Evening star., 1947-10-27
StoresAskPUC
For Restoration
0f4BusLines
Proposal for Service
To 7th Street Opposed
By Transit Company

Proposed restoration OF preWar
downtown bus service on four Cap,
ital Transit Co. lines to serve the
Seventh street shopping area was
opposed and defended today in
hearing before the Public Utilities
Commission.
The change was asked by spokes-
men for three stores-LanSburgh
the Hecht Co. and Kann's. 1t was
opposed by the Capital Transit Co,
which claimed the restoration would
be too expensive and was unjustifled.
Citizens associations were divided
on the issue.
Mark Lansburgh, principal spokes-
man for the stores, said the prewar
service was needed because of COM
plants from customers and en-
ployes. He said it was inconveinenJ
and worked a physical hardship on
them to be obliged to change, trans
fer or walk to the stores.
Abandoned in Wartime.
According to the plan, the lines
from Connecticut avenue, SiXteenth
street, Chillum and Petworth which
now run into the fifteenth street
and Pennsylvania avenue bus term
inal would resume their preWar
routes along E street NV. toward
the Seventh street area.
The routes were abandoned partly
because of wartime shortages.
Mr.. Lansburgh said the stores
1000 employees during the coming
Christmas season would be handi-
capped by the present route. But,
he told the commission, in the case
of customers I'VE know that many
of them definitely will not deal with
us when it is more convenient to
shop where through buses still
operate
IF the Christmas and the year.
round business is handicapped by
failure to get satisfactory trans
portation service he asserted
"decentralizati ton will undoubtedly
eventuate in our section OF the
downtown business section OF Wash
ington as it already has in some
other cities"
Wage Cost Cited.
e. D. Merrill, transit company
president, said the company al
ready was faced with the posi-
bility of increased labor cost as
the plea of the transit workers
union for higher wages now is be-
fore an arbitration committee for
decision.
Estimates of net income for the
IL months ending September 80,
1e4S, show an income of something
like $4,000. This, he said, lis
manifestly inadequate to support
the operation with reasonable
credit"
He told the commission that it
was "vitally necessary to save all
possible mileage in order to mini
mize the necessity for increased
fares"
At the recently concluded transit
wage bearings, the company an
nounced it would ask a raise in
fare from the present 10 cents to
IS cents.
231,S0O Miles Year Involved.
The restored wartime downtown
E street routes on the four lines
would add 300 miles year,
the commission was told by Dean
j, Locke, Transit Co. engineer.
The operation, if extensions were
granted. would require "a additional
buses and "a additional bus opera
tors. Mr.. Locke said, adding that the
company already is short OF oper-
ators.
THE annual additional out-of-
nocket costs" he estimated, would
be approximately S85,279, while the
full cost including fixed charges
on the additional investment would
be s2l6,554 annually.
Mr.. Locke expressed the belief
that the Seventh street shopping
area is conveniently and adequately
served ,lby the lines of its system,
Direct through service to THIS
Seventh street area was PROVIDED
for 67.2 per cent of all the people
who enter the downtown area,
Citizens Spokesman Testify.
Harvey o. Craver, president o.
the Petworth Citizens Association
and George A. Corbin of the Manor
park Citizens Association asked that
the lines serving their. area con-
tinue to run into the bus terminal
at Thirteenth street and Pennsyl-
vania avenue.
Among those asking for the
restoration of the routes were
Charles Lovejoy of the Motor We
hicle Parking Agency, who said 1t
would, relieve automobile parking
congestion: Mrs. Ernest w. Howard
of the Columbia Heights Citizens
Association, Harry c. Grove. presl-
. dent, and David Babp, an official OF
i the Connecticut Avenue Citizens
Association; John B. Dickman, Jr
of Cleveland Park Citizens Asso-
ciation.
g Police Inspector Arthur Miller OF
the traffic division estimated that
the change would mot be too much
of a problem" although it would
=, ~. 4,o@o m z ctrent