Evening star., 1943-09-10
Jesse \. Jones
Joins in Askinq
Lower Bus Fare
Government Workers
Ask Reduced Rutes
To Virginia. Points

Secretary of Commerce Jesse
Jones has joined with Secretary of
War Stimson and the Navy Depart
ment in requesting reduction of bus
fares for Government employees to
nearby Virginia. it developed this
afternoon at the Interstate Com
merce Commission hearing.
A spokesman for the Commerce
Department told the hearing that
the Secretary of Commerce and the
Civil Aeronautics administrator
Charles Stanton, were interested in
seeing the establishment "of rea-
sonable rates" to and from Wash
ington National Airport.
Harry G.. Harrington, attorney
with the CAA, who spoke on behalf
of two Government officials, pointed
out that their interest is based on
the fact that the CAA has a num-
ber of employees at the Airport who
use facilities of one or more of the
four transit companies involved in
the rate hearing. There are also a
number of airline employees and
custodial workers who travel be-
tween Washington and the Airport
on these facilities, he said.
Call Rates Excessive.
Previously five War Department
civilian employees with base salaries
ranging between 1890 and $1,620
per year testified that transporta-
ton costs to and from work at the
Pentagon were excessive.
Called by the Government, which
is seeking reduction in bus fares to
War and Navy Department build
ings in Arlington, four women and
one man, under questioning by Capt.
Paul Davis. said that they were pay
ing fares beyond those which their
budgets would allow.
Typical of the testimony was that
of Miss Betty Silcott, 102 B street
NE, q $1,440-a-year War Depart
ment employe. She said that she
rode each day on Capital Transit Co.
buses with a weekly $1.25 pass and
then paid 10 cents per day addi-
tional for the round-trip shuttle
service to the Pentagon.
Adds Own Comment.
Turning to Commissioner William
Patterson, Miss Silcott asked If she
could say something more Given
permission, the witness declared: Il
can't understand why. you cannot
use the pass to 60 to the Pentagon,
If you can use it in the city"
Clifton G. Jones, colored laborer
at the Pentagon, who said he sup
ports a wife and child on q base
salary of $500 per year, testified
that he, too, used q pass and then
boarded the shuttle bus for Arling-
ton. Miss Valerie Peltier, q $1,440
clerk-typist, said that she felt that
$50 month was too high" for
transportation costs.
Miss Margie Wiggans, a $1,620-a-
year clerk, and Miss Doris Crist, who
also earns $500 base salary, gave
similar testimony.
The Government then called three
civilian personnel officials, who gave
as "a contributing factor" high
transportation cost among workers
leaving Government employe. They
were Miss Ruby Swanson, Army
Service Forces employe counselor;
Capt. Russell w. Slight. civilian per-
sonnel chief for the Air Transport
Command at Gravelly Point, and
Miss Louise M. Newman, chief of
personnel branch at the Army Air
Forces Annex.
War and Navy Department spokes-
men yesterday recommended is
suance of special transfers from
local buses and streetcars for pas
sengers travelling to Arlington. The
Capital Transit Co. now charges
5 cents for a special shuttle service
across the Potomac in addition to
the regular fare required In the
city.
Transfer Problem Studied.
]. D. Trueblood, a Navy Depart
ment consultant on transportation.
called as Government witness, ad-
mitted yesterday that transfers from
the operators standpoint, were un-
desirable from the start" but that
nonetheless he felt some form of
transfers could be worked.
Called by the Government to give
figures on the Capital Transit Co.'S
Pentagon line. Vice President J. E.
Heberle said the company during a
seven-month period ending July 81
had a net loss of $36, ,948.76. He
estimated the passenger revenue for
this period at $179,524.55 and total
operating expenses at $155,66 80.
After deducting depreciation and
taxes and allowing a 7 per cent
annual return on investment, the
company's loss was $36,94S.76, he
said.