Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-24
Time Limits and Care of Gov
eminent Employees Cars
Among Questions.
REPORT OF EXPERTS
WILL BE REVIEWED
Recommendations Following Study
Will Be in Nature of Advice
to Traffic Director.

For the purpose of co-ordinating the
views of washington's business men
and officials of the District and Fed
eral Governments, regarding the vari-
Gus problems of automobile parking in
the central or downtown business Sec
ton. meeting of the Automobile
Parking Committee began this after
noon in tie conference room of the
Navy Department Building.
Among the most important questions
under consideration were the time
limits for automobile parking in the
central district. what to do about double
parking, the question of angle park
ing and how best to care for the park
ing of automobiles of Government en-
ployes.
At the meeting Lieut. Col. u. S.
Grant Sd, executive officer OF the Ma
tional Capital Park and Planning Com
mission. presided as chairman. Charles
w. Eliot, I'd, director of planning, is
vice president of the committee Ed
ward d. Shaw isksecretary and Frank
r. Jelleff, treasurer. Those present
also included representatives of the
local trade bodies. Of the District and
the traffic officials.
Consider Traffic Report.
The principal business of the after
noon was consideration of report
drafted Jointly by Dr. Miller McClin-
took, of the Erskine Bureau Of Trafhc
Research, Harvard University, and by
the staff of the National Capital Park
and Planning Commission. DR.. NC
Clintock was retained by the local
Planning Commission, but much OF the
expense of his study of the parking
question was paid for by members Of
local trade bodies
1t is intended that the recommen-
dations of this committee, which will
probably be made following study Of
DR.. McClintock's report, shall be re.
garded in the nature of advice TO w.
II. Harland, director of traffic in the
District, and all other persons having
to do with the automobile parking
questions here.
The report includes study OF the
supply of existing parking space In the
business area, both at the curbs and In
garages. 1t was found that there was
space In garages or on parking lots
of the street in the central business
district of Washington for $3.50 cars,
as compared with 1900 cars in the
business district of Boston; 5000 in
New Orleans, and 10000 in Los Angeles.
AlI-Day Parking Indicated.
In order to determine to some extent
how great is the demand for parking
space in the District here, counts were
made showing the number OF motor
vehicles to be accommodated at any one
time. The report also goes into the
question of how the curb space is
actually used. 1t was discovered that
the legal number of cars parked along
the curbs was reached usually by 9
O'Clock every morning in the business
district. and that these spaces remained
iiled until at least O'Clock in the
afternoon, indicating a very large num-
Der of all-day parkers. This situation,
the report states, results to very large
extent in double parking, which greatly
exceeds the legal limit.
An analysis of $4,000 cars was made
with the result that 1t was discovered
that per cent of this number took up
80 per cent of the available parking
space downtown. In other words, these
are the so-called all-day parkers.
The report also goes into the question
of the time II requires the average au-
tomobilist to find parking space Gown
town and the distance he must travel
TO do so. 1t was ascertained that for
FIVE typical destinations downtown it
required an average of about six min
utes to find a parking space between IL
am, and 2 pm. and nine minutes in
the evening from O'Clock until ii
, " CEOCks uu1AnB btlC tAlC0bCA AAOAAOs AL
the vicinity Of r and Thirteenth and
Fourteenth streets.
Travel Three Quarters Of Mile.
Another interesting discovery made in
the course of the survey was that the
average automobilist downtown during
the busy time travelled three quarters
Of q mile trying to locate a parking
space. A check was made to ascertain
the different ways in which the Govern
ment employees go to work each day.
Approximately 56,750 employees were
questioned on this subject through the
Office of the chief co-ordinator.
Roughly, it was discovered that %
per cent of the Government employees
60 to work in their own cars, 10 per
cent are driven to work in cars belong
ing to others, 20 per cent walk, 40
per cent use the street cars and some
thing like 5 per cent use buses.
The Automobile Parking Committee
has had several previous meetings of a
preliminary character. DR.. McClintock
and Mr.. Eliot recently conferred in
Denver while the study was being
made, and as a result of that con-
ference DR.. McClintock gave the COM
mittee today a statement Of his recon-
mendation, which was under discussion
this afternoon.