Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-05-12
Move toC Close
N. Y. Elevated
Goes toCourt

NEW YORK, May IL R.-
J The Third avenue Ell" transit
relic of days when hearts now
old were young and gay, creaks
into history tonight-maybe.
The CLIO Transport Workers
Union has gone into court seek
ing a shot of legal adrenalin for
the rattly old thing.
The matter is 20 he srgued
today, and it could happen again
that reports of the ELS" pend
ing demise are premature.
The Transit Authority. which
must worry about all of New
York's subways, elevated rail-
roads and a good share of it's
buses, has decreed that the last
old train will roll north to the
Bronx at 6 pm.
Intermittent Runs
After that it will run inter-
mittently up in the Bronx, but
Manhattan will be left without
any of the above-ground ar
teries that have, over the years,
blocked out considerable amounts
of its sunlight.
The Sixth avenue eel" reached
the end of it's line in 1888. The
Second avenue followed.
The long. long trail of Orders
and rails that is the Third ave-
nue. Eel" began to stretch toward
the Bronx from South Ferry,
the tip of Lower Manhattan, II
years ago.
1t ran along the Bowery-
now Skid Row but then the
glamorous heart of the city's
amusement area - and into
Third avenue to And street. A
few years later it was sending
its spacious. elegant coaches.
decorated with all the taste and
finish of boudoir" up to 129th
street.
In 1891 the doughty Third
avenue crossed the Harlem
River and roamed on, finally
reaching the city line by 1920.
City's Habits Changed
Original steam locomotives
gave way to electricity and the
eel" went merrily along through
the years. But the subways and
buses came, and the city
changed, and so did peoples
travelling habits.
Buildings along the tracks de-
Perforated. Some were so close
that an EEL" rider could almost
step across into a window. The
mile upon mile of girder-pillars
supporting the eel" structure be-
came traffic hazards that clut-
tered up a wide avenue.
Threats to tear it down grew
in number.
Not long ago. a group of rail-
road fans paid $3.50 each for
a final, final sad ride over the
old line in special train-and
then the Third avenue was re-
prieved again.
The ELS" death knell was
sounded in a Transit Authority
announcement saying the line
carried only 10000 passengers
a day. or $4,000 individuals on
round trips, compared with 275,-
600 several years ago.
BY contrast, the subways carry
As million riders a day.
Losing $50, 200 a Week
The eel" the authority said,
was losing money at the rate of
$4,000 a weeks It was in such
bad shape that officials kept
their fingers crossed every min
ute OF the day. hoping that no
bad accident occurred.
The cost of rehabilitation was
estimated at more than $50 mil
lion.
To many the departure of the
Ell" structure will mean OPEN
ing a new frontier for develop
ment on an island without spare
real estate.
Nevertheless, protests against
the shutdown are legion. Mostly
they deal with the alleged lack
OF alternative transport.
But to one youngster living
under the eel" it is a thing of
the heart.
My 12-year-old son weeps in
consolably and refuses to eat"
his diStraught mother wrote the
Transit Authority.