Evening star., 1924-06-17
new YORK TRAFFIC
PROBLEMS PUZZLING
PassengeS Earnings on Street Cars
Far Too Small to Pay Profits
to Management.
TAXPAYERS CONTRIBUTE
Suburban Districts Also Have
Many Operating Troubles.
BY J. c. ROYLE.

BY J. c. ROYLE.
Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, June 17.-whether
they realize it or not, the citizens
of New York are going to give prac-
tically every. convention visitor q
present next week-that is. every one
| who rides on subway cars, They are
| going to get part OF their rides for
| nothing. They will have to pay their
nickels at the turnstiles. but those
| nickels do not pay the cost of their
| rides. The difference Is practically
presented to them out of the pockets
of the New York taxpayers.
According to the records Of the
/ transit commission the scent fare
produces a revenue which is insuffi-
cient to pay interest on the municipal
bonds issued to pay for building the
| subways. by between $4,000, 600 and
| s., 10000 This deficit the taxpayers
have to make good. The average ex-
| cess cost is about l cent per paSsen-
ger,
Very Heavy Bond Issues.
The city issued bonds for construc-
| tion of interborough lines to such
an extent that its net interest costs
are more than one-half of l per
cent per year per passenger carried
The city's appropriation for construc-
tion of the Brooklyn Manhattan COM
pany's lines involved interest charges
of $l.24 per year per passenger.
The convention visitors may get
part of their ride free Of the surface
cars. but not at the expense of the
taxpayers. Nominally scent fare ex-
| lists on the surface lines, but with
few exceptions the scent rides are re-
stricted to the borough limits of each
of the Ave boroughs. There is no
general grant of free transfers with
in the limits of any particular sur
face system. and there are ESQ points
in Manhattan alone where a 2-cent
transfer charge is made, while S4V
former transfer points have been abol-
ished. In Brooklyn. 1,5S4 free transfer
points have been eliminated and ZlZ
2-cent transfer points set up; nat
rate of cents is charged In the Dor
ough OF Richmond.
Fail to Make Pront.
In spite of this. the companies as
whole are not operating at a pront
The combined deficit of rapid transit
and surface lines is running at De-
tween $40. .000, 900 and $50.000.00O
year. On one road. the Brooklyn Cl.s
railroad. the rearrangement of trans
fer privileges has resulted in opera
tions at profit. In 1928 the COM
pany, which has a profitable snort
haul business, issued only l4,VVu'uVV
transfers on a total traffic of about
237O00.00o passengers, whereas IN
1919, 7S,500,000 transfers were issued
on a traffic of 171.000,000 riders.
In the suburban districts about
New York the traction companies
have also been having difficult prob
lens to meet and some have threat
ened discontinuance of operations, or
nut the threat into effect Domestic
servants in Scarsdale struck when
the village authorities refused to
sanction an increase from to 10
cents in fares and the service was
discontinued. Property owners made
vigorous protest and compelled the
village authorities to rescind their
action.
Protests Bring New Rulings.
At Silver Lake, n. Y. authorities
also refused to sanction a similar
increase. When cessation OF street
car service seemed certain cottagers
began to move out Property own
ers and landlords made vigorous pro-
test to the village board and sue
ceeded in having them nullify their
decision.
Forty thousand daily riders in
Queens County, facing discontinuance
of one line, have petitioned New York
City authorities asking that the COM
pany be allowed to increase fares
tho 5-cept limit