The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
PLAN TO DOUBLE
PENNSY STATION
AT STEEL CENTER
Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany Is Ready to Build
Addition to Pitts
burg Depot

Pittsburg, October n.-(Special.)-Th
Pennsylvania Railroad company has
plans ready for 12-story addition to the
Pennsylvania station. 1t will mean the
virtual doubling of capacity. The addi-
tion is to be about the same, size as the
present building.
The Improvement is expected to cost
around a million dollars and will give
Pittsburg Pennsylvania terminal some
thing similar to the Broad street station
in Philadelphia. although not quite so
large.
|, Plans of the new building were prepared
by d. II. Burnham & Co. of Chicago.
They have finally been approved. When
the work is finished the station building.
with the covered approach for vehicles
will extend to New Grant street.
There will be an entire change in the
floor plans of the station. the public en-
frances being on a level with Liberty
avenue and Grant street, with the train
shed on the second level
Not only the portion of the station
used by the public, but also the office
space of the railroad company will be
doubled by the new arrangement. The
station structure will be much more i'm
posing than at present. For the various
departments the railroad company has
long been short of office room in the
present building, and accommodations for
the travelling public have also been mad
equate, as the passenger traffic at. the
station has increased heavily from year
to year.
Rumors Dispelled
The fact that the railroad company has
decided to give Pittsburg a station of
metropolitan size and type by enlarging
| the present station spells "finis' for all
| long-existing rumors that the company
| intends ultimately to erect a passenger
station on the Fl. c. FriclS property at
Grant street and Fifth avenue. That
such a move was once contemplated many
believe but this new project shows con-
clusively that a Pennsylvania station on
the Hump will not materialize.
The enlargng of the Pennsylvania sta
ton is but another development in the
enormous expansion of facilities found
necessary by the company for the Pitts
burg district. Old Union station, Which
the present terminal took the place of,
was spot of historic interest. 1t has
been only a few months since the COM
pany officially announced that the ter
minal would be known as the Pennsylva-
present building was placed in service in
1901.
Not long ago the Pennsylvania company
issued a bulletin showing the expendi-
ture of an aggregate of over s25,50O,OOO
in Greater Pittsburg and vicinity since
January I, 1902. This includes new sta
tions and an enormous amount of track
changes. new yards. cutoffs and the like.
To Eliminate Grade Crossings
The erection of the elevated tracks
along Duquesne way was one of the first
big improvements, together with the
double-decked bridge across the Allie
gheny river to bring the Fort Wayne
tracks into the city and abolish the old
railroad tracks on Liberty and Penn av-
enues. With the elimination of grade
crossings on the northsde this alone cost
more than $4,000, 900.
New freight terminals at the Point and
immense changes on the Southside have
cost much more. But Of all the single
improvements. itfs claimed. the Brilliant
Cutoff was the, master stroke, four
track road extending fro mthe main line
at the East Liberty station rorthward to
the Allegheny Valley and West Penn
tracks. This cost $3,690.000 To increase
yardage room, the Conway yard, on the
Fort Wayne, was built at a cost of $S.00O,-
900. and corresponding tracksa known as
Scully yafu Dullt Ior tne fannanuie L ne
huge stockyards at Herrs Island was an
other extensive improvement.
Then must be considered the handsome
station at East Liberty. costing $550,0O0,
including track elevation, subways and
adjacent Improvement, and the new Alle-
gheny station. completed in 1907 at a cost
of s375.000. Today the PENNSYLVANIA. in
conjunction with the city, is working
further on the separation of grade cross
ings in Homewood and Williamsburg.