The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-11-13
STATE UTILITIES
. COMMISSION WILL
RECEIVE REPORT
Survey of Traffic Conditions
by Ross W. Harris Proposes
Changes That Will Prove
Revolutionary on City.

Harris, who will, present his report |
kon the traffic survey recently made |
Eof Memphis, and ask that an order
be entered to the effect that the
Tchanges recommended therein be car
ried out
1t Is expected that the order will 4,
be Forthcoming as all parties at in |
terest have signed letter to the COM |
mission asking that the order be en-
tered. If, and when, this order is !
received, the receivers of the street |
railway company in Co operation with |
members of the city commission, will |
put the proposed changes into effect !
as soon as feasible.
Probably no movement in Mem |
phis in recent years has been so rev. |
olutionary in its probable effects as
the survey, provided all it's recon- |
mendatioQs are carried out In the
course Of ten years-the time for |
which the proposed changes are sup |
posed to care for Memphis traffic.
Is is expected to change Memphis
nom a one-street town to city with |
q widespread business district which
should be the envy Of many cities
of much greater population. Third
street will become one of the inn
portant thoroughfares in the city and
| several of the East and West lanes
viii be of equal Importance.
Mr.. Harris found Memphis a one
street town, according to his report,
with all the traffic congestion which
goes with one single thoroughfare.
something over four fifths of the to- J
tai number OF street cars run in the
| city pass along Main street between
Jefferson and Linden avenues So
heavy is this street car traffic on
Main street that Mr.. Harris reported
an average OF 100 cars an hour going
in one direction and at sometimes
this number was increased to 152
cars per hour. 4
Heavy Auto Traffic.
Congestion in the uptown district |
| was further intensified by the heavy
automobile traffic and the habit of
| parking antos on the busy thorough |
fares In his report Mr.. Harris Sc
verely criticises this parking, espe-
cially on streets having double street |
car tracks. His recommendations
covering this feature are that in the
district bounded by the south side of
3eale avenue. the west side Of Main
avenue and the east side of Third
the active business hours of the day,
and entirely prohibited on streets
having double tracks for street cars.
Mr.. Harris only touched automo-
bile traffic to the extent that such
traffic had bearing on street car traf- !
fic, for it was the latter which he |
was studying. In this connection, !
| however, he recommends the OPEN
| ing OF jefferson avenue through from
downtown to the eastern limits OF
| the city, and the widening and inn
| proving OF Union avenue from Main
| street east to Myrtle, with the aban-
donment OF street car tracks on
Union from Third street to Myrtle.
These improvements with some lat
erals developed by the city should. in
Mr.. Harris opinion. take care Of
auto traffic for many years. and pre-
vent 1t from interfering with street
car traffic.
Mr.. Harris has submitted a map
to the city commission for guidance<
in the fueure development Of the
street car system. This map calls
for considerable construction work
to put it into effect, and owing TO
the depleted state of the company's
finances just now, it is considered
impractical at the present.
This map calls for the routing OF
cars along Main and Third streets,
running on Main from Calhoun,
north throughout the length of the
street, and on Third from Vance to
Poplar avenues. East and west lines
connecting these main thoroughfares
would run along Union and Jeffer-
son avenues. By this plan Front
street would be entirely abandoned,
even for storage purposes. while
present tracks between Third and
main, except on Union and Jeffer-
son, would be retained, but not used
except for detourlng purposes.
In addition, the plans call for two
crosstown lines. The present line to
be extended south to McLemore ana
thence to Florida, and north to
Chelsea. The second line would be
built out north and south with
Cooper avenue as the basis
This plan would further reduce
the congestion on the thoroughfares
where it is now extremely heavy.
Poor Distribution.
Mr.. Harris found the street car
service in Memphis ample insofar as
quantity was concerned. But its poor
distribution was such as to make the
quality, while not poor in compari-
son with other cities, still not up 10
the standard IL might obtain through
proper distribution. 1t is in a proper
distribution of the service which the
company is now giving that Mr..
Harris hopes to reduce the number
of vacant seats at the same time
that he reduces the number Of stand
ing Messengers and at the same time
! relieve congestion in the downtown
districts.
Charts prepared by Mr.. Harris
show that in the rush hours Of the
early morning and late evening there
are some $500 passengers VINO stand
| in the aisles Of the cars. This Is out
OF . total OF passengers carried daily
| Of $4,000. A. the same time, how
Rvss, that these $500 people are
standing there are furnished by the
company. four vacant seat miles Co
each SANDING passenger mile going
in the same direction.
This condition is due largely 20 the
practice Of running all cars entirely
to the end Of the line, instead Of
| turning some Of them back when
| they have passed the heavy traffic
| district. According to Mr.. Harris, IS
| per cent of the passengers carried by
| thA Memphis system live within the
| q mile limit. Cars running beyond
this limit are serving only % per
cent of the people, and when cars
are run to the end of the line 20
| per cent of the people are claiming
and getting service due to the larger
| rs per cent. This will be remedied
| by turning cars back at various
| points designated by the survey. on
East End, for instance. the length Of
time between cars during the rush
hours TO East END park is five min
utes beyond the park it is 10 min
| utes.
| some idea Of the distribution Of