New-York tribune., 1902-07-19
CITY MUST BE WE'LL PAID.
COMPENSATION FOR USE OF BRIDGES
BY TROLLEY LINES.
INTERBoRoUGH COMPANY PAY
1882 600 A YEAR.

Controller Grout recommends to the Board of
Estimate and Apportionment that the INTERIOR
ough Railway Company which has asked for
a franchise for forty miles of streets and bridges
in The Bronx. be compelled to pay S132.6OO
year for the use of six city bridges which il pro-
poses to cross. Eugene E. Mclean, engineer of
the Finance Department, finds that the company
wants to occupy IL ,450 linear feet of bridges
and approaches built by the city at a cost of
about 81. .264 900. These bridges represented
by an interest rate of S25O,O0O year, and their
operation and maintenance cost about Sl3SOOO
year more.
Controller Grout said yesterday to Tribune
reporter that while the recommendations of his
engineer were made to fit a prospective case, the
figures would probably stand. and any company
that occupied the citys bridges for its trolley
tracks hereafter probably would have to pay
on about the basis suggested by his engineer
The view of the rights of the city taken by
the Finance Department are almost Identical
with those maintained in Tribune editorial
printed in April on the subject of tracks over
the Central Bridge. The report of the Con-
trOers engineer. in part, is as follows;
The several routes and their branches amount
TO a total franchise of about 2Ol, ,3OO reel, or
about 3S / miles of double track, of which about
$500 feet, 1.6 miles, is common 10 I"o oI
more routes.
The franchise asked for is of great value. not
alone for the. length of miles OF Sueets II
traverses, but more particularly Tor the pllusss ~
which it is proposed TO cross. and whlcn were
built at large expense and paid for oy the CITY
of New-York ss.--
ffth-st viaduct the cost of which was sal
$50 15 two-thirds was borne and paid by the
city of NeW-York and one-thlrd was assessor
upon the property deemed to be benehted
1t appears to general proposltlon that
in a twenty-five year franchise for the use Oh
the streets alone. and under the conoluohs as a.
named in the proposed form OF ordinance, Tue
railway company should pay per cent Oh Its
gross receipts for the first hve years ana . per
cent of the gross receipts for the succeeding zen
years the rate for the final ten years tor Whlch
the franchise is to not to be less than , per
cent and to be fixed by arbitrat9Ts al Ate ftoan
years the minimum sum which the CITY snalI man
receive TO be not less than S3oODO year Ior
the first five years and SoO.Ooo a year there-
after. ~. -.
pany should pay annually the interest," on @ tne
cost of all bridges which 1t would be necessary
for the company to construct in order 10 carry
the railway traffic exclusively ana also tne
cost of the maintenance OF such bridges.
I am led 10 believe that average estimate
of cost of 100000 for each of the four large
bridges noted in the appended table ana the
| One-hundred-and-hfty-hf viaduct "ouIu Oe
On this basis there would appear on outlay
| of 81 $40 900 necessary to any corporation IN
case permission were not granted 10 cross InS
A proper charge would be as follows:
Central Bridge and approaches. , length $50 feet
Estimated cost to railroad sSoV'Ooo' at $1,000
MatntSnanc. SaaH ana operation at per i2OO0
Washington Bridge length 200 feet. q 2 coo coo
East East one-hu1 ooo
If bridge adae fRs6s fSss
900 feet no draw to be eRsTaSfea RRsntSa Gre
monsye The t3G B5G9S % Length % neg 500 fse $4,000
Ma,69sbspes masd cost at peg cent as Pc. 1900