New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-05-15
Wrof6 and Sorr0ta,
Fouote, Action of
the Metz Hdpen
Road.

Communication rates are going up Wnile
yhilanthropists and sociological experts are
racking their brains for ways TO spread
New York's congested population over the
countryside, some Of the railroads are ap-
parently stirring themselves TO cheek sucn
movements by making a home In he coun-
try cost the city worker more than for
merly Seven great roads bring 10000 men
and women to this city every morning and
take them home every night. One OF the
seven has already raised its Communication
rate; two others will make an extra charge
for the use of their new tunnels from Long
Island and New Jersey. and the other four
are frankly considering an increase
When q railroad considers putting up
prices the proposition is far advanced;
nothing short of fight is likely 10 stop 1t.
And though there has been a great TODD
aIncng the unfortunates who live along the
New Haven road. where the mischief is
done already, there is not a word OF pro-
test, as yet, from the commuters OF the
other six lines, where an organized opposi-
ton would have some chance of preventing
the threatened raise of fare.
There is a popular notion that railroads
run their Communication service at a loss, or,
at best, practically without profit. planning
to get their money back in the greater re-
ceipts from freight and from ''straight"
passenger fares which come with the thick
ening population. Most railroad men are
willing TO let this idea spread without con-
tradicting 1t. but few Of them viii say
fatty that it is true of their own particular
road. Many men who have studied trans
portation say outright that it is not true;
that Communication business by itself is
profitable. One of these men is Joseph S.
Wood, Mount Vernon lawyer, who has
facts and figures TO prove his point-that
by proper management the railroads could
make their Communication traffic even more
profitable than il is at present
BY electrifying their lines" he said
when questioned on the subject, the rail
roads have revolutioniZed suburban travel
in region that is as thickly settled as
Westchester County a suburban railroad is
really rapid transit line, and IT ought to
be operated as such. Where there are
towns like New Rochelle and West Ches-
ter. with $1,000 and 5000 population within
few miles-parts. in fact, OF the metropo-
lis itself-it is absurd to apply all the rules
and the rates of fare that were made thirty
years ago for train service between cities
lying hundreds OF miles apart.
1t does not pay 10 run Steam iocomo-
tive unless it can haul four or five cars at
Thus, a steam train service is usually run
with long Intervals between trains, SO that
several cars fun OF people VIII be carried
at each trip But an electric locomotive
uses only as much power as il needs 10
pull its load. It can pull one or two cars
at time with very little waste.
Instead Of putting up their communication
rates both the New York. New Haven &
Hartford and the New York Central should
start a regular rapid transit service. such
as that in the subway, as far as Stamford
and White Plains Let them run trains on
their suburban electric tracks at frequent
intervals. say. twenty minutes. during the
Bay. as well as at the rush hours. Let
them charge by system OF fare zones
say. Eve cents TO al points within the city
limits in The Bronx, and five cents more TO
points outside Their traffic would Jump
ny leaps and bounds. Within few months
they would be running trains of the fun
number OF cars all day long, and the in
creased traffic would make UP for the low
cred fares ten times over.
There was an excellent example OF what |
happens to passenger traffic after a change
IN fare when, IN 1907, the New York Cen
trial raised its Communication rates 10 per
cent on July ]. During the first six months
of that year the railroads station at Mount
Vernon sold 1853 communication tickets and
s1s 1ifty-trip family tickets. which, to-
gether. brought in S24 SIS 20 at the rate then
in force In the last six months OF the
same year after the increase in price, the
road sold from the same station 1855 COM
mutation tickets and 14e family tickets,
which made receipts Of only Sl5,656 so. 1t