Dean Tisdale planning and Boise Avenue Intersection Will Change The State Highway Board Thursday approved a proposal for initial planning and construction of a new Intersection of Boise Avenue with Capitol Boulevard The new intersection will be about 250 feet south of its present intersection both with Capitol Boulevard and College Avenue Dean Tisdale planning and traffic engineer said the construction will be part of a long-range improvement of Capitol Boulevard to handle traffic after the Interstate bypass is completed and traffic moves to Boise primarily by way of Broadway and Vista Avenues Tisdale said that when the Broadway and Vista Avenue interchanges are completed and the two streets are widened Federal Way (US 30) will MACHINES LOOTED Vending machines at Hillcrest grade school were pried open it was discovered Thursday morning Boise police said $5 was believed to have been taken in the break-in 13 1968 people of Southern Idaho also wanted such a road Communities Favored Deputy State Engineer Robert Christensen said that the state law is written favor communities and not the general highway He said that- the department would have to prove in defending the North Fork route that the benefits to the state would exceed the losses to Lewiston which would benefit more from the ridge route Tisdale said that the Lewiston businessmen would desire to benefit from traffic both from Idaho and Washington State Chairman Doyle Symms suggested that if the North Fork route were approved the present road could be kept on the highway system as a benefit to Lewiston Christensen suggested the hiring of a consultant and the board members said they thought it would be best to take the routing under advisement Schools List Flu Effects At Lewiston LEWISTON (AP) Lewiston public schools have had a 24 per cent absenteeism rate this week which is attributed to an outbreak of influenza but the school board says it does not plan to cancel any classes One school was closed in nearby Clarkston Wash Officials said the reason was that the eig Hoi olic School were sick with flu The only other reported effects of flu in the area was cancelation of a- school play at Craigmont Lewiston school officials said no sports events or other school activities had been canceled The highest absenteeism rate in the district was at the Lewiston High School which had a 34 per cent rate There are about 6200 students in the district Lewiston school officials also reported 15 teachers have been absent because of flu Community doctors say they cannot determine without tests whether the flu is the Hong Kong variety Mixmastcrs Select Bonner Best Speaker Jack Bonner was selected best table topics speaker Thursday at the weekly meeting of Mixmasters Club No 1 of the Idaho Department of Employment Topic was and the Forthcoming Nixon William Harris was toastmaster and John Voulkos presided over table topics General evaluator was by Ed Coupe Walk Under Ladders TODAY? Civil Suit Advised in Cases of Renter Damage What action if any can be take when renters skip without paying rent damage furniture beyond repair and leave walls and woodwork damaged? The apartment was newly decorated when they moved in less than a year ago Name withheld The president of the Boise Apartment Owners Association suggests the landlord file a civil action seeking recovery As an alternative the landlord might go to the prosecuting office to see if there could be any criminal action Of course such criminal action would not recover damages and it would be up to the prosecutor to determine if there was any crime involved City Engineer Studies Road Painting Proposal A recent accident on Fairvlew Avenue prompted my suggestion on how the lines should be painted on the street for a one-way street I have enclosed a diagram Cecil Morey Action Post submitted your diagram to the district highway engineer (Bill) Sacht He said the suggestion would appear to have merit on paper but there are several inherent problems Action Post sent you a copy of letter World War I Veterans Seat New Officers chaplain Neil quartermaster' Jack Musser judge advocate Horace Davis adjutant and Dr Henry Harris Larry -Evans and Dr A Simmons trustees (Bill) Robison of Boise was installed at the meeting as junior vice commander of the Department of Idaho SAWTOOTH Barracks No 217 Veterans of World War I installed new officers Thursday night at the GAR Hall From left are Torn Williams of Blackfoot Department of Idaho commander Walter Brannan new commander and Otto Zimmer new vice commander Other new officers are Lambert Erpelding senior vice commander Charles Champ LEARY OF A LADDER and fearing Friday the 13th these two women will probably suffer emotional problems today as they go to and from their office at the post office building where work is underway on an elevator shaft Grace Broadbent left and Tricia Charlton work in US District Bankruptcy Court as secretaries.