Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-05-24
TRANSIT

|
be worth while TO survey the situation
and see whether they have half-Nolson
hold on the future OF Philadelphia or are
merely sprlnging a bluf.
We regard the enactment OF the Salus
| bill as a wise, necessary and wholly desir'
able thing. IL confers on the city right
which IL ought to have. But II in the
background there is conspiracy OF palm.
| itching politicians to draw the sort OF
lease they want and the p. r. T. could
not accept, offer It to the company under
the terms OF the 1907 contract have IL re.
fused and then proceed to the organiza.
tlon Of an independent company, the
stock Of which would be unloaded on the
people OF this city. repeating processes
popular generation or so ago, then by
all means there ought to be a vigilance
committee formed to safeguard public
interests.
| TN SOME respects the argument Of Mr..
l. Lewis in Harrisburg gave an impress
sion utterly at variance with the facts.
He said
The citizens have been led to believe
| that they could construct all the elevated
and subway lines authorized. and on
hve-cent fare with free transfers 10 the
| lines Of the p. r. T. make the investment
pay. This is a roseate dream from which
the sooner we awake and face the real
facts, the better,
/ The implication that citizens were
| fooled or that the plans for rapid transit
were Pickwickian is simply ridiculous.
When the transit program was pro.
iaH M In
| its entirety for $50. 900 900. at a maximum.
/ Politicians and others have succeeded for
their own selfish purposes. in forcing de.
lay after delay, until now some estimates
| show n virtual doubling Of cost. This
means that they have added an apparent
carrying cost Of 100000 or more year
| to the undertaking, have put this load on
! the shoulders OF the community and now
| talk about "roseate dreams a private
| corporation administered as the clty's
transit affairs have been administered by
the Smith administration, would have
been in bankruptcy months ago and most
OF the officers in 1t fired for the good OF
| the service.
But, not content with having by dila.
tory tactics driven the city into it's pres.
ent position, these same obstructonary
interests now talk about abandonment
and the impossibility Of getting anywhere.
They offer no constructive suggestions.
They cry bloody murder and rush for the
exits. The sincere men who have been
put to the front. such as Mr.. Twining and
Mr. Lewis, have, we believe, only the
| city's interests at heart, but when citizens
| k,a hao AP
chlls run down their backs. When Mr..
Taylor left Office rapid transit was ac.
tually within the grasp Of the city; today,
unless citizens arouse themsalv it Is
far away.
The EVENING LEDGER counsels delay in
the main work, merely as a postponement
1t would not be patriotic at this time for the
city to contract for huge supplies of steel
or TO sequester a large body of labor more
urgently needed elsewhere. Nor would il
be common sense to buy at present high
prices. Time has been on the side of the
obstructionists; time from now on is likely
to be on the side of those who would go
ahead The system could have been built
for $6OOOO,O0O. and within a few years
again II can be built for that sum. In
the meantime, common sense unfor-
tunately dovetais into obstructionist
hopes.
TNHE Mayor, we are informed, Is dedi.
L Gated to the proposition that the Frank
ford l. should be pushed at once to Rhawn
street. OF course it should not be
Prompt construction so far as Bridge
street, as originally planned, is imperative
and also some terminal connection al
Front street. II ia in this connection that
the Salus bill is so important, since II
would render possible a through-routine
Of Frankford trains via the Market stree,
subway. A rational program, therefore
at once outlines itself.
1. Enact the Salus bill
| 2. Construct the Frankford L 10
Bridge street and connect Il with the sub
way at Front street.
3. Postpone other construction con-
tracts only until the war situation be-
comes more settled and prices more
normal
T. Continue efforts to reach an agree
ment with the p. r. T., the proposed
lease offering splendid basis on which
to work.
8. Announce a definite policy now TO
the effect that there will be no independ-
ent operation of the new lines that they
willie either be operated under agreement
by the p. r. 7, or by the municipality
itself,
WTE HAVE absolutely no sympathy with
W those who want to lie down and quit
We are against obstructionists Of botf
factions. or in the p. r. T., OF any
anywhere else. Rapid transit is NOR,
necessary now than It was when the
program was adopted. We must have 4
or sink to the level Of a second-rate city
We can have it, in spite OF Mr. Lews'i
opinion, with a hve-cent fare, when con
ditions become normal. II we could no
operate it successfully with a five-cen
fare. the system nevertheless would b,
an enormous benefit to the city with {
six-cent, or even an eight-cent, tempo
rary through fare.
TT BECOMES increasingly evident tina
Mr.. Taylor does things and formulate
definite purposes while nobody else di
rectly connected with the transit prob