Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-02-23
They Shout Economy and Plan
Extravaganza


"7NHBRE must be economy" shout the
opponents of rapid transit. Then they
proceed to economize by proposing to build
three miles of elevated railroad through
farm district.
"The city cannot afford to be plunged Into
a scheme the ultimate cost of which no one
san now pretend to limit" Quite true. That
Is why Director Taylor has spent months In
q most exhaustive study of the entire situa-
tion diagnosing lines of traffic, probable
volume, etc. He is able not only to limit final
cost, but to show plainly just what the cost
will be- 1t is because the city must net be
plunged into a bottomless mire of debt that
the well-dgestcd Taylor plans must be fol-
lowed instead of tn absurd plans of a clique
of men who have given the subject no study
whatever and apparently have no otter pur-
pose than to prevent rapid transit entirely
by handing over the city to the Rapid Tran
sit Company bound and shackled. If the
Connolly transit scheme were adopted, not in
so years would real rapid transit be possible.
THE city cannot afford, liberal as its OPP
portunlty Tor borrowing money may ps, "
load itself with such burdens of debt that an
increase in the tax rate would be made in
evitable" That is why the Taylor plan con-
templates no increase in the tax rate. The
constitutional amendment will ease the an
nual payments, admit capitalization of ex-
penses during period of construction and a
short time thereafter; the increase in prop
erty valuations which inevitably follows
high speed facilities will proportionately in
crease aggregate tax receipts, and there is
some reason to believe that the new system
will be used by passengers, all of whom will
pay fares. There will be no increase of tax
rates under the Taylor plans; an increase
would be certain were the Connolly fasco
adopted.
THE loop would be the most expensive of
all the proposed subway work" The motor
Is the most expensive part of an automobile.
Who would build railway cars without exits,
or steam locomotives without boilers? An
elevator in shaft will run, but it Is per-
fectly useless unless people can get in and
out of 1t. The loop is the heart of the transit
system, the distribution centre to which all
the lines lead and without which all sums
spent on the other part would be wasted
money.
The holdbacks, the obstructionists, the
timid neurotics, the panicky individuals, the
men whose interest it is to keep Philadelphia
where it is and prevent all progress, shake
convulsvely at the thought of expense when
transit is mentioned. unless it is the kind of
transit which would be particularly beneficial
to them and worthless to everybody else. But
a new day has dawned, Men know that there
is no danger of bankruptcy, no financial or
other reason why the city should not have
what other cities of the same class already
have. They understand pretty we'll the real
reasons influencing obstructionists who shout
economy in one breath and plead for utterly
eXtravagant enterprises in the other. They
know the ordinance introduced at the recent
session of Councils for what 1t is, deliberate
and vicious attempt to trick and defraud the
city. They know what obstructionlsts mean
when they say they are for transit and pro-
ceed meanwhile to stick knives into it, The
Connolly kind of transit is peculiarly salts
that the Public Service Commission would
never sanction such wanton waste of public
funds on so technically absurd an undertake
ing. The opponents of the Taylor plan pro-
test their innocence too much, They may
try to mask their designs in verbiage, but
the stain on their hands shows even through
gloves.