Semi-weekly herald., 1908-02-10

bheh hhh tti VII GNSit udfs WUht are
known as the McAdoo tunnels, under
the North River. between Hobokeu,
N. j.. and Fourteenth street and Sixth
avenue. New York. will be open for
traffic within the next few days. The
other McAdoo tunnels. from Jersey
City to Cortlapdt street In New York
City, will be ready by midsummer.
The tunnels for the Pennsylvania sys-
tenn, which will enable passengers
from the west and south to land at
Thiity-frst stheet and Eighth avenue,
are practically completed and the
monster terminal station and hotel
that he Pennsylvania company is
building to cover three blocks is be-
ginning to show signs of what 1t is
going to be. People who pass up and
down Seventh, Eighth and Ninth ave
nues. or along Thirty-frst Thirty
secand and Thirty-third streets, West,
can see large cavity ia the earth,
quite as large as the foundations of
st. Peters Cathedral at Rene. which
has been leveled and cemented and
divided into spaces by stupendous
walls upon which skeletons OF steel
are rising and taking shape. The
work is getting on rapidly aid prom
ises to be completed within the next
two years, according to contract.
Way up in one corner of this great
cavity you can see where the tunnel
that much of the material for the
building is now brought under the
river and delivered on the ground d.
rectly from the steel mills. from the
brick yards and from the quarries.
The tunnels from the Pennsylvania
terminals to Long Island City are also
nearly completed but cannot be used
until the station Is finished. Within a
very short time. however. all of the
passenger traffic from the west and
| south, except over the New York Cen
trail, will be landed underground in
the center of New York City, and the
| ferries will no longer be necessary
for the passenger trains. All OF the
new tunnels from New Jersey will
| connect with those for Brooklyn and
also with the subway up town, and II
Is only matter of few months be
/ fnr In frf hA agt Of II,H
river and east of the East river car
reach any point in Greater New YORK
without going up into the open air
1t will be possiblye for a person from
Philadelphia or Washington to dive
under the ground while still in New
Jersey and come out at the Bronx.
These tunnels have involved somt
of the greatest engineering problem!
ever encountered, and, like the drain
age canal at Chicago. have inaugural
ed new era in excavation and under
ground work.
The "ttwo-burrow' tubes. as peopl,
are calling the tunnels between New
York and Brooklyn, have relieved th'
pressure of traffic upon Brooklyn
bridge about 35 per cent, but tha
great thoroughfare is still very crowd
ed, and the tunnels are crowded n
lected upon the cars across the bridg,
shows that only about 65 per cent a
many people are crossing that wa,
since the tunnels were opened as be
fore, and the ticket collections In tn,
tunnels show the large number of pas
sengers that are going underground
no one would perceive the difference
in the rush of people trying to get t,
their homes in Brooklyn at the clos
OF the day, and the jams in the train
that run through the tunnels are quit
as bad. 1t will not be many month
before both the overhead and under
ground transportation between Ne,
York and Brooklyn will be taxed T.
their newly increased capacity.
Il The increase of patronage on tn
New York City transportation line
is almost incredible. The figures TO
the year 1907 show a gain OF 1000
passengers for the average day, and /
is almost beyond belief. This mean
that 10000 more people used the sub
way, the elevated trains and the SUI
face roads every day in the year thai
on the previous day. OF course thu
Increase was not regular like that
The total gain in the number of pas
sengers carried for the year 1907 wa
100000, which divide by 1856 days
makes the average daily gain 10000
This is difficult to account for. be
cause the city is not growing so fas
as that would indicate.
Since the lst of July, 1907, the pub
lie service commission has require,
an average increase OF 20 per cent II
the entire facilities for transportation
within Greater New York. and from
20 to 40 per cent upon the mos
crowded lines, but still there does no
seem to be any falling of in the mum
ber OF strap-hangers during the rust
hours OF the day. In the subwa,
| alone the commits sion has addad OF