Evening star., 1928-04-02
New York's Commuters.

Some interesting statistics have beer
compiled by the Rapid Transit Com.
mission OF Greater New York bearing
upon the flood Of Communication in anc
out Of the big town daily. During the
year 1927 S65.3l7,243 passengers wert
carried both ways, an increase over
1926 of 15,316.745, or "A per cent. Oi
the 537,23l passengers of all sorts who
used the railroads and ferries for round
trips to and from New York daily dur
ing 1927, 402, 2,649 were classed as COM
muters, those who make daily prac-
tice Of travel for business reasons. The
other i34.5S2 are rated as the estimated
number Of daily visitors TO the city
those who go in for shopping or enter
tainment. Thus more than 100000 peo-
pie make the trip over railroads and
ferries daily in order to attend to their
routine affairs. These do not include
the travellers from the more remote
parts Of Greater New York to and from
the business section, who 60 by surface
elevated and subway lines. The 537.23l
passengers. both commuters and visi-
tors. should therefore be added to the
approximately 5,s7o.s2o calculated as
comprising the population Of Greater
New York on the first Of July, 1927.
With this addition the daily popula-
ton Of Greater New York, including
commuters who have residence outside
OF Its boundaries and visitors who daily
enter the city for various reasons, is
approximately 6.5o0,o00
These figures afford a concept Of the
transportation problem involved in the
case Of q city the size OF New York
Every day more than half q million
people must be handled both ways in
addition to the local trafflc of several
million. 1t also is significant Of the
fact that an increasing number OF those
whose business and other interests
are centered In New York City actual
ly reside outside of the urban bound
aries, some Of them at q considerable
distance. AS the years pass there Is a
decided increase in the area In New
York itself which has no other popula-
ton at night than the caretakers of
great buildings and those engaged in
twenty-four-hour trades In that loca-
ton. With the exception Of few tene-
ment areas the lower part Of the great
town on Manhattan Island Is solidly
devoted to business. Yet 1t was not
many years ago when the major portion
Of this area was given over to resi-
dences.
Farther and farther uptown on Man
haitian Island Is the residence line"
being pressed. The large hotels serve
to keep a certain percentage Of sleeping
quarters within this business district,
but their occupants are mainly tran
sients. and the real New Workers are
domiciled even farther north. As this
line presses northward the tendency i.
to spread the population east and west
into the suburban areas on the Brook
lyn side and into New Jersey, placing
an increasing burden upon the trans
portation lines. The recently opened
vehicular tunnel under the North River
has facilitated this traffic materially.
The construction Of the North River
Bridge. just begun. will add to the
facilities Of travel to and from the
west. The figures Of rail trafac that
have just been given by the Rapid
Transit Commission do not include
those who pass In and out of New York
daily on their own power-that is, by
motor car-and this figure Is, with the
provision Of new river-crossing facilities.
certain TO increase, and with that in
crease vii come an additional problem.
that Of providing storage spaces for
motor cars.