Evening star., 1923-12-15
GRADE CROSSING
ELIMINATION ASKED
Bill Would Do Away With
Five Dangerous Places
in District.

Plans to make Washington model
city in so far as railroad grade cross
ings are concerned. by entirely elimi-
mating them, at a cost of bit more
than half a million dollars, virtually
have been completed at the District
building. Only the approval Of the
commissioners on a draft of a bill to
this end before sending 1t to the
budget bureau, en- route to the Capt.
tol, is awaited, 1t was learned today.
At present there are five dangerous
grade crossings in the District. One
or these. at Lamond. d. c., where the
Blair road crosses the B. and o.
| tracks, took toll Of three lives early
| in October. The coroners jury. sit
one of the victims, Herbert Steiner.
rendered a verdict with recommended
tions that the District Commissioners
take steps to eliminate grade cross
ings in the District of Columbia.
This is just what the Commission
ers Sre planning to do. The only two
other essentials to fruition of the
| plans are approval by the budget bu-
\ reau and appropriation by Congress.
| The crossings which are planned to
| be discarded for either overhead or
! underground traffic routes are at:
Chestnut street, in Takoma Park,
ID. c.; Blair road at Lamond, D. c.;
| Bates road. at Terra Gotta. d. G:
l
and Michigan avenue. at University
| station, Brookland. ID. c.
| 1T is estimated that about $582,000
! will be needed to make all of these
] grade, crossings either safe overhead
or subway viaducts.
Quarles street and Michigan avenue
| call for the largest individual expen-
| ditures In the bill which was drawn
! up by experts of the District govern
! ment on such things, including C. B.
. n OH
| McComb. engineer of bridges, and
| Roland NJ Brennan, chief clerk of the
District engineer department. pro-
| visions are made for overhead cross
! ings at both of these points.
| 1t will cost about S1SO,000 to pay
for land, property damages, ap-
| proaches, construction work and in
| cidentals to bridging Michigan ave-
| nue. over the tracks at this point. At
| Quarles street it will cost for similar
work about 100000. since at this
point both the tracks of the Baltimore
! branch OF the 3. and 0. and the p.
B. and w. section of the Pennsylvania
| road cut through kenilworth.
To extend and run Varnum street
over the tracks Of the metropolitan
branch of the Baltimore and Ohio at
Terra Gotta. d. c., replacing the
Bates road grade crossing. the cost
is estimated at $4,000. while the re-
lspective estimates for Chestnut street
and Van Buren, street. the latter re-
placing Blaid road crossing at La
mond. are $4,000 and 100000.
Last Saturday Engineer Commits
sicner J. Franklin Bell and Z. w.
Scheer. general manager of the Bal
timore and Ohio organization for this
section. conferred upon the situation
at grade crossings. The outcome was
assurances CT cooperation on the
part of the railroad in putting up any
protective devices recommended by
the District authorities for the pro-
lection of the public at the tracks
| Already plans have been submitted
for protective devices and are being
fconsidered by the District authori-
ties.
Elimination of the five grade cross
ings. it is pointed out. will make
Washington the perfect model of any
city, in SO far as these danger spots
are concerned, by their absence.
The program at present is to pre-
sent the draft of the bill to the
budget bureau for inspection to see
if it is not in conflict with the pres.
ent financial program and for ap.
proval of the budget bureau In case
it is not. Then it will go to Con-
igress.
1t is hoped that Congress will
shoot through the entire appropria
tion for this work before the con-
tclusion of the session.