New-York tribune., 1920-02-16
s2s,ess,ooo. Mr.. Holland stated In a.


interview on Saturday that this esti.
and is based upon existing prices for
material and labor. A readjustment In
costs from the present high levels i1&y
ultimately reduce the cost Of consttue-
ton.
Under the present scheme the conn-
mission aims to begin aetual construo-
tion in September next, and plans to
open the tunnel on January l, 1924.
Eleven years from the date Of opening
the tolls will have paid the cost Of con-
struction, and If the same rate Of tari(f
is continued for twenty years each
state will be reimbursed for the bonds
issued and will have a surplus Of $3S,-
$4,000. The initial outlay is divides
each. Two million dollars has already
been appropriated by the states, and Of
this sum the preliminary expenses hats
accounted for $4,000, including the
cost of test borings. The commission
asks tor further $2,00o,000 to meet
construction costs during the coming
fiscal year.
In its general course, the new tube
follows straight line drawn from
Canal Street, Manhattan, to Twelfth
Street. Jersey City. The plan provides
both ends. In Manhattan the entrance
is planned for Broome Street, between
Varick and Hudson streets, and and
exit for Vestry Street, the two tubes
coming together at the waterfront. In
Jersey City the exit will be at Four
teenth Street, with the entrance at
Twelfth and Provost Streets, and hero
again the two tubes meet at the water
! line.
Will Reduce Congestion
The maximum adverse grade for
westbound traffic is 3.5 per cent and for
eastbound traffic is 3.62 per cent
grades which compare with those used
over the East river bridges. These ad-
verse grades are comparatively short
extending only from the tunnel portal
to the points where the tunnel roadway
meets the street grade. TO reduce con-
gestion and facilitate the movement ot
traffic in this portion Of the tunnel the
width of the roadway is designed to Be
wide enough for three lines Of traffic
instead of the two lines as provided
under the river. The long adverse
grades for eastbound traffic are 3.f3
per cent and for the westbound 2.83
per cent.
The tunnel has been located at a
depth which the engineers consider suf-
ficiently below the dredging plane to
insure its non-fotation and to afford
protection from damage due to dredg-
ing operations or the possible sinking
of a vessel. The top Of the tunnel will
be sixty feet below the mean low water
level, and the road bed eighty feet be-
low that line. Between ventilation
shafts, located inside the pier lines,
the tunnel will be $4,000 feet long The
entrances on both sides are approxi-
mately 1900 feet from the river front.
In Manhattan the properties where it
is planned to build the entrance and
exit plazas are owned by the city. In
Jersey City the tunnel comes up be-
tween the properties Of the Erie and
Lackawanna railroads, and is also
within easy reach of the Pennsylva.
nia' terminals. This close proximity to
three big railroad properties will great.
ly facilitate the handling of freight
through the tunnel, the commission be-
lieves.
1t is planned to locate the inshore
ends of the tube under piers to be built
after the tunnel construction is COM
pleted, thus avoiding any interference
with the waterfront development or
shipping accommodation.
The report goes at some length into
the merits of the various designs con-
side red by the commission and the rea-
sons for the final decision in favor of