Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-03
SERVICE INADEQUATE
Complaint Against Bright
wood Electric Line.
LACK ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
CROWDED CONDITION AND I'M
PERFECT WORKING SCHEDULE.
Mr. Louis p Shoemaker Says Service
is Inadequate and Entirely
Unsatisfactory.
LACK OFPOWERFORCARS

1.-THE entire service on the Brightwood
| electric car line. from it's junction with
the 9th street line to the District line. is
wholly inadequate, entirely unsatisfactory
and operates strongly against the develop
ment of that section of the District and
naturally against the capital of the ma
ton
This statement was made to a reporter
| for The Evening Star this afternoon by
Louis P. Shoemaker, formerly president
and now vice president and chairman OF
the executive committee of the Brightwood
| Citizens Association.
Probably the greatest trouble existing
| in connection with the operation of the
| line is insufficient power with which 20
move the heavily loaded cars on anything
| like schedule time In fact, the power
| making machinery appears to be In such
| utterly bad shape that 1t is frequently The
| case that the cars are compelled to sop
! for long periods for want OF electricity
| to prOpel them. 1t is common occur
renee for cars to stop suddenly whether
passengers want tn ~"t on q" OFT q" NOT
| Such a condition Of affairs. of course, makes
| this mode of travel a very uncertain and
unreliable quantity to the many people
| who reside along the line and who are
| compelled to be in the city with certain
! regularity every day.
"One never knows at what hour to start
| in order to reach an Office with any degree
| of certainty as to the time of arrival at the
9th street junction point. 1t has frequently
| been known to be the case that residents
| along the line have been compelled to sacrt-
| flee their property and move to another
| place in order to be able to arrive at office
| with regularity. In other cases people have
| gotten in the habit of starting from home
an hour or more earlier than was really
| necessary, allowing this time for delay
| along the road on account of lack of power
with which to operate the cars.
Cars supposed to be operated on
| fifteen-minute schedule to Takoma and a
half-hour schedule to the District line. One
| can readily see what this means. The cars
| are at all times crowded far beyond their
| capacity and people are standing on the
running boards and on the back of the
| rear platform, while others unable to get
| foothold in the rush for one car COM
| PEELED to wait for fifteen or thirty minutes,
as the case may be, for another car. and if
| this person happens to be woman she may
not be able to get a place in the rush that
| always follows the arrival of a Brightwood
car at the junction.
| Zone of the cars started on its Journey
looks like flock of sheep in a small pen.
| so closely are the people packed in. In
| this condition the power is of such slight
value that on almost every grade there is
| long stop for more power. and as matter
| of fact these stops often occur on the level.
No. they don't stop on down grades"
Pleaded for Relief.
| Mr. Shoemaker said that the people of
| Brightwood and other residents along that
/ electric line have pleaded with the railway
people for better service they have threat
ened the railroad people and they have
done everything in their power to get re-
lief but it has all been without avail.
| 'Why, they violate the terms of the char
| ter every day continued Mr.. Shoemaker.
| What is needed in this District is that the
control of the schedules of the various rail-
roads be placed in the hands of the District
| Commissioners, that they can regulate
| grievances of the nature of ours. There is
| absolutely no one that can act with au-
| thority in this matter, except, of course the
| railroad officials. and in the past they have
done as they sWeety pleased. and told us
| in many words that we had better be
| satisfied with what we have, for it might
| be worse l cannot see how the latter
| would be possible. a
| What we should have is a through serv-
| ice of the 9th street car line, which would
| give us the same schedule as is in effect in
| the city. If this could be done between the
| junction and Petworth even it would great
| ly relieve the situation.
Not alone this, but the junction point
on 7th street is so located that the outlook
| is far from favorable. The buildings in the
| neighborhood of the junction are far from
| slightly, and leave a very bad taste in the
mouths of those compelled to wait there for
cars going out the BrightWood line.
| However, as l said before. we have done
everything in power to influence the
| railroad officials to do the right thing by
| our people, but the situation seems to be
| utterly hopeless Our only relief, so far as
| I can see it, is to secure the passage by
| Congress of a bill which would give the
! District Commissioners control of the SIT
| uation and give them authority to make
such rules and regulations as will fit the
| situation.
| "I cannot see how the railroad officials,
as business men have not grasped the sit
uation long before this Certainly good rail-
| road service would mean improvements, and
| would take many people out on the line TO
| live. This would of course, mean an in
| crease in the revenues of the line. and
| would help fill the Golfers of the corporation
| that controls the line
Complaints on All Sides.
| Complaints of various natures have been
made against the Brightwood line for some
time The Brightwood Citizens Association
| and the people living along the line who
| are not members of the association say that
| the conditions are bad in the extreme. They
| say that there is not enough power to
| operate the cars; that the cars are almost
| always crowded; that it is sometimes i'm
| possible to get on car at the junction un-
| less engaging in foot ball rush, with the
attendant risk of life and limb. Women
| and children, it is claimed have little op-
| pOrtunity of getting on the cars, so greatly
| are they crowded, and many of those who
| succeed in gaining foothold do SO ut the
| risk of accident to themselves.
| Gen. George H. Hairless vice president
of the Washington Railway and Electric
Company. when asked by Star reporter
| this afternoon to talk of the conditions on
| the Brightwood line, responded
There is nothing to say on the subject
so far as l can see Everything is being
| done to operate the Brightwood line to the
| best advantage so far as the earnings Of
| the road will permit. Things might he
great deal worse and it will necessarily
| take some little time for the situation to