Evening star., 1954-10-28
CTCProposes
Specially Store
Shopper Plan
Offers Follows
Rejection Of Test
By Bigger Firms

~SSS husS
Although downtown Washing
tons department. stores have
politely rejected the Capital
Transit Co. plan for shoppers
special" Transportation privileges,
the transit firm is prepared to
GO, ahead with a similar plan in
cooperation with the downtown
speciality stores.
E. C. Giddings, q vice presi-
dent of the company, notified
the Merchant and Manufac-
turers' Association to this effect
today.
Mr.. Gfddings' letter followed
an announcement by the asso-
ciation that it's Large Stores Di-
vision concluded that the COM
pany suggestion is unfeasible.
The division decided that a fve-
day trial would be too short to
prove anything and that an
extended trial would be "far too
costly"
In this connection Capital
Transit issued a statement
which. in effect, challenged this
basis for the department stores
opposition.
Longer Trial Offered.
"If- the five-day trial period
was; the important reason for
rejeGtion of the plan" the COM
panye declared, Capital Transit
is willing now, as before, to ex-
tend the trial to any length Of
time the large stores consider
reasonable"
The plan submitted by the
company is a modified version of
that put into practice in Buffalo,
N. Y. In the local transit COM
pany version, the shopper would
pay the normal fare to the down.
town shopping area. He would
receive two-part ticket in
exchange. u
On making purchases from a
participating merchant and on
presentation of his transit ticket,
the shopper would receive a free
token for the ride home. Should
the shopper want to visit an
other store in the downtown area,
one part Of his ticket could be
used as a transfer to another
CAPITAL Transit vehicle.
These privileges would have
exssted only on the F and G
streets streetcar lines between
Seventh and Fifteenth streets
N!W,
Il Plans modified.
in ITS latest note to the Mer-
chants and Manufacturers AS
ISOLATION, Capital Transit offered
a further modification, which 1t
is willing to put into practice
with the downtown speciality
stores.
This plan would abandon the
special ticket feature of the
Buffalo plan" Instead, the
regular transfer now issued
would be presented to the mer-
chant, who would give the GUS
toner a free token. The trans
fefs would be stamped by the
stu4e and returned to the shop
per, who could then enjoy exist
ing transfer privileges provided
under public utilities regulations
to, travel or shop elsewhere.
The proposal is similar to the
agreement due to take effect next
Monday between Capital Transit
and the Columbia Heights Busi-
neSsmen's Association. This is
set up as a 30-day trial.
Time Limit on Transfers.
Existing transfer restrictions,
under the Columbia Heights and
the downtown speciality stores
plans, mean that the transfers
can be used only within one to
one and one-half hours of the
time of issuance. The transfer,
furthermore, could not be used
ON the same line that issued it.
So far as the original plan
for downtown shoppers is con-
cerned, Mr.. Giddings said Cap
ital Transit is still convinced it
could be successful only if it
had the complete cooperation
of the large department stores
interested in relieving down.
town traffic congestion and the
furthsrance of transit USE"
Brig. Gen. Louis w. Prentiss.
District Engineer Commissioner.
said the decision of the depart
merit stores was "discouraging."
Gen. Prentiss added, however,
that their conclusion does not
foreclose further efforts by the
Merchants and Manufacturers
Association \ t0 institute some
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