The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-18
NEEDS MORE TRAINS.
REPORT OF RAPID TRANSIT
BOARDS INVESTIGATORS.

Express Trains Should Have Eight Cars
FFOm o A. vi. to o p. M, and More
should BE I'm on the Margin Of the
Rush-Other improvements Suggested.
Because Of complaints to the Rapid Tran
ait Commission recently Of the traffic con-
ditions in the subway the board appointed
a committee to. investigate. The COM
mittee was made up Of Comptroller Metz,
Commissioner Smith and Chief Engineer
Rice Of the commission. A preliminary
report Of the committee has been drawn
up and will be presented to next Thurs
days meeting OF the board.
The report shows the trains are not run
on the schedule originally agreed upon by
the marlborough company. 1t 10 stated
that crowding, except during the rush
hours, can be avoided, and many improve
ments in the operation Of the subway trains
are recommended.
One of the conditions observed by the
committee is that the passengers them
selves are responsible for part Of the con-
gestion at the stations and on the trains,
for the reason that they do not properly
distribute themselves. The committee
found that passengers flock to the middle
cars, the result being that these cars are
packed with standing passengers, while
the front and rear cars are often nearly
empty. The committee does not make
any recommendations as to how this ten
dency might be obviated. Some passengers
prefer to be in the middle Of a train.
Tho committee condemns the practice OF
running only five car express trains on
SUNDAYS, and contends that IL eight car
- -Nzl -~~r.l,1- ~ thA
trains would be done away with. The re-
port says that the express service should
be put into operation earlier on Sundays,
Now, expresses are not put on until the
afternoon. II is also suggested that the
Sunday local trains on the Lenox avenue
branch should be run more frequently than
under a six minute Roadway.
That part of the report dealing with the
week day service says:
As to the express service It Is noticeable
that from the beginning OF the service in
the early morning until 0 o'clock at night
either north or south bound express trains
for some portion of their run below Ninety
sixth street carry standing passengers.
Between the hours OF 7 and o A. M and 8 and
7P. NJ. express trains are run approximately
at the minimum Intel walls practicable. and
are. filled with passen gers to their maximum
carrying capacity: in one case as many as
eighty passengers have been counted in
a"half car during such hours,-o or 100 passen-
gers to a car. During these hours II seems
almost impracticable to provide any better
service. Durings the other hours Of the day.
both morning Sand afternoon, the express
train interval south OF Nlnety-siXth street
Ia increased, ranging from six minutes in
teryal between Q and I A. NJ. and 7 and 8
p. NJ. TO a little less than a three minute
Interval between 8 and 10 A.. NJ. and 1 and 5
p. NJ. for eight car trains. Between I and
@ p. NJ. some of the expresses are reduced
to five cars, and after 3 p, NJ. approximately
all express trains are reduced to five cars.
To provide adequate service for express
trains, therefore. eight car trains should be
maintained throughout the day from Q In
the morning until o o'clock at night, and
more express trains should be run from
q to 7 A. NJ. and from 0 A. NJ. to s P. NJ.
and from Up. NJ. to p, NJ.
As to the local trains week days, between
7 and 0 o'clock In the morning southbound
Lenox avenue cars and all southbound
locals below Grand Central Station are
crowded. Between S p. NJ. and 7 p. NJ. all
locals north Of Grand Central Staf iop and
all Lenox avenue locals are crowded. these.
Of course, being In the rush hours. and the
interval is a little over two minutes. II
seems tina the running interval of the local
trains should be reduced during rush hours;
at all other hours Of the day the local ser