The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-02-25
RAIEROADING IN THE CITY.
TIM ENORMOUS BUSINESS or THE
THIRD ATENUE LINE.
Combating a Proposition Involving a Loss


Combating n Proposition Involving a Loss
of sB31 Day-Two Cnrs to Block
Morning aud Evening Where the Profit Is.
Samuel l.. Phillips, President OF the
Third Avenue Railroad, offers tho following
facts TO show the financial impossiblty OF Civ
ing every street car passenger seat under all
circumstances and at every hour of the day.
81 am all figures" said Mr. Phillips, but
they convince better than words. Since this
subject OF seating passengers has attracted pub
lie attention have examined somewhat into
the daily expense OF running each ear in Third
avenue. nnd that under the most economical
management 1t cost this company el0.79 to run
each car daily. Now, II wo woro allowed TO col
lect fares only from those persons who could get
seats allowing 20 passengers to eacn car at an
average fare Of on cents, the cars would yield
tho company only slj7l each daily, thus entail
ing loss per diem of S0}9, sufficient to swamp
any company In few months. A car, you must
remember, seats only 2, persons, and In this
calculation eight ia the number allowed for the
change of load during a trip, which Is a liberal
Average, considering that many night trips are
made when tho seats arc not near full. Now,
assuming 30 to he an average load OF seated pas
scngers for trip, and since this company car
rles daily average Of 1897 passengers in Its
cars. which number Is largely increased In tho
spri NJ and fall, II appears that VI would require
about 400 cars TO lie run during the crowded
hours of the morning and evening In order to
give seats to most OF tho passengers, for even II
the company were able to operate that numoer
OF cars tue passengers would not all be seated.
hut To operate 400 cars. under the circum-
stances, would be imprdrtlcahlc, and to con-
vince himself of this fact u pe. son need only
wgtch the terminus Of this line near lHE SUN
once IN the evening. mere ire now four lines
OF cars coming down PARK row-the Fourth nni
Third avenue, the East Broadway and Dry Dock.
and the lileocker street lines all practically on
lines OF zach ro4d hiocke from tho stand all the
way back to the CITY Hall, with cars waiting TO
get to the switches. No time. II will be Observed
- unnecessarily Loaf Tor these crs are turned
back the instant thew orrive at the end of the
lire, AID no more cars can be despatched thfn
arc now sent out. Now. II va were T. increase
the number of cars we run to 400 and VI zach ~
the other lines whose cars pass over the PARK
row tracks SHOULD increaae thor force in ths
same ratio, there would be about .0) cars seek
ing to come in to tho City llHll terminus, On
practically one track, within au AVERAGE Of three
hours time. Allowing twenty seconds for each
car to turn Its horses aud yet started back, that
hours and titus zach OF the roads would ne
blocked throughout It's length, stopping all
strcct-Car travel.
- Compliant has been made about the length
OF time between cars, or the long hoadway. 10
show that this Is Mnfourded, give YOU the ratio
Cars ura now despatched from G2i to pj) A. NJ.
every - tseconNs; from $50 \. NJ. 10 ~ L. NJ,
F. 49, every Is se aS G'f rom i 10 40 F. w.
every 81 c'Onis from i:3N To iij y. NJ, every -
SECONDS. ~ ~ AsiD 10 D'tr r. NJ. every -
ends from sos To G3l 4. NJ. every - seconds ;
nd from C.2l To l.. ~, every minute and a
quurtcr. Yea sec now carefully the Roadway IA
graduated to -uit the travel Whom tho cars are
running on ~ Sc sOnds healyay there ars about
twOrars 10 every block. How can we he asked
- d. moref IL would be impTagUcabis 10 la-
crease the number Of cars 50 as to seat All the
pasacHE0ts.
q" In reference to the jam at tie City Hall. It
might be p I'D that more tracks could be used
or another route chosen. But a moments ex-
animation will show that Park row Is already
iull ol tracks, aud that there IL no otHcr route
| to take.
Again, the expenses OF operating horse cars
are niuch l4rger than the public has any idea or
| The cars are moved On the Third avenue line an
average q stance OK seven niles Ten horses arc
required to run car. The constant wear and
and csrins for the horses, OF keeping up the
stock, Of wages paid to employees, and other
expenses amount to an enormous sum, to c0un-
terb ilance which the receipts are dispropor-
tionately small. Now, suppose, by a law obig nR
us TO seat every passenger, each car load Is re-
duced, as IL would be, whore Is our profit |
tell YOU II would break the companies, for they
would have to run IN the face OF continual loss.
IL is a fact that 1t Is the number Of persons who
crowd the cars at certain hours and thus cOun-
terbalancs the few that ride IN them at other
| hours, that enables us to make our accounts
balance.
" In regard TO rapid transit. some OF our direc-
tors think that IL would positively benefit our
road by relieving us OF the through travel, That
docs not pnv. On every passenger carried by
this line iron the CITY IL all to Harlem. the COM
pany loses ~ cents. We carry him for cents,
und he costs US 81 cents.