The sun., 1908-11-22
Street Congestion and Tall Build
ings.


s8S ings.
The contention that the height of
buildings should be limited in order to
prevent further street congestion is a
good example of muddled reasoning
Tall buildings are n frequent result,
never in any proper sense the cause, of
congested traffic. To limit the supply
Of housing at traffic centre means a
restriction of the volume of business that
chn be transacted there in competition
with other traffic centres of the same
general order. The business housed
IN middle and lower Manhattan is the
nource of the prosperity Of the 4,250, 600
people who make up the population of
this town. 1t is the product, not the
origin, of the great systems OF land and
water transportation that meet at the
port of New York. Manhattan would
not be the commercial, industrial and
financial centre that it is if it were not
ilgurativel5', the portage between the
main streams Of traffic coming to the
hnrbor from every quarter. The amount
Of portage that can be handled is deter
mined by the cost, of which rent is the
principal element. Now. it would be
absurd to argue that the city should
prevent further street congestion by
compelling landlords to advance rents
with view to diverting traffic to Bos-
ton or Philadelphia, Yet higher rents
would be the inevitable result Of limit
ing the height of buildings.
The obvious remedy for street con-
gestion is more roadway or quicker cir
culation of traffic. WILLIAM j. WILGUs
in the hearing before the Public Ser
vice Commission on his proposed freight
subway. claimed that it would be capable
8F handling 80 per cent. of the commerce
of lower Manhattan and that 1t would
greatly reduce the inordinate expense
now charged up to trucking If the
statement is correct, a freight subway
would be of more substantial benefit
just now than would another passenger
sub way 1t would clear the streets
OF innumerable slow moving teams
which now impede the progress Of the
surface cars, and, as is known, the rate
Of progress of these cars downtown
reacts on the speed Of surface transpor-
tation throughout the city.
As ro providing more roadway, the
city is constantly widening narrow
streets in the outlying districts. No
one apparently thought Of limiting the
height OF buildings at Westchester, out
In The Bronx, "in general accordance
with the width" of the old village streets
there. Yet adequate highways at the
con. .,nercial centre are Of first impor-
lance. The city has not in years done
anything to enlarge its central thor
oughfares, though many OF them are
mere lanes inherited from the colonial
period. There was some activity in
bettorinK the downtown street system,
particularly during the third and fourth
decades of the last century, when four
andsfive story business buildings were
becoming general; but one OF the very
latest downtown street widenings men,
doned in JOHN j. PosT's "Old Streets"
3(ies2) was that Of Wall street from
broadway TO Nassau, which was au-
thorized in 1854. 1t is believed that the
only downtown street alteration to be
added TO the short list given in that
Authoritative work is the recent addi-
tion. of few inches to the width OF
Cedar street between Broadway and
Trinity place and the relocation and
widening Of tho corresponding block Of
Thames street. These changes were
Affset by the closing of block Of Tenn
Ne street, and were of no public conse-
aAence. being authorized by the city in
ofier to permit a Encouragement Of
private building sites.
i The expense of remodelling the down.
town street system would no doubt be
great, but it would be no greater in
Proportion TO benefit than it is to make
over the village layout of Westchester.
AS yet only about 10 per cent. of the
sites downtown is covered with mod
ern constructions. The larger the per-
csnLage grows the greater will be the
cost OF improving the street system.