The sun., 1881-12-11
An Elevated Railway for Paris.

Plans for an elevated railway for Paris
have been made by a French engineer
named CHRErIEN. Underground railroads,
like those oi London, are very strongly OBJ
jcctcd to by the Parisians, and accordingly
our method OF laying tho tracks on elevated
viaducts Is presented by Mr.. CHRErIEN for
their consideration.
But elevated railways such as we have are
offensive in Partisan eyes for two reasons.
In the first place, they disflgure the streets,
and In the second place, tho use Of steam as
a motor for the engines is Objectionable. Mr..
CHRETIEN, however, proposes to substitute
electricity for steam.
His plan Is to run main line IA, 900 feet
long from the Madeaine to the Bastilo. with
two branches, ono from the Place do 10 Re
publique to the Place du Trdnc, and the sec
ond as far as the Arc dc Triomphe. But
the Partisan public. so sensitive in mat
ters OF beauty, and the Municipal Council arc
not likely to favor project for erecting an
elevated railway where it would cut the
Opera facade in two, as vowed from the
Avenue dc i'Opera. Tho gain in convenience
would not compensate for the loss in the
attractiveness OF the city. And oil the world
who visit Paris would doubtless sympathize
with them in that feeling.
An experimental elevated railway on
which electricity will be used as motor is,
however, likely to DO put up where 1t will
Interfere less with tho beauty OF tho city.
Mr.. CnRETIENs plans propose tho occupa-
tion OF n comparatively small proportion OF
tho width OF the boulcvards. His viaduct Is
put, on an average. at twenty feet above the
ground, the columns on which 1t would be
carried would be from 1870 to 160 feet apart.
the gauge would be only four feet wide. and
the total width OF the structure would not
exceed fifteen feet. He aims to prevent the
roads cutting off any great amount OF light.
Each car, designed to accommodate iifty
passengers, and carrying its own electric
motor, would b, twenty-siX feet long and
five feet wide, with doors opening and clos
ing automatically on reaching and leaving
q station. speed OF about fifteen miles an
hour is assumed, and the cost OF line from
the Madeiaine to the Bastilc he estimates at
81, ,GoJ.0o0. II his cars carried $1,000 passcn-
gers daily, or about ., ,0o0,0O annually, even
at 80 low fare as two cents, the road would
earn from them SGl5,0Jo in year. Interest
on capital at five per cent. would be $4,000,
and he puts the annual cost of maintenance
and workin. ut $4,000. A handsome sur
plus would therefore be obtained from tho
estimated business. But In Paris the Mu-
nicpa!ity do no. allow corporations TO use
the strccts for nothing. They would de-
mand handsome share OF the receipts.
Accordingly, the fare may be put a three
cents, though our elevated roads talk OF
their seli-sacrillcc in charging no more than
five cents.
II we may judge by the travel on our elo-
yatcI roads, Mr. CHEErIEN has not over
estimated tho number OF passengers his
road will carry, provided it works success
fully. There arc four double-track lines in
operation in New York, and as many as
27i, ,02) passengers have travelled over them
in one day. Their aggregate daily re-
coipts, according to the last reports, vary
from Si4, 900 to SlS01o There are 80 miles
o. roadway in tho city, 1Gl stations. 2)3 en-
gines, and 6l2 cars, and the number OF trains
run each day Is 34s). And yet this trencn-
dous business is only few years old.
II, therefore, Mr.. CHRErIEN can overcome
the Gsthetical and other objections To an
elevated railway In Paris, aud can make
electricity suffice as a motor, il his esti-
mates OF tho cost OF construction and OF
working and maintenance are not too low.
his road must ba very profitable to the
stockholders. But it is hard, almost i'm
possible, to estimate what the cost OF the
needed electricity will be-