New-York tribune., 1903-01-18
BROOKLYN RAPID TRANSIT PLANS.

II is expected that on Wednesday Of this
week the State Railroad Commissioners will
issue their orders concerning Improvements in
the Brooklyn Rapid Transit service. Mean
time additional hope of relief TO the suffering
public has been given by President Greatsinger,
who last week put forward some propo-
sails of his own These do not apply to all
phases of the complex problem, but merely to
the regulation of trolley traffic at the Brooklyn
end of the bridge. It is thought that if the cars
can be gathered in from the various lines and
put upon the bridge, and again sent from the
bridge and redistributed to the various lines,
more eXpeditieusly than is now done at Sands
st, the whole trolley service on the bridge, In
Guiding that at the Park Row loops. will be i'm
proved. That view of the case is probably cor
rect At any rate. it is undeniable that there is
now much congestion at Sandsst., and no little
danger Of disaster, conditions which should. if
possible, be changed for the better.
MI Greatsinger, therefore, proposes to put his
trolley tracks on an elevated structure at the
side of the bridge structure in Westinghouse
This arrangement would be for Manhattan
bound cars only, which would thus cross Sands
ST at an elevation, and reach the road level half
way out on the Brooklyn approach of the bridge
Such an arrangement should be practicable
If adopted, it would avoid much congestion,
delay and danger at Sands-st, where now all
cars going upon the bridge from Washington
st have to cross at grade tracks upon which
numerous cars are leaving the bridge. The
grades of Westinghouse and the bridge favor
such scheme, and does the plan of the
bridge roadway, for there is j broad space be-
tween the present trolley tracks and the bridge
railway which is now unOccupied, but which
would afford ample room for the trolley tracks
to come down to the road grade without OBJ
structing other vehicular traffic. With such an
arrangement Of tracks, the running of trolley
cars upon the bridge from Brooklyn would
doubtedly be much facilitated and expedited.
The plan suggested by Mr.. Greatsinger for
the distribution of cars going in the other di-
rection, from Manhattan to Brooklyn, does not
seem so commendable as that which we have
lust described. He wants TO run the up
the Plaza and Liberty-st.. thus getting pos
session again Of land which the city bought of
his company for other uses at a large price. and
thus also covering with car tracks the only
BROOKLYN approach to the bridge now free from
them. We have frequently hitherto pointed ont
the undesirability of such an arrangement. 1t
is not only undesirable, but unnecessary, If the
elevated trolley scheme in Westinghouse. De
carried out For Sands-st., in both directions,
and Fulton-st. Westinghouse. and Adams-st.
will then be free and open to trolley traffic, and
will certainly be able TO care Tor all the cars
that can be sent over from Manhattan. The
trouble now is that half the cars. turning to the
left in Sands-st., find their way blocked by the
stream of cars entering the bridge from Wash
ington-st. The bridge over Sands-st. would
obrfate that difficulty and give them free
course.
The third feature of Mr.. Greatsingers plan is
one which has frequently and urgently been
suggested in these columns. That is, that the
congestion Of car traffic on Fulton-st. at Boerum
Place be relieved by running more lines down
Atlantic-are to Court-st, and through the lat
ter to Fulton-st The Flatbush-ave, Seventh
ave and Third-ave cars could thus be disposed
Of thereby relieving-copgestion and expediting
travel FultoD-st., below Flatbush-ave. is mar
row and oyercrowded, and cars drag along it at
a spairs pace. Atlantic-ave. is broad and little
used. and cars could run on it at top speed with
out interruption. Moreover, at Boerum Place
at present there exists the same nuisance and
danger of grade crossing that we have de
scribed at Washington and Sands sts., cars com
ing up Adams-st crossing at grade the tracks
J OF those coming down Fulton-st., and cars com
ing down Boerum Place crossing at grade the
tracks of those coming mp Fulton-st. The re-
sultant congestion and delay great beyond
description and they would be considerably re-
Iieved by sending some, if not all, of the Boerum
Place cars through Court-st., and adding to