The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-01-15
GRADE CROSSING PROBLEM
MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION APPOINTS
SPECIAL COMMITTEE.
william Fortune Addresses the Or
ganazitfOn Track Elevation
Committee to Report at Once.

The Merchants Association at its month
took up the grade-crossing problem. The
subject was introduced by William Fortune,
who was a guest at the dinner which is al
ways incident of the associations meet
ings. Mr. Fortune is president of the Com
mercial Clubs elevated track commission
and is one of the strongest advocates of this
method of eliminating grade crossings in
the city.
After his address President Mayer ap-
pointed a committee composed of w. c.
Bobbs, chairman, F. NJ. Ayres, Henry Kahn,
Franklin Vonnegut and c. II. Badger to in
vestigate the subject from the standpoint
of the association. 1t was assumed that the
subject was of great interest to the as
sociation and that it should inform itself
along the lines suggested by Mr.. Fortune
in his address. The committee is without ir-
structions further than to ascertain if track
elevation is feasible and necessary, and il
so what portion of the expense that should
be charged to the public should be borne
by the association. The committee Is to re-
port as soon possible.
Mr.. Fortune in his address mentioned the
fact that the railroad lines as at present
were laid thirty and forty years ago when
Indianapolis was scarcely one-third of its
present population, and when conditions,
both as to the business of the city and
traffic. were vastly different from the pres
ent. There were then tighter trains, there
was no attempt as such speed as is now re-
quired, there was less traffic across the
tracks, there was less hurry on the part
of the people and naturally more caution,
BOTH on the part OF people and the rail-
roads.
LITTLE DONE BY RAILROADS.
There has. however, been little done in the
past thirty years by the railroads to afford
better protection TO the public, while the
city in all other respects has developed and
progressed the railroads have made little
progress have not made the provisions for
public safety and convenience that are due
the public-have in fact done nothing in
this respect in thirty years except provide
safety gates and watchmen, a viaduct over
one street and a tunnel under another the
surface of which, however, was surrendered
to their exclusive use for the Union Sta
ton.
He mentions the fact that since 1898 there
have been fifty-four persons killed and
sixty-two seriously injured as the sacrifice
of the public while awaiting some relief
from the courts or the railroads. The mer-
chants of the city have been progressive
have provided for their customers up-to-
GATE metnOdS, out the rdltrOdQS nave done
little or nothing on their part towards pro-
viding equally for public convenience and
safety in the internal traffic of the city. III
our stores were still conducted in cramped
quarters with cash boys, without elevators
without other modern methods that are now
in they would be in much the same
position that the railroads are i'm with ref
erence to this question.
The city should insist upon fair treatment
from the railroad companies and that they
meet this great problem in the same way
that progressive citizens are devoting them
selves TO the advancement of INDIANAPOLIS
in other directions. 1t is stated that in Chi
cago over eighty millions have been spent
in Buffalo over six millions. in Rochester
over two millions in ST. Louis ii is now
proposed to spend eighty-fve millions and
in large number of the small cities of the
East from 100000 to 100000 are being ex-
pended in track elevation. but In Indian
apolis. admittedly one of the best producers
to railroad companies in the country. there
has been no expenditure worth mentioning
for the safety and protection of the public
The announcement came from New
York yesterday that during 1903 there
would be expended over $500 100000 on rail-
road improvements. indianapolis is surely
entitled to some small share of this sum.