Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-06-14
FARELESS STREET CARS ARE
NOW PROPOSED
Daily Letter by Frederic j. HaskiO

WASHINGTON, June 14:-Free
rides on street carsi No fumbling for
tickets or metal tokens; no conduc-
tor watching TO see that the COM
pany doesn't get cheated; no spot
ters watching the conductor!
This isn't a picture of Arcadia. 1t
isn't a socialists dream. 1t is put
forth as an interesting possibility by
an engineer and traffic expert of this
city, Captain r. G.. Klotz.
First of all" the traffic expert
explained cautiously, I would like
to say that | am by no means in IA
vor of municipal or Government
ownership of city transportation sys-
TENS as against their operation by
private interests under proper reg
ulatiOn."
Having thus established himself as
a practical-minded conservative, the
Captain went ahead with more aban-
don to explain his idea.
He believes that as long as NUM-
cipal ownership is being established
in some places, it might be as well
to give some consideration to pos
sible changes in the scheme nde
which the service is to be furnished
Elevator service is furnished with
out direct charge. We travel vertical
ly without paying a fare for the priv
ilege. Why should we not be able to
travel horizontally by a similar ar
rangement?
The two situations are similar,
but thew have been met from the
first in different ways.
As our cities spread to such pro-
-.-4t1,- tEat hprGpg aud "a rri9 RpS
we're inadequate, and walking was
too slow and tiresome, a system OF
mass transportation had to be de-
vised. Accordingly, franchises were
granted to individuals under which
they were permitted to construct and
operate railways in the public treets'
To make the proposition pay, they
We're permitted to collect from the
public reasonable tolls for the use
of the car service,
The plan worked. II was profitable,
and there was no difficulty in obtain
ing capital necessary for proper eX-
mansion and development of enough
lines to serve a given territory. so the
privately operated street car system
as we know it became established.
Triyeling Up And Down Is Different
Il was different with vertical rams
p|ortation. Our office buildings, and
later our hotels, were forced by
gradually increasing property values
| TO extend upward beyond the leVelS
| to which human beings were willing
to climb. These instances, too, were
confronted with the necessity o.
furnishing transportation facilities
Whether any attempts were even
made to have this kind of transpor'
tation furnished by interests Other
than those which were backing the
buildings, or whether tolls were ever
collected from elevator passengers
would be hard to determine, Captain
| Klotz SAYS. The important fact !.
that the practice Of furnishing sucf
RECONSIDERATION without direct charge
/ and absorbing the cost in the renta
| charges, has become universal.
Elevator service is, of course, M
more free transportation than tn
street car service. The office building
! tenants nav for IL in the rent bill
and their customers and clients pa,
/ their shares more indirectly In pur
chases and fees. If street cars wer
run without fare collection the pay
ment would be made in taxes am
the tax payer would pay directI
while the non-taXpayer would pa,
ms snare |liulIEILl9t % hN ~ NAN
does.
There are a number of advantage
claimed for the no fare system. Fo
one thing, the street cars would b
more at the service of the people.
Then, again, the free use of car
would probably result in less conges
lion of tho central business and resi-
dental districts. Outlying section
might he expected TO become NOR
desirable property and the city woul
make progress in development.
Not only would outlying propert
near the street car lines he more de
sfrable, but extensions of the estah
lished lines could be more easil
obtained. with the usual systems q
operating casr, extensions of lines ar
made only when there is prospect Q
early and adequate returns. The re
suit Is that congestion of p%opulatlo
continues. Areas which can ~
should take care of the natural In
crease in population remain undo
veloped until the crowding in othe
districts has forced enough peopl
into them to render transportatto
service rem%unerative.
It is pointed out that with fire.
tax-paid transportation the costs {
constructing new lines into undeve
oped territory would be justified.
! naw oar line would stimulate in