New-York tribune., 1903-01-03


Yesterday at $50 2. m. the State Railroad
Commissioners made public their directions to
| the Manhattan Railway Company for immediate
relief. These directions are binding as law.
and such of them s are not otherwise provided
for to be made effective by the company
before January -. They provide that all
trains now operated in rush hours shall be kept
in service from the beginning of the morning
rush hour to midnight; that between now ana
the end of March. three hundred cars shall be
added to the service, thus giving seat room for
over fourteen thousand more passengers than
under the present service. and that third track
be constructed in certain congested districts
APPROVES THIRD TRACK IDEA.
THAT third track is good" said Sylvester D.
Smith the general superintendent of the Man
haitian Railway Company. when. at his house at
No 1T2 West One-hundred- and -fourth-st-. he
heard from q Tribune reporter last evening the
directions of the State Railroad Commission He
continued:
What do I think of running the rush hour
service up to midnight? What do you think OF
it? In the rush hour have many trains
that we can't run them effectively. AS for the
extra service, making those who travel at rush
hours use the trains little later or little
earlier do you believe that we the
women to come home early from their shopping?
Do you think that employers will let their clerks
come ia work behind time? Do you think that
we ought to have trains running on rush hour
headway uptown late at night? Well, I'm only
a railroad man, and run the trains as l am told
/ suppose what the commission orders must be
done and We have nothing to say about it.
The addition of a hundred cars month for
three months is right along the line of our policy.
We are changing from a steam SYSTEM which al
lows trains be run minute and half apart.
an electric system that allows trains to be
with safety minute apart. All the five car
trains on the West Side were to be made into
six car trains
With these extra third tracks it looks as if
things ought to be better. Where there more
tracks you run more cars. That direction
to keep an accurate record simply means to con-
ttnue present system
The commissioners order follows:
On December 80 last this board held public
hearing at the City Hall. NewYork in the mat
ter o. complaints against the Manhattan Rail
way as to the number of cars and trains oper-
ated by it. William F. King and others repre-
stnted the Merchants Association of New-York,
which had filed with the board resolution on
the subject Charles A Gardiner and Alfred Skitt
board obtained further information from the
company in relation TO the operation Of its cars
INT0LERABLE CR0wDING.
The overcrowdng Of the cars of this company
in the so-called rush hours has become SO oner-
longer be endured. 1t is also true that crowd
ing Of the in other than the rush hours
should be obviated. The board believes that by
the operation in the non-rush hours OF the large
ly increased train service hereunder PROVIDED
for many passengers who now traNel III !he
rush hours will be carried in the time bordering
the rush hours, and thus relieve the situation
when those are travelling who must travel al d
fAed time each day.
It has become apparent in TINS lnFeSlISdtioii
that the company has not many cars as II
should have to handle the traffic that 1t car
-;-- -I,o ,Ifra~ ~+11Ny, hnr
it procure more cars is only limited, as 1t IS pc
cause il seems 10 be impracticable at present Ior
the company to procure more than tne hullloVl
of cars stated.
mand made upon the traffic facliltles OF tne
company. is shown by the TACT thdt Ile me-
increase in the number of passengers carried IN
1902 over the traffic of 1901. was 2o.2i3ota the
totals being: In 1901. 190.Q45,I41. and in 19uZ.
o15 25q 345 passengers The average number
carried daily. including Sundays. IN l9o-, was
500 752 But these astonishing figures only
serve to emphasize the necessity 1or hlcFeaseu
equipment and increased service
From the information secured and from the
boards knowledge after a careful personal ex-
animation Of the operation OF trains upon tnls
railroad it appears in it's Judgment that changes
in the mode Of operating this rallroad ana aooI-
tions its rolling stock are reasonable and ex-
redent in order to promote the security, con-
venience and accommodation of the public"
IMPROVEMENTS ORDERED
The board deems that the following improve
ments and changes are proper and therefore
direct that they be made by the Manhattan
Railway 10 wit:
First-That all trains now operated in rush
hours shall be put and kept in service from the
beginning of the morning rush hour service to
midnight of each day, on schedule between
and after rush hours TO be prepared by the rail-
way company and filed with this board on or
before January - 1903, This direction is not
intended TO diminish the schedule and service
now furnished by the railway company during
any portion Of the so-caled rush hours.
second-That during each of the months Of
January February and March. 1903, there shall
be added TO the service one hundred cars, each
Of a seating capacity for forty-eight persons
These cars when obtained shall he put into ser
vice with a view to increasing the accommoda-
tious and capacity of the road during the rush
hours on a schedule to be made and flied with
this board This will afford capacity for seating
+ 500 passengers on each trip made by these
cars On this basis by April ! there viii he in
operation cars with seat room for over fourteen
thousand passengers additional to the capacity
Of the present service
Third-That the Manhattan Railway take i'm
mediate steps TO construct a third track,
fa) on Third-ave. from Ninth-st. to Fifty
lb1 on second-ave from Canal-st. to One
hundred nd twenty -ninth-st-;
Cc) on Nfnth-ave., from Fourteenth-st to
Cortlsndt-st-,
so as to relieve the congestion in movement Of
trains and furnish additional transit facilities
Fourth-That proper records be kept to enable
+his board through its inspectors. to supervise
the carving out Of the foregoing requirements.
The directions and recommendations Tela ting
~ onerstiou where not otherwise provided for
rs To time shall he made effective by the com
panv on or before January l., 1909.
Nv the board ASHLEY W. COLE.
Chairman Board Of Railroad Commissioners.
SURFACE RAILWAYS NEXT
as Mr.. Cole stepped out from Room No II. OF
tre Fifth Avenue Hotel where the commission
ers had been at work on their statement he was
surrounded by newspaper men