New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-26
ELEVATED EXPRESS TRAINS.


lis attempts to secure without PERMISSION
what If could not obtain through lo,'lai 'Ul
sent of the public authorities having failed. the
1r,orloro,qb companv has for the moment as
srmad q sunnliant attitude The hits of middle
,ro,L recently added 10 the 3d-ave elevated
road below. 53dst. were osteuSioN heN'gheu
for storage purposes. but We suppose there Is
no Doubt that they were meant TO improve tne
conlpany-s East Side express service. Inc "o'N
has naver heen sanctioned by the proper au-
rboritias and the execution Of il has rlghty
evoked public complaint. following l"o''S'
10 the Mayor by the City Club. In consequence
the attorneys Of the company have now gone
70 Mr.. Mcclellan and to other members OF the
Rarfd Transit Commission with a fresh plea
for the much coveted privilege Of extending
tho middle track southwaTd either to Ath-st
or 10 Chatham square The advisamlIty on
complving with the request is thus brought up
once more for official consideration.
One question which is raised in the public
mind touches an engineering feature or the
scheme Above the Cooper Union the form OF
the structure makes tracklayng simple task.
t7frders reach from one side Of the street To
the other and already afford q suitable he
for ties and rails I'm the Bowery each of the
existing tracks is independent of the other
Along that mart Of the route. apparently. more
aIa horare preparation would he requisite We
do not know whether The company proposes to
run the extra track there close 10 one OF the
two others or I'm the middle Of the street The
former procedure would seemingly he more
economical and more practicable than the
latter and Interfere less with existing trsthc.
This phase Of tho matter. however. seems 10
require less immediate attention than some
others.
The principal objections n the project are
that an additional track would darken the
street. impair irs healthfulnese. damage ad
joining property. tend 70 perueuate the ole
waited road as q local institution and establish
a dangerous precedent Possibly the FIRST three
Of these drawbacks have been exaggerated.
They undoubtedly exist hUt the execution Of
the plan under discussion would not, We he
Iave make the situation much worse than il
is now. Most of the harm that could he done
has been done already. The two other aspects
Of the proposition are. in our judgment. the
most Formidable Both on account of their IN
sightliness and their noisiness il would he de-
Sirahle 70 get rid Of the elevated roads. pro
vided that il could he done without = sacrifice
of public comfort. If there is any reasonable
prospect Of that relief. il would be a pity 10
impair il by permitting additional tracks 10
be laid Moreover. any concession 10 the Inter
borough company to-day might encourage. if
il did not invite that corporation 10 make to
Yet advanced. and resistance then would he
more difficult than IT is now
on the other hand. II must he recognized that
the advantage resulting from grant Of the
desired privileges would not accrue 10 the In
teTboroUgh company alone. Pending the con
>tTucriou Of new Suhways AT least thousands
Of IFS patrons would UnqueStionably he benp-
6red An addition Of two or three miles 70
'he present express track would materially
shorten the time from the vicinity Of the City
Hall 10 points north or the Harlem River and
would make feasible The operation Of Il larger
number Of trains within "a given interval Of
time Whether This one fact should be per
United 10 outweigh those which are Justly
urged IN opposition 10 the scheme is ques-
ton which il is not easy to determine and
which it is therefore, the duty Of the Rapid
Transit Commission to consider with disin-
jerested and ScrupUlous care.
i Is obvious that if the request of the Inter
borough company should he granted AZ all a
handsome compensation should he exacted. 1t
is equally obvious that if consent should mo
mentarlv expose the commission to ungraciOus
impUtationS effective vindoatiOn could he
secured by the policy subsequently, pursued in
regard 10 the new suhways. A heavy respon-
sihility rests on the commission