Evening star., 1922-04-23
BOULEVARD FROM CHEVY CHASE
TO DUPONT CIRCLE SUGGESTED
w. Pearce Raynor, Head of Motor Corps
Proposes Scenic highway Free From
Street Car Lines.

A boulevard running from Dupont
Circle to Chevy Chase Circle, 1rce
from car lines and abounding IN
the best scenery in the District, is
suggested by W. Pearce Raynor, COM
mander of the Motor Corps OF the
Home Defense League. ::
Mr. Raynor in advancing this prof.
ect believes that it will win the sup
port of Congress, the District Com
missioners and the civic bodies. re
noints out that Connecticut avenue 10
rapidly becoming overcrowded, the
same holding true of Wisconsin ave
nue. which are practically the only
highways to the growing suburb Oh
Chevy Chase.
I Outlines His Plans.
ii a statement issued yesterday Mr
Raynor outlines the plans Tor the
new highway.
representatives on House and senate
District committees. the D'strict
Commissi oners. engineer onlcerS anu
the various civic bodies of Washing
ton is invited to project in city
planning which has many things 10
recommend it," says Mr.. Raynor.
After much study of the situation
a new automobile boulevard. whicn
wof,ld extend from Dupont circle at
one entrance and Connecticut avenue
at Columbia road for the other en-
trance, and running clear to CHEVY
chase Circle without crossing a
street car line or parallellns streee
car track, is proposed.
would BE Of Beauty.
1.-THE boulevard would be one OF un-
exampled beauty built on long, easy
grades, bisecting the area oetWeeh
Connecticut and Wisconsin avenues
rising and falling in gentle unduia-
tions. with any tendency TO mono.onE osfn1
occa sionally broken by eraceIui
curves; in fact veritable PARKWAY
illuminating at Fort Reno, the high-
est point in the District of Columbia.
in 3 sweeping view for miles in every
direction. :.,s
nov to make the plans for this pouie-
ward and to widen any streets whicn
should be widened, with almost no
extra expense or trouble. as for long
stretches there are no buildings de
present. ,, .,
moat impossible to create this boule-
ward except at tremendous expense 10
correct lines which will have been
buflt upon Five years. from now II
this boulevard Is not avaiiaoie.. ~
wiz be Impossible to drive to or from
Chevy Chase Circle in less than one
hour, and follow the street car tracks,
on account Of traffic congestion.
section Growing Rapidly.
.sThis section of the city Is grow
ing more rapidly than any other. nun.
dreds of new homes are being ana
will be built along this boulevard.
and in addition 1t will furnish the
Chase. Columbia. Congressional, Town
and Country and Montgomery Coun-
try clubs a beautiful, quick. easy ana
safe drive to and from their club
homes.
"ITse of the boulevard will reduce
accidents, loss of life and danger. not
only for street car riders and pedes-
trians, but also for motorists, who
are always in danger Of collision on
an over-crowded thoroushfare; and.
by lessening traf1ic along street car
lines would reduce danger to cnlldren
going to and from school.
eft will reduce maintenance costs
of the roadways on Connecticut and
Wisconsin avenues, as the brakes on
all automobiles are applied thousands
of times a day stopping behind street
cars, and then power is strongly ap-
piled to the wheels to beat the street
car to the next stop. all OF which is
very destructive to the surface OF the
road.
Blamed for Car Tie-Ups.
Every one knows what happened
during our recent heavy snowfall.
Automobile traffic on Connecticut
avenue was blamed for the complete
tie-up of the Chevy Chase car line
for several days. as it was claimed
that the automobiles. following the
car tracks. made it impossible to
clear the tracks. for as fast as the
street railway men removed the snow
and ice the automobiles threw it
back on the tracks and packed it
down. Hundreds of street car riders
walked all the way in and out from
Chevy Chase. Had the Chevy Chase
boulevard been a reality snow plows
could have kept it open for auto
mobile traffic, and the Chevy Chase
car line would have been opened to
travel days sooner.
"An automobile boulevard similar
to the parkways in other large cities
would provide an artery for the
steady, even flow of traffic and make
unnecessary severe braking or forced
accelerration and would save motor
lists thousands of dollars in tire abuse
alone.
Imagine 18th street totally closed
to traffic for one week, and you will
have on 14th street an example of
future traffic conditions on Connecti-
cut avenue II plans are not now made
for a boulevard for automobile traf-
fic only and zoned throughout Its