New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-06-12
OJERCROWDED TROLIEY-ciRS.

The officers Of the Nassau Electric Railroad
Company. which carried l33 passengers on
car meant for ~ the other day In Brooklyn ana
Killed or injured several Of them In an acc
dent, say that they might n well stop running
ears ms to try 10 enforce the rules against over
cruwding The business of the road would not
warrant the running OF ears properly Inspected
II the city wants the cars To he run without
ov.rcrowdng they say. IL can pass ordinances
and take upon itself the labor Of enforcing
them The company has no intention OF I'M
dcriaking 10 prevent oyercrowdng. Even II
the city undertakes II. II Il warned. that IL VIII
mud difficulty in having m officer on hand nj
The proper time aud place.
In this case rs IN all others where corpora
ton officers do not want 10 do what they ought
~ do fanciful difficulties are raised up. No
railroad officer was ever yet convinced that
some Improvement demanded by public opinion
was physically possible. until forced 10 find 1t
possible under legal penalties 1t is utter non
sense 10 talk about the impossibility OF pre-
venting oyercrowding TIL" fact Is the COM
pany does not desire 10 prevent II, ana the uni
form testimony OF trolley conductors has been
that they would be- discharged II they failed 10
take on every passenger who could possibly be
damned into "A car The argument that car
sometimes gets little delayed So TINT passen-
gers accumulate. while the ear following close
nficr IL nearly empty does not M MI prove that
the people might not easily he more evenly dis
tributed. A word OF warning That the car was
full, AMI that those outside would find another
ear In one or TWO minutes. would in most cases
accomplish the purpose. \ little education Of
the public would do the rest The companies
have taught people 10 crowd by leaving them
nothing else 10 do II they would run ears fire.
luently enough. passengers would soon learn
10 take their time, but when the normal cOndi-
tlon Of traffic is jam. people get used 10 H..
and crowd when there is no need because they
do not think that there is anything else for
them to do
The omnibuses and trnmways Of Paris are
never ovcrcrowded. for the simple reason that
the conductors refuse To carry more passen-
gers than they have places, and there Is never
any resisting their orders Suppose here that
conductor should say he would not take a
| passenger or n group of them. and II they
| crowded on refused to start his ear. Every
| passenger in n seat would support him. and
| the newcomers would be brought To order by
| that mere fact If they were not, two or three
| arrests would once for MI settle the trouble.
| and n seat 10 passenger would be the rule
| which 1t would need no effort To enforce. But
to accomplish that the companies must provide
ears enough to meet the public demand so that
unreasonable delays will not result They can
| do 1t II they will. Once in n great while the
traffic might be too great for them and the IN
convenience could be excused. but when day
| after day at certain MISUNDERSTOOD times and
places cars are damned to the danger point. 1t
Is because the companies want them damned
and make no effort TO provide adequate facill-
| ties