The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-09-16
ROUTING Of CARS
. FIRST ON DOCKET
Street Committee Will Get Re-
port on New Loop for
Franklin at Seventh.
WILL EXPEDITE SERVICE
Question of Delay in City Con-
tracts Also Early Bone
OF Contention.
lwLL EXPEDITE SERVICE

Committees of the new city Coun-
ell, having been organized, will be-
gin regular business today. the first
meeting Of Importance being the Com
mittee on Streets. called for this at
ternoon at o'clock. A report Is to
be made by a subcommittee in regard
to the routing of suburban street cars
around a loup from Seventh and Broad
to Seventh and Franklin. on Franklin
to Eighth. up Eighth to Broad. and
back to the point of beginning
Around this loup ii is proposed to OPP
crate the Barton Heights and Lake.
side cars, which come in North First
Street: the Highland Park Line. which
comes in North Seventh Street, and
the South Richmond lines. which come
up from South Seventh street
The construction of a track on
Franklin Street will require Council
action in the form Of a franchise. the
matter Immediately before the COM
mittee being a petition OF the COM
pany to be allowed to lay the spe-
cial curves and crossovers at Seventh
and Broad Streets. which woul@ be re-
quired when the loup service Is in
augu-atea. so that cars may turn from
West Broad into South Seventh and
from East Broad into both North ana
South Seventh in addition to the
straight crossovers heretofore required
1t will take about forty days. it was
stated, to have the special work made.
and the Virginia Railway and Power
Company desires to lOt 1t down In
connection with the relaying OF the
tracks on Broad Street. According to
company officials. il would be i'm
practicable and lead to too great con-
gestion to bring the cars on down to
Main Street following the loup down
Eighth and up Ninth, now followed by
the Laurel Street and Westhampton
cars.
After Slow Contractor.
Another matter to come before the
Committee on Streets is the laxity OF
city contractors, many OF whom are
months behind time. City Engineer
Boiling attempted to bring this matter
up at the special meeting last week.
saying that there was much complaint
of dilatory work. Captain Mills OBJ
tested that the newspapers were al
ways complaining about something,
and the matter went over. The fact is,
that most of the contracts aw1Cded In
April have been hardly begun. The
funds for smooth paving Broad Street
We're appropriated on March is, when
the budget was signed. and not brick
has been laid. In a leisurely way the
car COMPANY mas TStdScu rs u dShS va
one side for about three blocks-less
than one-fourth of the total rail recon-
struction. and even less progress has
been made in replacing the conduit
system.
Main Street from Fifth to Seventh
has been open since last June, and the
paving between the tracks was COM
pleted on Saturday. The city's part
has not been touched A co9crete bed
is to be laid. and the street repaved
out to the curb line. The contractor
has at no time had an adequate force
On this job. nor sufficient material on
the ground, and the work was the
subject of many complaints by City
Engineer Boiling to the former Street
Committee, but over his protest the
committee granted every contractor
all the extensions asked, even to those
who after four months time had not
even begun work or assembled ma
|terial on the ground
Meetings scheduled for tonight are:
Committees on Water. Street Cleaning.
Relief of. the Poor and Light. all at
clock. ALI have only routine busi-
ness of a departmental character TO
transact. Tomorrow night there will
.e meetings Of the Committee on FL
nance, Ordinance. Charter and Reform.
improvement of James River and Elec-
tricity, all at o'clock. The Commit
tee on Grounds and Buildings will meet
on Thursday night