Evening star., 1934-04-17
AUTOPARK|NG BAN
LIFTING DEMANDED
BY BUSINESS MEN
Delegations Tell Commis-
sioners Loss in Trade
Is Heavy.
PROTESTS ARE TAKEN
UNDER AMUSEMENT
Adoption of Other Means to I'm
prove Traffic Conditions in
cections Urged.

Demand that the ban against day
time parking on F., G and Seventh
streets, in downtown Washington, be
lifted and that other means OF I'M
proving traffic conditions be conSld-
cred, was laid before the District
Commissioners today by Spokesmen
for the major trade bodies and down.
town merchants.
The delegation contended that busi-
ness along the three thoroughfares
was being injured by the new rule
which was invoked last Saturday and
said the merchants could not stand
the losses. The matter was taken
under advisement since the Commls-
sioners had before them today other
board business.
Daytime parking of cars was banned
last Friday by action of the Com
missioners in adopting recommenda-
tions from William A. Van Duzer. dl-
rector of traffic, carrying out sugges-
tionS made by a special committee
named by the Public Utilities Cor'-
mission to seek improvement Of down
town traffic conditions. The ban
affects Seventh street from PennSyl-
vania to New York avenues; F street
from Fifth to Seventh and from
Ninth to Fourteenth and G streets
from Fifth to Fifteenth streets.
Hege Attends Meeting.
The protests were filed by repre-
sentatives of the Washington Cham
ber of Commerce, the Merchants and
Manufacturers Association, the Board
of Trade and the Seventh Street Busi-
ness Mems Association. Edwin S.
Hege appeared as a representative OF
the Federation OF Citizens Associa-
tions, but did not join in the demand
that the parking restrictions be aban-
doned. He said he favored a fair
trial for the new plan.
Arthur j. Sundlun, vice president OF
the M. & NJ, declared the merchants
felt they had not been given fair
opportunity to be heard before the
parking ban was adopted. He said
that before such a radical method was
employed every effort should have
been made to obtain rigid enforce
ment of the one-hour parking reStric-
tions on streets in the business center
He said this had not been done.
Commissioner Hazen asked Sund-
lun if he thought it would be possible
to obtain real enforcement of the one
hour parking ban with the present
size of the police force. Sundlun
replied that while that might not be
possible without additional police
men, I'VE ought not to be punished
because the District does not have a
police force large enough to enforce
the regulations"
Another Method Indicated.
Indications that Commissioner Haz-
en- might be willing to consider some
other experiment were raised when
he questioned the group as to a plan
for limiting the number of spaces
where no parking is permitted and
which are devoted to places for load
ing and unloading of the merchandise
of business concerns.
Commissioner Hazen has made the
point that space so designated is so
large the available space for parking
of customers cars already was drasti-
cally limited. Both Mr.. Sundlun and
Edward D. Shaw, secretary of the NJ
and M, suggested it might be posi-
BILE to designate less space in each
block to be used jointly by merchants
as shipping entrances.
The Chamber of Commerce sub
mitted a prepared statement declar-
ing the body felt the new rule was
dnoo
Erskine Report Quoted.
This statement, submitted by George
Keneipp, quoted from the report by
Miller McClintock of the Erskine Bu-
reau to the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission on its traffic
study in 1880, stating:
Parking Saturization is a definitely
limiting factor in the accessibility of
the central district. Parking regula-
tions should be based on business
needs with as great liberality as is
consistent with necessary freedom of
movement and equitable division of
available facilities. One-hour parking
limits should be continued in the con-
gested district as defined in the Off
cial regulations"
The McClintock report on the 1880
of Washington traffic also showed that
the automobile shopper constituted Al
per cent of the buying power of de-
partment stores.
The delegation included w c.
Miller. president, and Dorsey w. Hyde,
secretary. Chamber of Commerce;
James E. Collif1ower, president, and
Dan Livingston, a member, Mer-
chants and Manufacturers Associa-
ton; Wallace Robinson and Arthur
Van Hagen, representing the Board
Of Trade, and Cecil D. Kaufman,
president Seventh Street Business
Mems Association.