Evening star., 1934-03-25
Utilities Experts Study Con-
necticut Avenue Changes
Also.
CAL VERT BRIDGE ROUTE
WOULD BE ELIMINATED
Neither Proposal Definitely De.
cided, but Great Possibilities
of Improvement Are Seen.

DeVelopment OF speedy express"
street car service on Eleventh street,
employing come of the cars operating
on Fourteenth street and Georgia ave-
nue., may be one Of the major changes
designed to improve mass transport
tation, under tentative plans an
nounced yesterday by Riley e. Elgen,
acting chairman of the Public Utili.
ties Commission.
Commission experts, headed by Fred
A. Sager, chief engineer, and John A.
Beeler, consulting engineer, now are
at work on this proposal which would
be made possible by the laying OF
tracks to link the end of the present
Eleventh street line, at Monroe street,
with Fourteenth street and Georgia
avenue lines.
1t was revealed also the commission
staff is giving study to plans for rout-
ing cars directly down Connecticut
avenue to eliminate the circuitous
route now followed over the Calvert
Street Bridge, Calvert and Eighteenth
streets. This would involve the lay
ing OF car tracks over Taft Bridge
and the section of Connecticut ave-
nue. from Calvert street to Columbia
road to connect with the lines now
used by the Mount Pleasant cars,
Great Possibilities Seen.
The commission staff has not
reached a definite decision on either
proposal. but the engineers see great
possibilities in both. Commissioner
Elgen indicated he is favorably con-
sidering the express line suggestion
and that the Connecticut avenue
change depends upon further studies.
Details OF both proposals will be
delayed to await completion of studies
being made of the origin and destina-
tion OF street car riders, route changes
and other features Of the current sur
vey Of the operation of the Capital
Transit Co.
One suggestion for the Eleventh
street express connection is for the
/ laying Of the link to the Georgia
avenue lines along New Hampshire
avenue and the laying of the link 10
the Fourteenth street lines along
Eleventh street between Monroe
street to Spring road and then west
along Spring road to Fourteenth
| street.
Under this proposed system certain
! cars operating on Fourteenth street
| and Georgia avenue would be de-
signated as express" cars and, after
turning onto the Eleventh street
tracks, would stop only to discharge
passengers. Under such a system it
Is believed there would not have to
be many stops between Spring road
| or New Hampshire avenue and the
downtown section, except for re-
quired stops at U street and Rhode
Island avenue. Experts said they
believed such plan would save con-
| siderable time in transit between the
Takoma and Brightwood sections.
Planned for Rush Hours.
Such an express" service Is
planned primarily for rush-hour duty,
| but if there was sufficient demand it
| could be extended to an all-day serv-
| ice, commission agents said.
Linked with this proposal is a sug-
gestion that all parking be prohibited
on the traffic flow side of Eleventh
| street during the hours the special
service was in use.
The commission has received many
complaints from street car passengers
residing in the northern section Of
the city of the time required to travel
from there to the business section.
Aside from providing speedier serv-
ice on those cars routed over the "ex-
press" line, commission engineers be-
lieve the system would tighten the
traffic load on both Georgia avenue
and Fourteenth street, below Monroe
streets, and thereby afford some i'm
provement on those systems.
The Georgia avenue lines which
would be affected, one way or another,
by such change, would include the
Soldiers Home, Wharves, Seventh and
B streets, Takoma Park, Georgia and
Alaska avenues cars and the Bureau
OF Engraving rush-hour cars.
The cars operating on Fourteenth
street which would be affected are the
Takoma, Navy Yard, Fourteenth and
Decatur. Eighth and streets north
| east, Fourteenth and Colorado and
Peace Monument, as well as the rush.
hour Potomac Park, Rosslyn and
Seventeenth street and Pennsylvania
| avenue southeast cars.