White Plains, NY - December 21, 1999 |  The century began with people fearful to ride in that newfangled contraption - the horseless carriage. Now, as the new millennium draws near, Americans are said to have a love affair with their cars. But for a nation in love, we may not know as much as we think about cars and driving. Try your hand at this quiz from Response Insurance on automobiles and driving in the 20th Century.

           
1. Who designed the octagonal Stop Sign? 
	a.) A policeman in Detroit MI
	b.) The United States Department of Transportation
	c.) The National Bureau of Standards & Measures

2. Where was the first traffic signal installed in the United States? 
	a.) New York NY
	b.) Suisun City CA
	c.) Detroit MI

3. When was radar first used to catch speeders? 
	a.) 1955
	b.) 1960
	c.) 1965 

4. When was the only highway connecting Alaska to the lower 48 states built? 
	a.) 1942
	b.) 1952
	c.) 1962

5. In which horse-drawn carriage (later a major auto maker) did President 
    Lincoln ride to Ford's Theatre? 
	a.) Ford
	b.) Lincoln
	c.) Studebaker

6. Who received the first patent for a fast-running combustion engine fueled
    by a petroleum product?  
	a.) Walter Chrysler
	b.) Gottlieb Daimler
	c.) Henry Ford

7. How much did the first Model T Ford cost to the consumer?  
	a.) $850
	b.) $1,850
	c.) $2,850

8. When was the first uniform traffic code for the nation created? 
	a.) 1906
	b.) 1926
	c.) 1946 

9. How did Genevre Delphine Mudge make driving history in 1898?  
	a.) The first woman to start an auto manufacturing company, the Delphine 
		DeLuxe Automobile Company.
	b.) The first woman to drive a car.
	c.) The inventor of the "Mudge Rim," the modern steel wheel.

10. What was the first state to require a driver's license? 
	a.) New Jersey
	b.) Florida
	c.) Rhode Island

11. When was the first "vanity" license plate issued and where?
	a.) Connecticut in 1937
	b.) California in 1957
	c.) New York in 1967

12. How many licensed drivers are there in the U. S.? 
	a.) 80 million
	b.) 180 million
	c.) 280 million 

13. Where was the nation's first full service gas station? 
	a.) Pittsburgh PA
	b.) Los Angeles CA
	c.) White Plains NY

14. Where is the Museum of Automobile History located?
	a.) Syracuse NY
	b.) Detroit MI
	c.) Omaha NE

15. When was air conditioning first offered in a car?
	a.) Packard in 1941
	b.) Cadillac in 1950
	c.) Lincoln in 1956

16. In what year were the first restrictions imposed on auto emissions?
	a.) 1963
	b.) 1969
	c.) 1973

17. When was the AAA (automobile club) formed?  
	a.) 1899 in Garden City NY
	b.) 1902 in Chicago IL
	c.) 1947 in Los Angeles CA

18. Which U. S. President launched the construction of the interstate 
    highway system?
	a.) Truman
	b.) Eisenhower
	c.) Kennedy

1. a.) One of the most recognized symbols in the world, the octagonal Stop Sign was designed in 1914 when a Detroit MI cop took a square sign and cut off the corners.

2. c.) In 1914 Detroit MI installed a manually operated "stop and go" sign and later that year an electric signal was installed in Cleveland OH.

3. c.) Radar was first used to catch speeders by Indiana police in 1965.

4. a.) 1942

5. c.) On April 14, 1865, Abraham Lincoln took his last horse-drawn carriage ride to Ford's Theatre in a Studebaker.

6. b.) German inventor Gottlieb Daimler received the patent in 1883.

7. a.) The 1906 Model T retailed for $850. By 1916 Henry Ford's improvements to the assembly line enabled the price to drop to less than $400.

8. b.) In 1926 the National Conference on Street and Highway Safety drew up a uniform code of traffic rules, which was eventually adopted by all states.

9. b.) In 1898 Ms. Mudge was the first woman to drive a car. One year later, as the first female race car driver, she was the first woman to have an auto accident.

10. c.) Rhode Island in 1908.

11. a.) 1937 in Connecticut.

12. b.) Approximately 180 million.

13. a.) The first modern gas station opened in Pittsburgh PA in 1913.

14. a.) The largest museum of auto history, with a collection of more than 10,000 items, is in Syracuse NY. (There's plenty of parking.)

15. a.) Packard offered the first car with air conditioning in 1941.

16. a.) 1963.

17. b.) The AAA was formed in 1902 in Chicago IL.

18. b.) President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Response Insurance regularly provides to the public news and information regarding driver safety and transportation issues. The Company issues safety tips, reports, analyses, and conducts original research and sponsors national surveys as a public service to drivers, their passengers and pedestrians. Informational brochures on car safety driving tips, saving money on auto insurance and other issues are available from the company.

Response Insurance can be contacted through its toll-free number 1-800-610-5928 and website: www.Response.com. Response Insurance is a direct-to-the-customer auto insurance company dedicated to insuring responsible people. By focusing on insuring responsible drivers with better driving records and by reaching consumers directly, rather than through commissioned insurance brokers and agents, Response Insurance is able to offer free auto insurance quotes, lower prices, more efficient service and excellent value.