The Washington times., 1925-06-02
WIDE STREETS
MAKE TAXES
EXCESSIVE
Business Does Not Benefit
From Arteries 90 Feet;
Use Denied
By DONALD McDOUGAL.

there IL half as much street space
as there is salesroom, work shop,
and office space combined.
| That is, every two square feet
Eof private property has one square
foot Of street space in front Of it.
Throughout the congested Sec
ton, Washington has only one or
two streets Of less than 80 feet
width, and several are much wider.
For the transaction OF its busi-
ness Washington has more street
srace than any other city its size
in the United Sites, but we are not
making proper use OF this advan.
tage.
On the contrary, we are suffering
from the disadvantage. The disad-
vantage Is especially noticeable on
June so Of each year, when the
taxes become due and payable.
Cleaning Expense Increased.
Because of their width, it costs
more to clean our streets and TO
keep them in repair. And higher
taxes is the undodgeable conse-
Quence.
L III
from these ninety-foot thorough
fares the. money would be well in
vested. But we do not. Washington
has little better parking facilities
than are found in other cities with
less expansive street-and tax-bills.
In Detroit, Mich, for instance.
streets In the downtown section
average less than sixty feet In
width. Thirty.five cross streets
taken consecutively, along Larned
and Hastings streets show an aver
age width Of fifty-eight feet.
A similar tier Of streets in Wash.
lngton averages considerably over
ninety feet. To avoid the use Of
odd figures, and to play safe, can
the average Detroit street sixty
feet wide, and the average Wash
ington street ninety. Then nur
streets are at the least CALCULATION.
so per cent wider than Detroit's..
so per cent greater.
Our wider streets, as now used,
merely spread the city out, and in
crease the distance through which
merchandise must be hauled.
This increased average haul Ee-
auifing from gour unusually WIDE
streets, amounts to just about
per cent.
Greater Costs Of Hauling.
Every element OF transportation
cost-depreciation Of vehicles, re-
| placements, repairs, tire mileage,
gas, wages-all are per cent
greater than that faced by the
penditure the washington business
4 man p.a0afuAa mn VsAfuPn
In travelling from the Baltimore
and Ohio freight sheds at Florida
avenue and lexington place to the
business center of the city, Fifteenth
and Pennsylvania avenue, we cross
seventeen streets OF average width,
in a total distance of $500 feet.
Counting these streets as OF thirty
feet excess width compared with
the Detroit average) the Washing
ton business man pays for an un-
necessary haul OF $40 feet In $500
feet, or per cent excess.
This is q typical route, and shows
beyond any serious question, that
Washington's wide streets increase
the average haul by the figure
named.
But this Increased length Of
streets, due to the city's spread.
means q 6 per cent increased cost
for sewer and water pipe construc-
ton and maintainance and q con.
siderably greater increase for street
lighting.
In this matter of lighting, not
only Is the length Of street greater
by 6 per cent, but because Of the
greater width, a much more power
full light is required.
To illuminate a ninety foot street
requires a light more than twice as
strong as suffices for a sixty foot
width; and incidentally this TACT
may have something to do with
Washington lighting problem.
These wide streets cost us, then,
a 8 per cent increase in haulage
on all merchandise handled in the
District; they cost us the price OF
cleaning, repairing and draining a
thirty.foot strip Of paved roadway
eight miles long in the congested
section and vicinity. and they prac:
tically double the requirements Of
our street lighting system.
That il what the wide streets
cost the taxpayer. What benefit
does he derive from them?
The merchant finds his trade hin.
dered by the same parking rules
that obtain in cities OF narrower
and less expensive streets. His Jus
toners either cannot park at Ell
near his store, or they must leave
in the midst Of a sale and change
their cars.
Business Take Burden.
He has paid for that street space,
but it might as well be in Detroit
for all the good 1t does him.
Or consider the office mar-the
lawyer, or real estate dealer, for
instance. When he established his
home in the suburbs, he counted
on his machine to take him to and
from his work.
He has paid his share Of that
thirty-foot strip-it's never missing
from his tax bill. But when he
wants to use fifteen feet of it to
park his car in. it isn't there. He
is no better off than the Detroit
man who doesn't have any ninety.
foot street to brag about or pay
taxes on.
We recall q case where a man
was fined IS for parking overtime
while he was in the District Build
ing paying his taxes. Somehow it