Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-13
COUNT OF TRAFFIC
SUPPORTS FIGHT
OF TRADE BOARD
Hopeless Congestion of Thir-
teenth Street Seen if Cut
off Plan Is Carried Out.
MEMBERSHIP ENDORSES
CAMPAIGN AGAINST PLAN
Committee Obtains Check of Ma
chimes in Morning Rush Hour
to Back Up Claims.

to Back Up Claims.
Figures tending to support the Wash
| ington Board of Trades contention that
! hopeless trafflc congestion would follow
the cutting of of Thirteenth street at
Pennsylvania avenue, under the plan
| for Government development of the
| triangle, we're obtained this morning by
a traffic count which showed the num-
Der of vehicles going south on Thir-
tenth at the peak Of the rush hour
to equal either the east or west traffic
along the Avenue.
The count was made by four men,
bers of the board. working under the
direction of A. G. Seller, an engineer
of the Trafic Bureau. The members
were Robert j. CottreN, executive sec
rotary of the board; Richard p. Schulze,
his assistant; George v. Graham, chair
man of the special committee investl-
eating the matter, and George Glen
| daniel.
Increase In Traffic.
It was estimated that II Thirteenth
street were blocked south of PennSyl-
vania avenue at the present time, the
traffic along Pennsylvania avenue would
be increased approximately 40 per cent.
| This, it was explained, does not take
| into consideration the enormously In
creased number of vehicles which would
travel toward the triangle area daily II
| the development there were completed.
The count showed that the peak OF
| the traffic at the intersection was
reached between $50 o'clock and 8:45
| o'clock. During this time, it was esti-
mated, 1877 automobiles, S trucks and
buses Travelled across Pennsylvania ave-
| nue. and south on Thirteenth street;
| During the same period the eaStbouno
| traffic on Pennsylvania avenue consisted
Of 1876 automobiles, 16 trucks and 10
buses, while vehicles going west were
1875 automobiles. 90 trucks and bus.
Special Count Planned.
This afternoon the same group, assist
| ed by several others, planned to count
| the .trafic at both Twelfth and Thir-
| tenth streets and Pennsylvania avenue
between and $50 o'clock. The study
will be continued tomorrow and counts
made at Tenth, Eleventh and Four
| tenth streets.
The Board of Trades fight during
the past week for modification of the
plans for the triangle to admit Of ade-
uuate provisions for the handling of
traffic in that area received the formal
Endorsement Of the full membership of
the board last night at meeting in the
Willard Hotel.
This was briefly outlined by Mr.
Graham In report, which was unani-
mously adopted.
He told of the plans to close Thir-
tenth street at Pennsylvania avenue.
which, he said, would divert traffc
| from that thoroughfare TO other streets
| and cause great congestion. He called
attention to the $4,000 additional per-
sons who would have to enter and leave
| the triangle area every day when the
Government department buildings are
| completed and to the increase in traf-
| nc from Virginia that will follow upon
the opening of the Arlington Memorial
Bridge.
viii Decrease Arteries.
Instead Of facilities for caring for
| this additional traffic being increased,
! he declared, they will be lessened by
the closing of Thirteenth street, which
| is proposed, and the cutting of OF
Eleventh and Eighth streets, which are
existent facts.
The committee has conferred with
! Senator Reyes, Republican, New Hamp-
| shire; Col u. s. Grant. Sd, and
Director of Traffic William H. Har-
land, Mr.. Graham told the meeting, and
has obtained hearing before the Ma
! tional Capital Park and Planning Com
mission for Saturday morning.
| The principal speaker last night was
| Walter B. Clarkson, assistant to the
president of the Chesapeake g. Po-
tomac Telephone Co., and Rufus S.
Lusk, executive secretary of the OPP
| erative Builders Association.
The population of Washington in
! 1850 will be approximately $4,000, Mr..
Clarkson stated, quoting from estimates
! prepared by experts OF the telephone
company He explained that this fig-
ure was arrived at after study under
taken to indicate the provisions the
company would havt to make in its
| construction of equipment for the serv-
ice of the city 20 years hence.
Increase in Telephones.
on the basis of this survey. in 1880
! there will be 80 per cent more tele-
! phones than at the present time. II
! this increase is reached, Washington
will have one telephone for every 2.S
persons.
| the probable change In the distribution
| of population from concentration in a
comparatively small area near the Gen.
ter of the District to more widespread
occupation of the outlying territory,
both inside and outside the limits OF the
District.
Mr. Clarkson explained that the
principal reason for the proposed
change from manual to dial operation
| In the downtown district Is the dimin-
ishing of the supply of young women
capable Of making telephone operators.
! He said that figures compiled by
| the company show that because many
| Young women are entering business and
other fields those available for service
| with the telephone company are be-
| coming fewer as the years pass. The
statistics show, he declared, that II the
present trend of women toward industry
continues, a time will be reached in
the near future when 1t will be impos-
| sible to obtain a sufficient number of
| operators for the switchboards.
The dial system will now mean the
entire discard of all manual service, he
asserted. Correction operators would be
maintained and the handling of toll
and long distance calls would be by
women.
Tells Company's History.
Mr.. Clarkson told Of the early his
tory of the telephone company here and
the development of its commercial, edu-
cational and scientific work.
He displayed a slide showing the
original petition, dated october ], 1878,
signed by twelve business men, asking
that a telephone exchange be estab-
lished in this city. Robert G. Ingersoll
was among the signers.
Speaking of the development of real
estate In Washington in the past and
the probable trend for the future, Mr..
Lusk predicted that apartment houses
will increase but will undergo change
in type They will be built taller AMI
in the midst of parklike settings.
He said that in this way more variety