New-York tribune., 1910-01-31
PURE AIR In CARS
CHIC1GO'S NEW MOVE.
Democracy Of Germs To BE
Disrupted.

Chicago Jan so-''Democracy Of germs
in Chicago street and elevated railroad cars
is to be disrupted Pure air-pursr. even.
than the brand they inhale at the head
quarters OF the Chicago Health Depart
nent-is TO be the portion OF the weary
passenger who is TANNED Ike the proven
bial sardne In hon1eward vending coach
Next Monday night new code for the
regulation OF cars Is coming up In the city
council Its passage Is declared 20 be as
sured. But while the city is about 10 adopt
officially the results and conclusions OF
two years Investigations Of Health Com
missioner Evans. DIR. Evans himself has
been carrying on independent negotiations
with the car companies by which ne de-
clares all the coaches of the Northwestern
and South Side Elevated. and possibly OF
the Metropolitan Elevated and seven hun
dred cars of the surface lines. will be
equipped to promote the public health be-
fore the present winter is over
The, street and elevated cars of Chicago
will be the most healthful in the world
declared DR.. Evans with salubrious smile
This is what the new order of things
viii bring about-conditons, it may be
noted, which promise an upheaval in mi
crobic social circles:
There shall be introduced into every car
three hundred and fifty cubic feet Of air
every nour for each passenger.
troduced into ,aassd s,,ryacs ar ar 20 A,svatsd
coach shall be 3. 900 cubic feet each hour
Ihere snail be az no time in excess Of
one-tenth OF l per cent of carbon dioxide
gas in the atmposhere which passengers
have TO breathe
The air shall be conducted into the car
Exhausted air shall be conducted out of
the car through overhead ventilators. but
route
During cold weather the air which is ad-
mitted shall pass over heating coils and
be warmed as IL comes in.
II any car part of a car where smok-
ing is permitted the supply OF air shall be
a least one-third greater.
SpittOonS must be provided fOT smokers
and they must be OF a kind easily cleaned
and not easily overturned
When these mandates are complied with.
IT is contended the streetcar will become
akin TO sanatorium in its defence against
the germs of disease, and passenger
coaches will become more sanitary than
the average home or Office.
The streetcar as II now exists. I con-
slider a most dangerous thing said Dr..
Evans to-day ITO preserve health under
the conditions which it imposes more ex-
acting methods must be adopted than in
any other place where people spend their
time.
In breathing and talking every person
throws forth germs. These germs travel
varying distances before they fall The
maximum is twenty feet. The average IS
between one and two feet.
Now in a street or elevated car every
available inch of space is filed oftentimes
with passengers Peoples faces are only
a few inches apart. You have here con-
t,T NJ AT
To be sure all germs are not harmful If
they were we should have been exterminat-
ed long ago. But conditions Of streetcar
riding are great menace TO health
sURPAss OFFICES AND HOMES
The conditions which the new code Will
require are based upon experiments which
the Health Department has been carrying
on for two years They should bring about
conditions more healthful than the average
home or Office. In this Office. for instance,
I don't know that there is any ventilation
at ALL" and the Commissioner glanced
around the large room, where some twenty
men were at work. except one window
over my desk, which blows down on the
top of my head"
IF the transportation companies were TO
object that the requirements of the code
are unreasonable" wss asked. would you
consider it reasona BILE 10 require better at
mospheric conditions in streetcars than OBJ
tain in the average home or Officer"
Yes DR.. Evans replied. ION account
OF the other conditions I have spoken of.
The matter has been taken up with the
various companies, and all have made a
definite agreement 10 act before the pres
entswinter is over The Northwestern and
South Side elevated roads are making
progress The Metropolitan is proceeding
more slowly The Oak Park line is pro-
ceeding most slowly The surface lines
have promised to equip seven hundred cars
this winter and the rest next winter"
At the board of supervising engineers IL
was learned that contracts had been let
and some installations made of ventilators.
both automatic and motor driven The
cost is no small item. avera ging more than
800 car.