Evening star., 1936-07-21
One.Man Street Cars Add
To Traffic Congestion
To the Editor Of The Star:

Naturally, one can understand the
position of the street railway system in
its strong advocacy Of the one-man-
operated trolley car. The company has
spent considerable money to reallocate
their rails in compliance with public
utility regulation, and it has cost the
company vast sum Of money to annex
the rights of the bus company and its
various routes through the District and
environs. An improvement in public
service-and for the people who COM
mute to Government buildings and mer-
camille places Of business here.
The officials of the company and its
stockholders rightfully believe that now
is the proper time for them to start
getting a return upon their investment.
It is a business conducted for profit,
and therefore there must be profits. No
losses, even though the overhead of OPP
Grating transportation system Is very
great.
Although experts have testified before
the Public Utility Commission that one
man operated cars do serve to alleviate
the worse conditions in traffic, I can't
quite see how. Especially how 1t will
eliminate and speed up schedules In
this District. I speak. or write, from ex-
perience when state cannot see how
traffic conditions can be made better
improved by the one-man car system.
They may be fitted for a city the size
of Poughkeepsie, N. Y, where they are
operated with efficiency, and elsewhere
throughout the country in cities Of
similar size.
But here in the District of Columbia
you have a vastly different situation.
You have upward of 1000 cabs operated
every minute of the day. Add to this
car and motor truck and delivery car
vehicles that are using our streets. Then.
too, there is the overflow of workers from
the Government buildings; not forgetting
the usual everyday shopping traffic from
the department stores and other business
places. We are city today of nearly
100000 people, If not that. Then take
the plight of the one-man car operator
whose nerves are bound to be fragile In
a traffic jam with hundreds of waiting
passengers at every safety stop zone
waiting to board his trolley or the next.
And especially in this kind of weather
persons are irritable.
The duties of the one-man car operator
are heavy. He must be able to open
the door, previous operation: make
change, see that the change in the coin
box is released and inserted into his chain
carrier and that the transfers and bills
are encased in the wallet in his pocket
or in the cigar box container on the
window shield platform nearby. And in
addition he must see that his door is
closed, the passengers-especially older
persons-seated, and still be on the look
out for the unwary cab driver and care
less motorist who have way of getting
In front of the trolley and keeping there
no matter how long the irritated operator
drives the gong on the trolley behind.
However, it is evident. taking into con-
sideration the fact that much favorable
propaganda anent the one-man ear has
appeared in the daily press, that the
street railway company will win its
case" before the Public Utility Commits
sion. We will have one-man cars. And
we who use the one-man speed cars can
only be patient with the motorman and
cooperate with the company so that his
and their lot in this traffic -jammed
metropolis will be made a lot easier until
ways and means may be found to bring
about a real solution to the traffic
problem. FREDERIC G. FROST.