Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-10-23
Omen Cars.

Both in the early spring and in the au
tumn complaints heard from all sides
that the street railway companies exer-
else too little care for the comfort of their
patrons in the matter of open cars. 1t
has often been urged that the Commits
sioners should intervene. They have am
pie authority to do so under the law which
gives them power to make and enforce
such regulations ''as they may deem nee
essary for the protection of lives, limbs.
health. comfort and quiet of all persons"
The persistent running of open cars on
the city roads menaces the lives the
health and the comfort of those who,
against their will. are forced to ride in
them when they avail themselves of the
transportation facilities. In some cities
regulations in force which prohibit
the running of such cars when the tenn
perature at certain hour of the day
usually the starting time-is below a fixed
point. This standard Is chosen with due
Difference both to the convenience Of the
companies and tine comfort of the people.
There may occasionally be such surprising
fluctuations, of course. as to throw the
calculations of the authorities out of gear.
but 1t Is the experience in those cities where
this rule IS enforced that on the average
far better results are secured by thus
tablishing an arbitrary limit of tolerance
than by leaving the matter to the judgment
or the Indifference of the railroad author
tiles.
The company representatives usually con-
tend that there is always a sufficient pub
lie demand for the open cars to warrant
their use far beyond the days of early and
late chill There are, of course, few
street-car users in each city who, from
force of habit eccentricity, prefer the
fresh air of the summer cars throughout
the year. But a rapidly moving car with
cut closed sides is menace to the health
of far larger number than these fresh
air patrons aggregate. 1t is better to con-
form to the health requirements of the
many than to cater to the peculiarities
of the few. On at least one of the roads
iii Washington a system of mixed trains.
composed each of a closed and an open
car. Is in vogue. These trains are run
far into the autumn, and even through the
milder weather Of winter The open motor
is almost invariably sparsely occupied.
while the closed trailer is often crowded
1t would seem e. measure of economy FOR
the company to try to distribute the loads
more evenly and thus get the greatest pos
Slble carrying power out of each car As
a result of this lack of balance passengers
are often persuaded TO ride in the open
cars and take the chance of sickness rather
than be Inconvenience by the crowd in
the closed ones. The citizen should not ba
subjected to such an unpleasant alternative
On the Columbia line only open cars are
now being run, with the prospect that there
will be no closed cars until December This
road requires the maintenance of such a
schedule that the cars are known to travel
at an average speed of over sixteen miles
an hour. At this rate the airs of autumn
rush through the cars in a dangerous man
ner.
The street railway system of Washington.
excellent as 1t is from a mechanical point
of view. will never be satisfactory to the
people until some remedial attention is paid
by the Commissioners to this matter