The San Francisco call., 1906-11-04
STREET TRAFFIC
OF BIG CITIES
Comparison of Highways
Of New York With Those
of Paris and London

1t appears that on Fifth avenue $3.50
vehicles day passed the Worth monu-
ment in 1885, and $500 passed over the
granite pavement daily in 1896; whereas
in 1904 12,06S were observed between
Thirty-third and Thirty fourth streets,
an Increase of about 120 per cent In
1885 Mr.. Greene estimated the average
weight per vehicle as IS ton. In 1904
according to the weights which have
been assumed to be correct, the aver
age weight per vehicle was 80 ton or
.s3 ton on the former basis. In 1855
81 per cent of the vehicles weighed less
than one ton, while in 1904 70 per cent
Ca much smaller number) were of This
character. The traffic on this street,
therefore, while still composed largely
of light vehicles, has increased to an
enormous extent in eight years and the
average weight per vehicle to a very
considerable extent. The tonnage per
foot of width, on the Greene basis of
weight has increased from "a to PSI
or to 247 on the writer's basis. With
the exception of First avenue at
ries the heaviest traffic in the city of
New York, although this traffic is com
posed of the largest percentage of light
weight vehicles.
On 1885 the traffic on Broadway near
Pine street amounted to 273 tons per
foot of width. No enumeration was
made at this point in 1904 but at the
two points where the count was made
(between Eighteenth and Nineteenth
streets. on asphalt, and between Frank
lin and Leonard streets. on granite
block) the tonnage only reached 107. 2
in the one case and Co.'S in the other.
These figures are on the Greene basis
of calculation, which includes the car
tracks in the width of the street, and
III
of 1885 and 1904 data.
On the writer's basis of calculation
the tonnage at these two points
amounts to 1898 and 96.9. These fig
ures are exceeded by those for First
Fifth and Eighth avenue and for
Fourth street. 1t is quite surprising
therefore. to find that the Broadway
traffic is not a heavy one at the present
time, as compared with that of several
has very possibly decreased rather than
increased since 1885.
1t is an interesting fact that the
heaviest traffic which has been count ed
in New York is on First avenue at
Twenty-sixth street, and that it is
largely made up of vehicles of a heavy
class, averaging 2.1S tons in weight,
only 26 per cent being of less than
one ton.
1t appears that the tonnage per foot
on some streets in London was far
greater even in 1873 than anything
found in New York, reaching 412 on
King William street, street of the
same width as Fifth avenue, where the
vehicles average 1.06 tons in weight
and 16.4S4 In number On the other
hand, on no street in London was the
average weight of the vehicles so great
as that on First avenue. 1t must be
remembered that In London there Is an
enormous number of omnibuses, which
are not found on New York streets
For instance, of the 10.776 vehicles
passing along Piccadiliy, 80 per cent
are of this description and average two
tons in weight, while only Sc per cent
are cabs, averaging one-half tons each.
Notwithstanding this the traffic on
Fifth avenue approaches In tonnage
per foot that on Piccadilly in 173. I'm
fortunately there are no data avail
able for the latter street at the present
time This traffic, no doubt, has in
creased largely.
The records show that the traffic in
Paris in 1881 and 1882 was very much
greater than that on the streets car
City at the present time. In fact, no
traffic has been counted on any street
In any city in the world which can
equal that of the Rue de Rivoli in Paris
in 1881. which at that time was nearly
three times as great as that on Fifth
avenue today, the width of the
two streets being practically the same.
Engineering News.