New-York tribune., 1922-07-27
Urges Better
Facilities for
Subway Power
Transit Commission Wants
Connections With Various
Plants in City to Avoid
Traffic Tie-Ups in Future
Hylan for More Buses
Declares Such a System of
Transportation Could Not
Have a Great Breakdown

Mayor Hyian and George McAneny
Transit Commission chairman, were in
complete accord yesterday on one
thing. They agreed that it was ntol-
cradle that fire as insignificant as
that in the Kent Avenue power house
Of the B. R. T. Tuesday evening should
have such disastrous results.
AS to methods of preventing recur-
renee of the tie-up of traffic the Mayor
and the Transit Commission differ. The
Mayor is all for establishing a system
Of municipal busses. The Transit Com
mission is in favor of investigating the
accident with view to providing bet
ter facilities for substituting power
from other sources when power mouse
is put out of commission.
The Mayor blamed the Legislature
and the Transit Commission for the
fact that bus system was not already
in operation and declared that such a
transit system never could suffer a
breakdown like that of Tuesday night
The Transit Commissioners did not
comment on this beyond pointing cut
that the cause of the break down had
not been ascertained and declaring that
they did not intend to exchange "bill-
ingsgate" with the Mayor. Their en-.
gineers said that it would require
10000 buses of the Hylan type to ac-
commodate the Brooklyn crowds and
that all other traffic over the bridges
would have to be suspended at the rush
hours if they were in use.
First Accident in Sixteen Years
Officials of the B. R. T. said it was
the first accident of the kind in the
sixteen years the Kent Avenue power
house had been in operation, and that
they connected up with the Edison
power as soon as they ascertained that
it would be safe to do So
pending the receipt of detailed re.
ports on the accident" said Chair.
man McAneny, of the Transit Com
mission, "the commission is chiefly
concerned about the broader question
Of developing quicker measures fol
commanding immediate emergency
service from other power houses wher
there is breakdown Of this kind ir
any one Of the main plants. There
are, and have been for some time, ty-
ing-in facilities arranged between the
various power plants of. the city, un.
der which the transit companies ant
the Edison company are able to afford
each other relief in just such emer
gencies as this. These facilities, how
ever, arc not as elaborate as would bs
necessary in case the Edison company
for example, were suddenly called upor
to supply the entire power require
ments of the B. R. 7. in a breakdown
such as that Of last night.
ITO provide a tying-in system a:
elaborate as this would be worry ex
pensive undertaking. Nevertheless
the commission thinks it intolerable
that such an apparently insignifcan
fire should put practically the entire
transit system of Brooklyn out o,
business and cause the public the sor
Of Inconvenience to which it was sub
jccted. The immediate question i:
whether better adjustments cannot bt
made even for partial relief through
better mechanical methods than those
upon which the companies now de-
pend"
Seeks Reliable Facilities.
When asked about the statemen,
made by the Mayor assailing the Tran.
sit Commission, Chairman McAneny
said:
"The Transit Commission to-day
directed its chief executive officer, Gen.
eral Lincoln C. Andrews, to take up al
once with the Interborough and the
B. R. T. and with the officials Of the
Edison companies, both the New Yori
and the Bro ooklyn, the problem involved
in developing better and more reliable
facilities of the sort, and to report
back promptly as to the extent te
which they can and should be pro-
vided and the probable cost
"The B. R. T. officials report that
this is the first accident Of this kind
In sixteen years. Every such accident
however, suggests the possibility OF
going bit further In the develop
ment Of preventive and protective
measures"