Evening star., 1936-12-26
CAPITAL TRANSIT
OFFERS TRACKED
ITO WIDEN HIGHWAY
Announcement Gives Strong
Impetus to Old George.
town Road Campaign.
FIRMS OFFICIAL AWARE
OF CONSTANT DANGER
Civic Steering Committee Will
Seek Other Rights of Way
Needed to End Hazards.

The campaign to secure rights OF
way to permit widening of Old George.
town Road received strong impetus
today with the announcement that
Capital Transit Co. officials would CO.
operate by making available their old
street car right Of way which parallels
the road part OF its length.
w. B. Bennett, assistant to the
president, announced that the titles
involved in the company's right Of
way for the street car tracks aban-
doned q year and half ago, are be-
ing investigated and that the company
will do everything possible to aid In
the widening campaign. He said:
THE Old Georgetown road is a con-
slant danger because Of its narrowness
and the curves, and an inconvenience
as long as there is not room for the
buses replacing the street cars to pull
of to the side to load and unload
passengers.
Firm viii Do Utmost.
"The Capital Transit Co. will do its
utmost to correct the condition and
will be glad to work with the citizens
of the section to speed up traffic and
eliminate the hazards Of the road"
The long campaign to widen and
repair the road, which gained impetus
after the death Of two motorists De-
cember 6 in q collision with q bus,
resulted in an offer by Nathan L.
Smith, chief engineer Of the Maryland
Roads Commission, to widen the road
by adding a 10-foot shoulder and q
drainage ditch to each side Of the 20
foot thoroughfare II the necessary
rights Of way could be obtained.
Securing Of the right OF way formerly
used by the street cars would be a
big step. as 1t would provide space
on one side for widening for approxi-
mately one-third Of the distance.
Width Sufficient.
The cars ran on the present road
bed from the Bank Of Bethesda
to q point about 400 feet south of
Roosevelt street. There it began to
branch OF to the east side of the
road. The right Of way begins there
and extends north on the east side to
the present bus stop at Alta Vista,
where it reaches its maximum width.
about ~ feet. The cars continued on
from Alta Vista, but ran on private
right Of way.
The width Of the old car track right
Of way would be sufiicient to widen
the road on that side, as 10 feet
would be needed for the shoulder and
another 10 feet for grading the ditch,
Smith estimated
Right of way must be secured from
property owners on the east side Of
the road from Alta Vista to the Rock
vile pike and the entire distance on
the west side Of the road.
Admits Danger.
Smith, who made a trip here from
Baltimore to inspect the road at the
invitation of the Advisory Board OF
the American Automobile Association.
admitted the road Is dangerous, but
said most of the hazards can be
eliminated by widening, to provide .
longer range Of visibility, and adding
shoulders and bitches, which will
permit buses to pull of the side to
take on and discharge passengers and
leave room for parking without con-
costing traffic.
The meeting Of a Steering COM
mittee, called by William Buckley.
chairman of q special Roads Com
mittee of the Bethesda Chamber OF
Commerce, for early next month, is
expected to take up Immediately the
question of securing the needed
rights Of way to take advantage OF
the State Roads Commissions offer.
On the committee will be five inem-
bers Of the Bethesda Chamber, and
representatives Of the Bethesda Fire
Board, the Old Georgetown Road
Citizens Association, the Bethesda
Elementary School Parent Teacher
Association and the A. A. A. and
Keystone Motor Club, which has
taken an active interest in the
widening problem.