Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-01-15

Iprovements will be an interurban road
announcement of the plans for which
have been made from time to time in
the papers, and for which frontage is
already being secured This line, fol-
/ which a separate company has been
formed under the laws of Illinois, with
Mr.. Porter as president, myself as vice
president. and II. E. Casteel and F. G.
Young of Rock Island, as treasurer and
secretary respectively, will run from
| Silvis, through Moline and Rock Island
| TO a point in Mercer county II miles
south of Milan. Cars will be running
within year from the time the essen
tial rights are obtained. The exact OBJ
jective point to the south. or how far
the road will eventually be carried,
cannot. for obvious reasons, be stated
now But it is promised to have ~
miles completed and in operation with
electric cars, within a year from the
time the right of way is secured. To
complete the line. a section of track
must be built between Silvis and War
ner's Crossing where the junction is
formed with the Mississippi Valley
Traction company's line whose tracks
are followed into Moline. Rights of
way. are being asked to connect with
the Fourth avenue line in that city
with the purpose to use its tracks
west from Twenty street in
that city. from which point
the interurban follows Fifth avenue to
Forty-sixth street, Rock Island. where
it takes up the Fourth avenue line
again and comes through TO Thirty
eighth street. From this point there
are two plans in view of getting down
into Rock Island. One is to follow the
Fourth avenue route down Moline ave
nue.. the other to seek a right of way
over Seventh avenue using the Elm
street line tracks west to Twenty
fourth street and then proceeding
north on new tracks to Third avenue
and thence west to Seventeenth, swing
ing in with the Tower line and using its
tracks to Milan, and going over into
Mercer county on a new right of way.
Direct Line Necessary.
"The main object of construction in
an interurban road is to avoid as many
curves as possible. in order to save
time. This idea has been followed in
Moline in connecting with the Fourth
avenue instead of the Third avenue line,
and in cutting through over Fifth ave
nue. west of Twenty-seventh
street in that city, thus do
ing away with several curves that
the Fourth avenue cars make So it
would be in coming through Seventh
avenue from Elm street TO Twenty
fourth. BY this route, too, Moline ave
nue.. over which pass probably more |
cars than any other thorOughfare in |
the three cities, would be avoided. for |
with the regular traffic of the Third |
and Fourth avenue lines, together with |
the extras and specials coming from |
Or going to the Moline avenue car
houses. the tracks from Twentieth and |
Third avenues east are so constantly |
used as to seriously delay interurban |
cars. whose time is much faster than |
he strictly urban cars.
CAS- is customary in the cases of all |
the one which it is sought |
o bring into Rock Island is organized |
lnder the railroad act of the state
which provides for a 5O-year franchise
O that portion of the right of way |
)Ner winch II operates. ne IhDneN 10
eady for the building of the line
md the survey which is already
we'll under way. 1t will, of course, be
to issue bonds to
,quip the line and these cannot
De purchased until every question as
o right of way is properly disposed
IT, The interurban is therefore cOndi
ional upon securing the desired right
# way. The other concessions as to
in light and Improvement
n the local lines are wholly uncondi-
ional and entirely voluntary on the
art of the company.
Immediate Relief.
"Some immediate improvements that
re being already inaugurated in Rock
sland you might add, are trippers on
he Elm street and Long View lines
Turing the rush hours. and 15-minute
airs on the Tower line as far out as
he Center station, this latter in con-
ormity with the action of the council
t its last meeting. The tripper serv-
ce on the two lines mentioned will
ontinue until the larger cars of suf-
icient capacity to handle the traffic
are built.
CAS- soon as the work of rebuilding
he main lines is completed, new
chedule will be arranged shortening
ID the time between cars materially