The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-10-29
THE SUBWAY CARRIES 100000.
SURFACE AND ELEVATED LINES
SHOW SOME FALLING OFF.
Hedley Expects the Latter Roads to Lose
$4,000 Passengers Day-Enect
Most Noticeable on Street Cars-IAt.
tie Breakdowns Make Trouble.

$4,000 Passengers Day-Enoct
Most Noticeable on Street Cars--IAt.
tie Breakdowns Make Trouble.
The rush OF travel which began on the
subway when 1t was thrown open to the
general public at o'clock on Thursday
evening was kept up all day yesterday,
and In a modified form all last night.
II came at times In great waves that
thre atened to swamp everything before
them In what might be called the lulls
il was a steady stream OF great volume.
In theee quie.er intervals the number who
went down the steps OF the CityHall station
averaged from fifty to sixty-hve per minute.
At the Bridge station they ran up as high
as 70. 80, and more than 100, at times, per
minute. =. e. rs.
$4,000 PASSENGERS YESTERDAY.
Mr. Hedley, the general manager OF the
road, estimated last night that the number
carried between midnight on Thursday
and midnight on Friday would be about
10000. The number carried between
O'Clock Friday cvening-the opening hour
and midnight was III, 1851. This was at
the rate Of 22,S78 is per hour. Tho total
carrying capacity Of the road with its
present equipment OF As trains-2O expresses
and Is locals--is about rs 900 per hour
The reason that the full carrying limit
during the five hours was not reached
vas not owing to lack OF people to make up
rhe quota. But notwithstanding the weeks
the road has been in training, it has not yet
got quite limbered up to Its full effective
ness
LITTLE HITCHEs WERE MANY.
There were delays to expresses above
Ninety-sixth street, for ins lance, and there
were delays at stations. People have not
yet got quite used to the new doors and the
enclosed car platforms. The doors are
heavy and do not slide to and fro as readily
As do those OF the elevated trains. 1t will
take several days Of practice on the part
Of guards and of experience on the part OF
the crowds themselves before delays Of
this sort are done away with.
EFFECT ON ELEVATED LINES.
Everybody was curious yesterday to
know the effect OF the new line on elevated
railway and surface line travel. Mr.. Hedley
for the marlborough Company had men at
various points and travelling up and down
the lines. studying the effect on the ele-
vated trains. As the result of their obser-
vations Mr. Hedley last night said:
There has been an effect on the elevated
railroad travel, but 1t lie not very great
aud is confined mostly to the local trains
Three men whom had travelling on ex-
press trains Of the elevated during the rush
hours this morning reported that they
could not see any difference in travel as
compared with days before the subway
wsa opened. ~, ~. ..-,
@onSthe local trains. however. there was
. noticeable difference. particularly on
the, Sixth avenue and Third avenue lines.
7 ShAll not before tomorrow have any
accurate figures that could give as to
whstthe effect was. hut there was an effect.
But there 10 one thing to be borne in mind,
and that IL that it is . very difficult thing
to notice difference in the tide OF elevated
travel.
The elevated railways carry approx
nately 100000 people per day-half
million on the East Side and half million
on the West Side. Now. there might be a
Auctuation of 100000 travellers in day
on these lines, and 1t would not be noticed,
probably. Yet 100000 is nearly a third of
all we carried in the subway in the twenty
and midnight Friday. estimate the
number carried in that interval at $50, 900.
expect that when things have settled
down it will be found that the subway will
cut into the elevated travel to the extent
Of about 5000 per day"
ON THE THIRD AVENUE LINE.
notwithstanding the fact that those who
reported to Mr.. Hedley did not see much
difference In the express trai in travel on t. Q
elevated, other observers saw a noticeable
falling Of. This was particularly the case
10 the rush hours at the City Hall station
Of the Third avenue elev ated, although
on general principles 1t would be assum ID
that that line would suffer about as little
O. any. In the express trains leaving
between 5a5 and 616 last evening there
were seats to spare In the forward cars in
every instance, something that the plat
form men say they have rarely known.
On the Ninth avenue morning expresses
many regular travellers got seats yesterday
for the FIRST time IN meny moons. These
trains are generally packed to the limit
Several trains that were noticed yester-
day morning had only five or six persons
to q car hanging on straps, while the plat
forms were empty. The uptown express
trains on the Ninth avenue line during the
evening rush hours were more nearly in
their usual sardine-box conditions yet even
on these there was q shade more elbow
room.
On the Sixth avenue elevated trains in
the beginning of the rush hour there were
seats to be hal at Chambers street-some-
thing quite unusual-and tine strap hangers
we're not much in evidence until Eighth
street was reached. Yet the guard said
that he had not been able to notice any
particular falling of In travel and that
Yesterday forenoon his. train was uncom-
monty full on the downtown trips.
SURFACE TEAFYIc HIT HARDER.
But 1t was in the surface car travel that
the effect Of the subway was most notice.
able. The through Broadway cars and
the cars OF the Third and the Fourth avenue
lines up as far as Forty-second street suf-
fetei the most
In the height Of the rush hour last evening.
when Broadway cars going uptown are
usually filed 70 overlooking before they
reach ST. pauls Church. car boarded at
Murray street had one passenger. An
ether got on at Chambers street. When
hstrr place was reached there had been
thirty-hs passengers on the car, all but
eight Of whom got of at Astor place or
before reaching there.
Il al. Nlxxve