Evening star., 1943-12-19
IS Per Cent Increase
In Rail Travel in IA
Predicted by 0DT

can trains, buses and planes already
more than four times what it was
before the war and double what it
was a year ago, the Office of De-
fense Transportation fears things
will be even worse next year, and
predicts Is per cent increase in
rail travel.
This was disclosed last night in
an elaborate report on the mush-
rooming travel-load, made public
by the Office of War Information.
Estimating that fifth of present
rail travel and a third of present
bus travel is unnecessary, Joseph B.
Eastman, ODT director, declared:
1T is easy to see where the prin-
ciple problem lies. If, instead of
crowding into trains and buses, these
nonessential travellers had stayed
home most persons who must travel
would have seats. The problem is
Just as simple as that"
Rationing Still Possible.
Rationing of travel is still not an
impossibility," the report said, but
would be imposed only as last re-
sort to cope with increasingly heavy
passenger loads on limited, over
strained equipment.
Troop transportation increased
about so per cent over 1912, Owl
said, with military orders taking
more than half the sleeping cars and
about a third of all coaches.
Today's soldier averages seven
moves from camp to embarkation
point. the report said, and an addi-
tional 100000 service men and
women travel on furlough.
The survey also disclosed that:
Intercity buses carried an eSti
mated AL per cent increase in pas
sengers and ran a third additional
passenger miles beyond 1912 records.
Airline Travel Way Up.
Domestic airlines this year will
have flown an estimated 100000, 900
passenger miles about $4,000, 900
more than in 1941 when they had
almost twice as many planes.
Despite steadily increasing pas
senger travel on all forms of public
transportation, practically no new!
equipment is being manufactured
and that in use is wearing out
rapidly. In addition, manpower
shortages continue.
Railroads are handling today's !
vastly increased traffic with actually
one-fourth fewer cars, one-third !
fewer locomotives and nearly one
third fewer employees than they had
IN the last war;" said the review.
The survey was the result of con-
sultations with the War Department,
Association of American Railroads,
National Travellers Aid Society,
United Service Organization, ODT,,
Air Transport Association, National
Association of Motor Bus Operators,
Interstate Commerce Commission
and Civil Aeronautics Board.
Housing Shortage Stressed.
Here were some stories relayed .
by Owl from the Travellers Aid So
ciety.
New York City now should be put
on the Stop, Look and Go Home"
list. Metropolitan sidelights: Eight
children and mother in a roofless
garage, three k-old baby sleep
ing in an old cardboard box and 80
wives of actors in the Army Air
Forces show Winged Victory" look
ing for just one room with bed and
heat
The pregnant wife of an Army |
sergeant was living 10 miles from
cantonment town on rough |
country road. Travellers Aid work.
ers searched for four weeks and |
found room through which every
one coming into the house had to
pass. Several instances were re-
ported of couples sleeping in the
same room, and one girl had bed
in a room with a soldier and his
wife.
An elderly woman came to
camp to visit her soldier son, ac-
companied by middle-aged daugh-
ter. She spent the first night on
the drafty stage of the USO club.
A young girl journeyed across the
continent to marry her soldier. She
had only S35 with her, which ran
out because of several eight-hour
stop overs when preference was
given to moving troops. A hotel let
her sleep on two chairs in the
lobby.
A service wife could not change
her clothing for four days because
she was forced to sleep in a car
near her husbands station.
Travellers Aid had to wake up
hardware storekeeper in a camp
town one cold winter night to let
a soldier buy a stove to heat an
otherwise unfurnished cabin which
he had rented for his unexpectedly
arrived wife and two small children.