The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-19
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
OVERFLOW FROM THE ELEVATED
SUANPS SURFACE LINES.
Two slight Accidents on the Manhattan
A,.d 10 the IncOn' cnience
says the Metropolitan Could Not
Run Any More cars n II Had Them.

Shoppers had a hard time getting about
town Yesterday, for the holiday rush
crowded the surface cars to the limit while
two accidents on the elevated system
blocked all the lines for nearly an hour.
The Sixth and Ninth avenue elevated roads
were tied up by a construction train which
jumped the rails at Fifty-third street and
Ninth avenue, while the Second and Third
avenue lines were blocked by an accident
in the dist ributing power house on West
Fifty-third street which made 1t necessary
10 shut Of the current at the main power
house on the East Side of town while re-
pairs were made. The exact nature Of
the power house accident could not he
learned, for none Of the officials OF the
company would talk about it,
The trains on the Sixth and Nnrh avenue
lines suddenly stopped at 1915. Hun
dreds Of passengers climbed out of the cars
and walked along the structure To the
nearest station. A wrecking train was
sent to Fifty-thrd street, the construction
train was lacked back to the rails and
pushed up to Harlem. but it was o'clock
before traffic was resumed.
The East Side trains came to n sudden
stop at about the same time. but got under
wav again as soon as a new piece OF axle
bearing had been put in at the power house.
The officials of the Metropolitan system
we're congratulating themselves that they
had Just put on number Of extra cars but
when the rush came from the elevated
roads they found their lines congcsted more
than ever.
All this came at a time when public COM
plants were showering in on the transporta-
ton companies. Early in the day the Mer-
chants Association had sent out 10000 cir
culars appealing to business men about
town to make united protest against I'M
satisfactory TRANSPORTATION facilities.
Oren Root Jr.. the ASSISTANT general
manager Of the Metropolitan system. was
reading one OF these circulars when he was
asked what his company was doing To re-
leve the situation.
We have gone the limit in accommodate
ing the public said MIR. Root L mean
that we have done everything that it Is
POSSIBLE for US to do We have az many
cars running over our lines We can oper-
ate II il only possible TO send a certain
number Of cars past the junc' ion Of Thirty
fourth street and sixth avenue and Broad
way in an hour. We are sending that num-
her past there now. II We had all the cars
mat were ever turned out Of shop We could
not send more by. We are now running
over our main lines all the cars that il il
possible to run. l don't mean all the cars
that We own. but all that we can get over
the line.
Moreover. we have placed on Broadway
cars that are six feet longer and will carry
10 per cent. more Passengers than our regu-
lar long cars. New York grows 80 rapidly
that We have hard time in keeping up
| to the conditions, but We are doing il II we
make rules forbidding passengers TO stand
in our cars riot would follow among those
who would rather stand than wait
If the city authorities would help Us
| a bit by regulating wagon traffic 80 that
| our cars are not blocked by trucks. We might
| be able to do little better on streets nike
| Broadway. Some OF these truckmen keep
! 1900 persons blocked in cars half an hour
| just because they want to qua rrel"
General Manager Skitt Of the Manhattan
Railway said that as soon a. his road had
| a sufficient number Of electric motor cars
| things would he much better. Fifteen extra
sx-car trains were added yesterday to the
service and more will I've added every other
| dav