The Portland daily press., 1898-04-19
REQUEST OF B. & NJ.
Wants 10 Connect It's Two Divisions
by a Track
WHICH WILL CROSS COMMERCIAL
STREET NEAR ''GRIDlRON."

of City to Grant Request IN Contro-
versy.
The Boston & Maine Railroad wants
to build a connecting track between
the Eastern and Western divisions, which
will cross Commercial street from a
point just above what is now known
as ''the Cape Elizabeth crossing on the
south, and point just west of the
new Railroad Y. M. G. A. building on
the north. 1t will cross Commercial
street on curve and also cross Bracket
street. A hearing on the railroads petit
ion for location of this track was given
yesterday afternoon at the aldermen Is
chamber before special committee con-
sisting of the mayor, Aldermen Rounds
and Merrill. bns
MIR. d. W. Snow, attorney for the Bos-
ton Il Maine presented the railroads case
in a very able manner. He said that the
Boston & Maine, when it has any cars on
the Eastern division, which it desires to
put on the Western division is now
obliged to run them way down CONNER
cial street, slscross the Portland q
Cape Elizabeth electric road twice and
add SO much to the danger of the people
who travel on that line while if the con-
necting track they ask for is allowed
them they won't have to cross the Cape
road with their trains anywhere near
as many times a day as they do now.
They do not propose to discontinue their
I1,,+o cJr fr,, bjc
additional track so as to obviate the
necessity of crossing Commercial street
further to the east.
Mr.. Dunn the chief engineer of the
Maine Central said, in response to ques-
tions of Mr.. Snow, that the track which
the railroad wanted to build would cross
Commercial street at q 45 degree curve
which was about as small as it could be
made with safety.
Freight Agent McClutchy of the Boston
& Maine said that the shifting engines
now crossed the Portland Il Cape Eliza
beth railroad about eight or ten times
times day now in order to get their cars
from the eastern to the western division.
If the track asked for was allowed these
trains would be run over it and now
Commercial strset as they now run. The
greater part of the travel on Commercial
street is around by the way of Railroad
wharf Fully two thirds of the traffic was
b. hat way, while the remaining third
keeps on up Commercial street. Mr..
McClutchy said he had ordered record
kept for "a hours of the teams passing
in 10th directions and this was the re-
suit of the record.
Sydney W. Thaxter said that at the
request all suggestion Of some of the
merchants on Commercial street, he ap-
peared before the committee to offer some
what acquainted with the travel on Com
mercial street. The street is wider at
some points than it is at the others, and
the narrow portions are frequently block
AIDED by the press of travel. On account
of the narrowness of the street at tine
cross Commercial street, the traffic would
be much inconvenienced if the connect
ing tracks was built as proposed. Mai.
Ihaxter said this was matter in which
the convenience of the public should be
taken into consideration as we'll as the
convenience of the railroad and it seemed
to him that the proposed track would
inconvenience the public more than it
would convenience the railroad. At pres
ent nearly all of the teams going to Cape
Elizabeth by way of Portland bridge
take the route around by way of Railroad
wharf. The natural crossing is at the
foot of Brackett street which is known
as the ''gridiron The city granted the
Boston & Maine railroad permission to
cross Brackett street with three tracks,
but now they cross it with 90 tracks.
though they have had no permission to
do SO. This "Cape Elizabeth crossing"
is county roaj and the city has no
jurisdiction over it any way and no right
to allow the Boston & Maine to cross it.
1t is the only crossing of the Boston &
Maine railroad which the city has right
to and if this proposed track is put in
1t will simply make the crossing moro
unsafe than ever. s9e
The city has no right to the road
around to the bridge by the way of rail
road wharf. That is only granted them
through courtesy by the railroad.
Major Thaxter acknowledged that the
danger to the passengers on the Cane
Elizabeth road would be eliminated to a
certain extent if the proposed track is
built, but the danger to the rest of the
public would be increased rather than
diminished by the change.
Major Thaxter said he couldn't believe
the design of the Boston & Maine was
merely to connect its two divisions. Pe
thought that there was q plan to utilize
the proposed track to increase its traffic
along Commercial street.
Major Thaxter called attention of the
committee to the disgraceful approaches
now afforded to the Portland bridge He
said that they were unsafe and disrepu.
table. In a few years these approaches
must be improved and it would be well
for the CITY government to formulate