Evening star., 1937-11-14
DRIVE FOR BRIDGE
WILL Be RENEWED
North RandIe to Make Plans
at Meeting Tuesday to
Obtain Span.

Timing his request to coincide with
the convening of the special session Of
Congress, William S. Farren, president
Of the North Randle Community Citi-
Eens' Association, last night reiterated
the associations stand on the Penn
sylvania Avenue Bridge and, denounc-
ing it as inadequate and antiquated,
called for the immediate construction
Of a new span.
MIR. Farren appointed Harry D. Wood
chairman Of a special committee to
work for the bridge at the meeting Of
the association Tuesday night.
years ago the old bridge gave us
good service" Mr.. Farren said, "but 1t
can no longer handle efficiently the
traffic which must use it. It is not
only too narrow and rough for the easy
flow of traffic over it, but 1t Is also too
rotten and infirm for the daily pound
Ing it receives.
Inadoquacics Cited.
when a bridge reaches the point
where heavy traffic must be routed
around it it is no longer serving its
purpose and should be replaced with
better one.
THE present load limit of 10000
pounds is so low that some fire engines
can not use the bridge, but must de-
tour several miles around via the Ana
costa Bridge. Any fire could reach
serious proportions before aid could ar
rive from across the river.
THE bridge, having only two lanes,
Il In sharp contrast to the multiple
lane thoroughfares approaching it from
either side. There have been nu-
merous accidents, both serious and OF
lesser moment, In bottle necks formed
1T the approaches.
During both the morning and aft
ernoon rush hours traffic is delayed
crossing the bridge. Waits Of 20 min
utes are common and longer waits are
not unknown. Some go several miles
farther through Anacostia or Benning
to avoid using the bridge"
Campaign a Long One.
Southeast citizens have campaigned
vigorously for several years for new
Pennsylvania avenue span, and have
enlisted the support Of number OF
organizations and individuals. One Of
the first was the Washington Board Of
Trade, when it acted in January, 1884.
Prominent in the agitation since
then have been the Southeast Business
Mems Association, Randle Highlands
Citizens Association, Southeast Wash
ington Citizens Association. Bradbury
Heights Citizens Association, North
Randle Community Citizens Assoca-
ton. the Hillcrest Citizens Association,
Southeast Council of Citizens Associa-
tons, the Federation of Citizens Asso-
Citations, the Board of Trade and many
other organizations.
Results have been generally diSap-
pointing to users of the structure. Two
years ago the 74th Congress appro-
priated S25,000 for engineering in
vestigations and preparation of plans
for the bridge.
Last spring the House Subcommit-
tee on District Appropriations sub
stituted a $4,000 repair item for the
$325,00 asked to begin construction
on the bridge. This amount was later
reduced to $4,000. Civic leaders as
sailed this item as waste money, say
ing that the bridge could not be re-
paired so as to give satisfactory serv-
ice.
Plans Approved.
Recently the National Commission
Of Fine Arts approved plans for the
bridge Plans, as approved, call for the
construction of six-lane structure.
The first item in the program of i'm
provements of the Street and Bridge
Division of the Department of High
ways of the District, as included in the
1889 budget estimates, is for $650,000
to start work on the bridge. Con-
struction is estimated to require three
years at a total cost of s2,0O0,000.
A number of organizations have
backed movement to make the new
bridge a memorial to John Philip
Sousa. Mr.. Sousa. known the world
over as the March King" and COM
poser of the "Stars and Stripes Fore
ever" was born and reared in South
east Washington, and now lies buried
in Congressional Cemtery overlooking
the bridge
Started by the Southeast Washing
ton Citizens Association, the move
ment has been acclaimed by music
lovers and Washingtonians as Pc
culiarly fitting. especially in view of
the Francis Scott Key Bridge over
the Potomac at the other end of the
city.
Last winter Senator Royal S. Cope
land of New York introduced a bill
into Congress to name the span after
Mr.. Sousa.