Evening star., 1947-09-01
Keystone Club Says
Parking Plan NegIects
'Cik'sFufure Needs

The Washington parking plan re-
Gently submitted to the District
Commissioners would meet present
needs but would not satisfy those
foreseen for the future, the Keystone
Automobile Club said today.
The organization announced its
appraisal of the new approach to
the Districts parking problem in
reply to a recent request by P. Y. K.
Howat, chairman of the District
Motor Vehicle Parking Agency, for
comment.
The agency submitted last June
long-range blueprint for solving
Washington's downtown parking
problem. 1t advocated a 50,0s0 900
system of private parking garages
and a program of large parking lots
on the rim of the downtown area.
Under this plan, shuttle buses would
take motorists from the parking
areas to their destinations and re-
turn. Express buses would be used
to discourage downtown parking.
Baxter Smith, chairman of the
Committee on Safety, Highways
and Waterways of the Federation of
Citizens Association, urged a series
of high speed depressed traffic
arteries and adequate downtown
parking facilities here. He roughly
estimated this program would cost
from $60,000O0O to $100, 0,000,0 900.
Urges 28-Year Program.
BY a 20-year engineering program
he believes the traffic ills OF Wash
ington could be adequately financed
and largely solved.
Washington has already been
surveyed ito DEATH" Mr.. Smith said
'It Is gust a question of when
Congress will appropriate the money
to remedy the traffic situation he
declared. TT is we'll known that
the people of Washington have very
little to say about what Congress
does"
The committee chairman advo-
Gated a series of depressed high
ways from the center of the city to
the outlying districts. He also
urged all night parking ban here,
as in New York City.
Mr.. Smith said parking facilities
must come first, adding that 1t is
of little use to have high speed
traffic arteries, If the motorist has
no place to put his car after he
arrives at his destination.
Mentions Trouble Spots.
Among the traffic sore spots
which Mr.. Smith sees are Barney
Circle, Seventeenth street and
Pennsylvania avenue Sc; Logan
Circle, the TOO and 300 block of Mt
Vernon place NV, and Maryland
avenue, Fifteenth and H streets
NE.
Mr.. Smith advocated installation
of additional parking meters both
downtown and in outlying sections
He opposed the Fort Drive project
saying there Is no justification fol-
this plan at the expense of District
taxpayers.
Insofar as the program deals with
the national capitals parking prob
lens today, it is, in the main, ex-
cellent," the Keystone report said
but it does not look far enough into
the future and contemplate the
handling of the ever-increasing
number of visitors expected as the
years 60 by.
Question of Future.
"It Is difficult to determine the
degree, if any, of consideration that
has been given to the provision of
space for the inevitable expansion of
the future" Mr.. Howat was told.
Keystone said it feels the plan
is comprehensive and detailed in its
collection of factual material, the
outline of the present-day needs of
the various areas appears to be well
thought out and properly analyzed
and expressed, but it cannot concur
with the thought that it is impos-
sible to supply all of the parking
space desired.
Literally it is true" the Keystone
report said, that free parking space
for all who might wish to use it can
not be supplied, but it is certain
that off-street parking facilities can
be provided at a price in quantity
sufficient to accommodate all who
are willing to pay that price.
I'VE can forecast population, auto
mobile use and traffic-and there is
no reason why parking demand can
not be estimated and balance
struck between street capacity,
building heights, type of occupancy
and parking requirements" Key
stone continued.
THE conclusions and recon-
mendations contained in your report
are prepared upon the basis of an
appraisal of the present-day condi-
tions. 1t is not apparent to the re-
viewers what consideration, If any, is
given to the demands of the future.
The appraisal of the business,
commercial and governmental needs
have been we'll considered, but we
must not lose sight of the fact that
there is a fourth factor-that of the
visitor and sightseer to the Nations S
Capital-which does not appear to
have been cited as an influence in
governing the recommendations