Evening star., 1928-12-20
ELEVATED HIGHWAY
NEARS realization
New York Officials to 0. X.
Speed Road Plan Unless
Blocked Today.
Special Dispatch 10 The star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK. December 20.-The prof.
ect advocated by Julius Miller, Manhat-
tan Borough president, for an elevated
highway along the Hudson River, which
would permit automobiles to go from
Canal street to Seventy second street in
six minutes, as against an average Of GO
minutes at present, comes before the
Board of Estimate today. and after
more than year of hesitation, finally
will be approved and authorized, unless
some new red tape develops.
If approved today, Miller viii adver-
tise for bids within three weeks. He
estimates that men working night and
day, would have the structure opened
for traffic in less than IS months.
This elevated highway, which will
have a capacity of 5000 automobiles an
hour uninterrupted by cross-town traf-
fic from Canal street to Riverside Drive
at Seventy-second street, will cost ap-
proXimately SIT 100000.
Provides for Second Deck.
The cost would be several million
dollars less, except that the steel work
viii be of such strength that it would
be possible to add a second deck to the
structure when the pressure Of auto
mobile traffic becomes still heavier. A
speed up to 35 miles an hour would be
allowed on this yiaduct.
Two questions are to be settled at
today's meeting before the project is
voted. One is whether ramp leading
from the street level TO the elevated
highway should begin at Nineteenth
streetsor TWenty-second street. Mr.. Mil
Ter has introduced alternate maps, so
that the board may approve one or the
other. The second question concerns the
routing of the elevated structure past
GanseVoort Market.
Objection was raised by former Judge
Alfred Tally to the original plan on the
ground that it encroached on rights
which the Legislature had granted to
the market. Changes in the plan in
tended to obviate these objections Will
be submitted by Miller. The completed
plans and specifications have been sent
from the borough presidents office to
the chief engineers office. The plans
for the structure have been approved
by the Municipal Art Commission. After
long hesitation Mayor Walker an
nounced at the last meeting of the board
that he was now ready to place his sig
nature to the plans and to vote for the
project, so that, unless some unforeseen
obstruction arises, the city will today
take the most far-reaching stride YET
attempted toward solving the tratnc
tangle.
Backed by Civic Bodies.
The project has had the almost
unanimous support of the civic organl-
cations which have concerned them
selves with the problem of traffic con-
gestion More than 80 of them have
indorsed 1t, while only two oppose 1t.
It is largely through the pressure
brought to bear on the Board OF
Estimate through the representatives of
civic organizations that the project is
as near authorization as it seems to be-
The representatives of various organl-
cations were insistent enough to annoy
Mayor Walker, who accused Miller of
"steaming up" propaganda in support
of his plan. Mayor Walker, however,
gradually grew to like the plan, and
finally committed himself rather en-
Enthusiastically in favor of it.
The combination Of civic bodies ef-
fected by the Board of Trade to make
a united fight for traffic relief along
the lines of the famous "say-it-with-
shovels" campaign, which compelled
Mayor Hylan four years ago to start
digging the Eighth avenue subway, has
become a new factor. The possibility
of citizens uprising on traffic like
the citizens uprising on subway is rec
ognized as one of the elements in the
political situation The chance that
the traffic situation may become an
Overwhelmingly important issue in the
coming election leaves politicians in a
dilemma. It is generally admitted to
be political suicide for any office
seeker to desert the scent fare. On
the other hand, the city's financial
situation is such that it cannot raise
money for AMBITIOUS projects for traffic
fare.