New-York tribune., 1872-03-25
STREET.CAR ABUSES,
THE BAD MANAGEMENT OF CITY RAILROADS

1
! VISION.
| Every ono familiar with tho subject will
readily admit that present system OF street convey
aDces Is by no means well administers 1t might
be- and that instead of being public conveyances tho
and stages oftener public nuisancos being
aged mainly for the enrichment OF certain monopoiss
to which end all other considerations apparently sub
servient II well conducted, even the present system
would do much toward solving the problem OF rapid and
commodous transit. Managed at present. It Is dis
grace TO the city, and source OF dissatisfaction. dis
comfort and loss the public. Sanitary Inspector Nor
represented In bis recent report that several lines OF
hOrsecars filthy in the extreme, the cushions and
seats being infested with vermin, and the ventilation
imperfect None OF the cars, indeed are properly con-
structed, and until improvements are devised and
adopted which shall insure better circulation OF pure
air. all travel by sircecars must DO detrimental to
health
rough estimate justiaes the assertion that smaller
percentage OF passengers obtain seats In the NewYork
the street coDveyances Of any other Import
mt city the world. Several OF the Boston companies
In tho decision that paying fare Implied the
right OF passenger 10 scat maintained that ourlnR
the busy morning and evening hours would he lnpos
sble TO give every passenger seat without loss On
roads in this city tho number OF cars run Is made
quatc any hour Of the day to meet the demands OF
ordaary traffic. while between the hours Of p ~ ana
p at least onehaf Of the passengers, being unaoe
to secure seats, huddled prom!scuousy together,
consequently, Is seldom maintained. Should lady
wish to alIght ishe has to elbow her way through
mracy wedged barrier OF men, tho conductor mean
while urging her TO impossible haste with epitbets
usually rude, and sometimes indecent Passengers are
at the mercy Of pckpOckes hand being pinned to
the side while the other grasps the filthy strap When
OF tho track the weight Of the load frequently
prevents s being rged without 10 or Is minutes de-
tenton and annoying loss Of time is often thus incurred
by business men.
Legislative action reconstrucng tho several city
roads and imposing such obligations as ehal secure to
every paying passenger moderate degree OF comfort
and safety. has become necessity system OF stflct
police supervision appears to be remedy feasible and
likely to he effective In removing share OF the annoy
ancGs which ore now common. Especially over the
Broadway stages Is such supervision needed. Their
exorbtant iaros and disgraccful irregularities in rum
ming time are protested against daily. The public are
the sufferers by tricks practced by the drivers OF oppo
siton stages enailng loss of tmc and danger to limb
Tho distance from the Battery to the City Hall Is accom-
pshc1 at dangerous speed, but from that poiht 10
Unions the driver lags slowly along endeaVornS
to hinder stages behind him from taking up passeu
gers, though he may have his full complement. Should
he have hut few passengers then he walks his horses
and delays until he has picked up load. Recently
gentleman desired TO reach tho Fifth Avenue
Hotel at 8 O'clock in tho evening. He jumped on
Twcntyhird-st. stage at Futon-st. at 72o but the
time occupied in riding thence to MndIsonsquarc was
Instances Of similar character occur every day. s
common thing to SEQ three four stages moving slowly
along while the drivers are bantering one another.
Another lection made daily by passengers Is that all
tho stages cease running after midnight. On every
route there necessity for later travel and the pro-
petors who reap the harvest ofcrowdcd vehicles during
the day should also afford sufficient accommodation
after midnight although the passengers may then bo
fewer The OF ten cents for ride OF from two to
three miles ~ complained Of as excessive; six cents
would be moro reasonable charge. IL supervising
power vested In the police along tho routes, they
might by blowing whistle, keep the stages at proper
distance from each Othcr.,reguate their speed and
break mn the existing practice Of diving at the rate of
two miles an hour above the City Hail. and at furious
rate below.that point.
Among tho streetear lines very general sentiment
condemns the Fourthave. the worst managed
road In the city. Grant that the clean and
we'll built and no further commentator can be written
Being HILLARY TO the Harlem. Hudson River, aud New
Hovcn Railroads, and forming the connecting link
between their termlni and the business part OF tho city,
It would Indispensable that tins road should be
well conducted and that tho cars intended to meet In
ward and outward trains at the Grand Central Depot
should run regularly Nevertheless, the ulexaggeratea
testimony OF citizens using the Fourthave cars show
and ofen missing connection with trains at the depot
while they also too few IN number TO accommodate
papy has So cars and 750 horses. or the Ihirdave
Railroad. which uses 22o cars and 2OO horses IL Is SAD
not not room for more cars than are run, only
half block Of headway being allowed TO eaen
which there ~ an abundance OF ROOM WHO
passengers often to wait is 30 minutes for car
AZ consequence the cars are crowded to excess even
during the hours when ON other roads passengers can
gers ignore the which constantly
made and conduct the road Without any regard or the
time between the tity Hall and Fortysecondst Is 80
mnutos the actual time occupied however is usually
lcc CITY Hall ostcnsbly to meet the 25o p n udln
w 10 Ts f6s f1 10 the passengers going to
Forty secondst informed that they must chahee
minutes and reached the Grand Central depot ten min
the White Plains train had Departed the time
minutes. This incident OF common occurrence An
Important express train arrives from Boston ~
their Journeys ON the NewJersey Railroad the last trains
on when leave Cortlandt and Libery-ss at midnight.
The connection might be made with ease delay OF IS
is customary, and the necessity OF remaining IN
heN-YCrR during the night results Even tnougn .ne
o5ged to wait in the cold night air for car as the
aiIOad Company never keeps car %ang Ot 'ae atler
which hour the cars cease running unu a. ID. OF H. ~.
Residents the route urgently desire IRE tna ears @ "f
run every 10 minutes throughout the nlght, the extent
% the traffic fully jnstifying trps OF & aat iffane9Sy % &
rany Issues checks, should passenger get on car
going no farther than FOrty-secondst,, and desire TO
pav nm making the total fare from
the ely Hail TO the end Of he route y cents .roo,
managed With es large consideration for public con-
yenienco any city line displays The cars are spacious
clean. and sufficient In number To accommodate tle
traffic except during the morning and evening The
crowdng might be relieved by little more hDeray on
while between AMI IL IN. cars are run every minute
the accommodations inadequate aitcr a. In.
for The mercantile who at that hour begin moving
downward. Above F!ftyninthst to Manhattlnville the
Recommendations poor and Insufficient, indeed
ht pauy residents oi that place walk across To Harlem
aud ride by the Thirdaye road. The t1psae lrreguiar
made and the running time very unsatisfactory. NO
ears later than l1.l6 p in, Dat acOl mas re-
Gently taken with Wow to compelling the Com
many to ran cars every half hour from II p n to a. M,
and hourly from q. N. 10 a. H. Ihe trai1c requires