Evening star., 1935-04-13
Work Funds and Grade Crossings.

President Roosevelt's announcement
that the elimination of grade crossings
will have an important part in the
works relief program, under the act Of
Congress just passed. comes so imme-
diately after the tragedy at Rockville.
where fourteen children were killed in
a collision between train and bus,
that it may be regarded as prompted
by that disaster. 1t had previously
been indicated that such projects
would be included in the list Of works
under the new law-indeed, they were
named in the category of ways for the
spending of money-but the Rockville
horror brought the necessity for the
cure of this evil condition to the point
OF administrative statement.
AS outlined. the proposal is that the
communities shall bear the cost of ac-
quiring all lands and rights required
for the construction of overhead or
underpass highway lines, the Federal
Government to provide the funds for
these constructions and the railroads
to bear no expense. No project will
be undertaken until the State and local
authorities have completed the essen
tial preliminaries. In other words, the
Federal funds cannot be made avail
able for the constructions unless the
States, counties and cities acquire the
necessary rights, through condemna-
ton or direct purchase or by gift of
property owners.
Heretofore the cost of eliminating
grade crossings has been borne joint
~ by the communities and the rail-
roads. The principle adopted by the
President in his broadly outlined pro-
gram shifts the construction cost
from the transportation lines to the
Government, the works relief act hav-
ing been so framed as to include
such works as part Of the general
project of giving employment on a
large scale.
There is no sort OF compulsion
upon the communities to proceed with
these undertakings and the initiative
must be taken by them. They may
be moved to immediate action by the
sense of responsibility for the pro-
lection of life on the highways, or
they may wait for some disaster to
arouse public feeling to the point of
requiring action. The danger Is that
delay will occur in consequence Of
financial stringencies in the States,
counties and cities and lack of suf-
fcient compelling public sentiment.
With the initiative resting upon the
communities, and with the railroads
absolved from cost. the situation Is
not greatly advanced toward the So
luton of this problem, unless the
need for the institution of large-scale
public works to provide employment
is keenly felt. The proportion Of the
total of works-relief funds earmarked
for grade crossing elimination is not
a large one, s2oo,ooo,ooo out of a
total of $4,000, 100000. 1t may be
assumed that the general program of
works, apart from grade crossing
elimination, will be adopted mainly,
Il not wholly, upon the initiative of
the Federal Government. Thus the
grade crossing projects, dependent
upon the action of the communities,
are hardly likely to be quickly under
taken.
If with this promise of funds from
the works relief appropriation for the
elimination of grade crossings there
were some direct inducement to
cause the railroads themselves to have
stake in the early institution of
corrective operations, the outlook for
relief from this tragic menace on the
highways would be much brighter
than at present, even with the pledge
of funds for construction after rights
OF way have been acquired.