Evening star., 1936-05-29

buSses, resulting In trouble with
exhaust fumes.
the company has conceded that
some of its equipment is not in good
condition, but pointed out that since
the merger Of the Capital Traction
Co. and the washington Railway &,
Electric Co., little more than three
years ago, it has spent more than
100000 for new equipment and in
making various improvements in its
service. This money did not come
from earnings since the merger. but
was drawn from cash fund on hand
at that time.
officials of the company admit that
there has been overcrowding. but ex-
press the belief their drivers on the
whole have complied with the Public
Utilities Commissions order relative
to maximum passenger loads.
Poor Spacing Blamed.
They say overcrowding is due in
large measure to poor spacing OF
vehicles. which In turn Is attributable
in part to congested traffic on the
streets, traffic lights, etc.
Better ventilation also has been
predicted when new ventilatins
equipment. approved after months Of
study. is finally installed. The COM
mission has specified particular type
of ventilator, which must be installed
by Fall.
Considerable criticism also has
been made of the fact that the local
transit company stock is controlled
by the North American Co., New
York holding concern. officials deny
however, that the holding company
has prof1ted to any extent by it;
ownership, pointing out that since
the merger only one dividend of 81
share has been paid.
The largest single innovation since
the merger has been the substitution
Of buses for street cars on Connecti-
cut avenue. The company says II
has not yet made any money out oi
this bus line, and the service, accord.
ing to passengers, has been bad In
the past, largely as a result of poor
spacing and overcrowding During
recent weeks, however, a distinct i'm
provement in service on this line has
been noted. One reason for this has
been the Inauguration of the "cut.
back" system, whereby empty busses
making a return trip against the
heavy flow of traffic are sent bach
into service to pick up waiting pas
sengers. This has shortened the run
of the buses and provided greater
facilities for rush-hour crowds.
Passengers Increase, Profits Drop.
A strange feature of the company;
operation since the merger lies in the
fact that profits decreased, while the
total number of revenue passengers
carried has climber sharply. Two
reasons for this condition are the ex-
tensive use of universal free transfers
and the 81 pass, which has made the
cost of the average ride a little over
cents.
Company officials said this small
average fare has not been sufficient to
offset the increase in operating costs
necessitated by the extra service re-
quired, employment Of about TOO ad-
ditional men and a substantial wage
increase.
The Public Utilities Commission has
expressed the opinion that the tran
sit lines. given good management, can
be operated at profit without resort
to any costly improvements, such as
the construction of subways recon-
mended by Peoples Counsel Roberts
John H. Hanna, president of the
company, said he, too, believed the
service can be improved and operating
costs reduced, but that better CO.
operation" from District officials, the
police and the press will be necessary