Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-24

solution Of the municipal problem of rapid
transit, the effect 1t produces Is wholly local.
This Is naturally SO; it was planned and
built solely for the purpose Of giving easy
and quick access from one part Of the
greater city to all other parts But there
Is now in course OF construction in and
around New York an underground rapid
transit system that, when In operation. will
produce not only vital effect OR the
metropolis and its populous New Jersey
cnvirons. but on the entire country. as well,
to a very large extent.
Briefly, this system, as planned to date.
consists Of four tunnels in pairs under the
Hudson river, connecting the New Jersey
shore with the island bf Manhattan at two
points; two parallel tubes running from two
of the river tubes under the island, through
five metropolitan shopping districts; two
tubes along the New Jersey water front
connecting the four river tubes and all the
trunk line terminals, except one, on the
Jersey shore, and spur running from one
pair Of the river tunnels back from the
Jersey water front to point where connec-
ton can be conveniently made with the IN
trtcate network OF trolley lines spread over
the streets of and fnterlocking Jersey City,
Hoboken, Newark, the Oranges and other
teeming suburban censers within twenty
five-mile radius of New York's city hall.
These cities and towns combined have a
100000 than the population in 1875 of New
York city, and all the towns and cities,
Brooklyn included. within it's sphere of in
fuence.
Meaning Of the Tunnels.
Now. see what this McAdoo system OF
tunnels will ultimately mean to the 100000
600 AID more people who annually cross the
Hudson river on ferry boats at the water
front points which this wonderful system
will tap.
Many Of these people are commuters:
daily they cross the river at least twice, 20
and from business. A train load of commu-
tiers arrives at the Pennsylvania railroad
terminal in Jersey City during the morning
rush hours. let us say. At present the
commuters take ferry boat, run at best
on ten-minute Roadway. They arrive at
the New York slip in eight minutes, II the
boat has not been impeded by ice. delayed
by fog and interfered with and imperilled
by car floats. sailing craft, tugs and steam
ers. They dodge across and along crowded
streets for several blocks to subway, sur
face lines or the nearest elevated roads.
and, either by walking a considerable dis
lance or by transferring from one line to
another. at last reach their offices. In like
manner Out-Of-town visitors to the metrop-
oils from Chicago. San Francisco. Crossville
and HansOn's Corners must make their way
laboriously to the shopping, wholesale.
hotel, theatrical and residential centers of
the city.
But now the McAdoo system of under
river tunnels rs III operation. A suburban
train and a through train from the west
steam into the Pennsylvania terminal at
the same time during the two morning rush
hours. The station Is connected with the
tunnel system-down into 1T pour commu-
ters and through travellers They step into
trains of steel cars. running on from one to
two minutes Roadway, and in three min
utes are whirled through circular, cast
iron, concrete-lined tube, fifteen feet two
y1ri1Il tn, Ii.rt,t tod crnlar
dldly ventilated and equipped wG.h all the
safety devices known to electrical! engineer
ing. Once in the commOdious terminal CT
the system on the New York side. In
Church street between Cortlandt and Dey
streets, they either step out OF 1t. to fnd
the a. overhead: or. by walking from the
terminal along connecting footpath. I'M
der Dey street. they are IN the Fulton s.re ,es
express and local trains ready to carry
them either uptown to the Bronx, oP down.
town to the Battery. and thence under the
East river to the outlying districts OF
Brooklyn itself.
Conveniences Of New System.
But this is not all. On the through train
there arrives from a business trip beyond
the Mississippi New York manufacturer
who lives In Crawford. a suburb on the line
of the Central railroad Of New jersey.
whose terminus is the most southerly Of all
NJ
He has written his wife that he will meet
her at the Central railroads station. IN
der the old system he would have been
compelled first to go to New York by ferry
place of meeting. Now he steps into the
tunnel at the Pennsylvania terminal, In
less than five minutes steps out OF it Into
the Central railroad terminal and there
greets his wife.
This New Workers. office Is in one of the
in the 33d street shopping. hotel
and theatrical district: his wife has plan
ned to continue uptown In New york AFTER
meeting him. They enter the tunnel from
the Central railroads terminal. are whiried
northward along the Jersey waterfront UNI
der the Pennsylvania station, under the
Erie station half mile to the north. and In
another minute they are travelling under the
river a mile and more to the north OF the
pair of downtown river tunnels. When
they reach the 9th street station in Man.
haitian the wife leaves the car to wait for
street where she can step into the New
York subway and proceed uptown to her
daughters Harlem fiat to tell her of her
fathers safe arrival home. The husband Is
whirled at express train speed under 9Th
avenues shopping centers to $50 street. ana
landed almost at the door Of his office
But even this Is not all that this tunnel
system does There Is direct communion
ton between all the railroad terminals. ex-
cept one: ferry boats and surface lines are
no longer necessary to transfer passengers
from one to the other, circuftously. More
over, all the trolley lines of the corporation
controlling the surface transportation of
that part OF New Jersey tributary to New
York feed into the upper pair Of Hudson
river tunnels at central point In Jersey
City Therefore, that woman living in
HobokeE who wishes to go to the Grand
Central station in New York takes trolley
car going past her door. transfers to the
tunnel at 18th and Henderson streets in
Jersey City. speedily finds herself at 9th
street and 4th avenue, in New York. and
there transfers to New York subway train
for the Grand Central station. Today it is
impossible to make this trip without wait
ing from Ave to twenty minutes for a ferry
boat, spending all the way from eight to
fifteen minutes on a boat, according to the
route, and walking a considerable distance
car lines In New York.
New York linked to the mainland BY en-
during circular bands of iron and concrete,
a river wiped out-the time OF travel be-
tween metropolis and mainland cut down
ne-half-new possibilities of suburban life
opened up to hundreds of thousands of
cramped city dwellers!
The Man Back Of the Tunnels.
william G. McAdoo is the name of the
min who is responsible for this gigantic
pf,,ce Of work which Is being pushed for