Evening star., 1955-10-14
.streetcors His Desire

happened in other large cities.
and we don't want it to hap
pen here. We need to look at
this as the man Of the street
sees it, for after all he is the
one to please. He isn't going
to like it when he sees the
fares which he paid out Of his
hard-earned money being used
to tear up tracks. This is q
waste Of his money. 1t will also
be a waste Of his money to let
the streetcars 60 for almost
nothing and invest in a set Of
new buses. Both Of these oper-
atoms would be costly items
not now needed.
AS for buses, they tear up
the streets, the black top rolls
up at the bus stops. Concrete
has been substituted, and
even this breaks up. Some
streets have been widened to
accommodate the buses. Some
body is paying for this. either
the transit riders or the tax
payers. The life Of a bus is
so short. the replacement cost
must be extremely large.
It appears the service would
not be as good. All other pub
lie utilities tlight. gas and
phone companies) spare no ex-
pense in providing their GUS
toners with the finest equip
ment obtainable and also the
best service. Changing from a
streetcar to a bus is the same
as changing from a limousine
to a motorcycle. Replacing
streetcars with buses is a step
backward to the old stage
coach days, only now there is
the added stencil of exhaust
fumes which are unbearable.
Twenty years ago it was a
pleasure to ride around Wash
ington on the Streetcars. ANY,
body could tell where the
streetcars went. but you need
a map to find the bus routes
and then they are subject to
change. Those cars that went
out to Congress Heights and
also the ones to Chevy Chase
Lake were among the finest
cars. You can relax on a
streetcar. You can read your
newspaper. You can't on a bus.
Streetcars are faster, There
isn't a bus made that can
take' Off from a stop as fast
as q streetcar. There isn't a
bus made that can keep up
with an electric car on a
straight-a-way. While the life
of a bus is possibly ten years,
] have never seen a wornout
streetcar. Therefore, street.
cars are cheaper in the long
run.
Reading the papers, see
all large cities are suffering
from traffic congestion and
don't know what to do. More
bridges, tunnels and super
highways only put additional
burdens on the taxpayers. You
still have congestion. / be-
lieve the buses are largely to
blame, since this congestion is
in cities that have been doing
away with streetcars.
Buses are also detrimental
to downtown business. Where
as. for years the streetcar stop
required only 20 feet of curb
space. buses require more and
on some downtown streets
whole blocks are needed for
the buses. This knocks out
thousands of parking spaces
tor autos.
There are thousands OF
people not physically able to
ride buses. Some have back
ailments, some have stomach
trouble and feet ailments and
cannot tolerate the jolting OF
buses. / would be willing to
pay a straight 25-cent fare If
/ could ride a streetcar every
time. Until that time I will
have to pay the So per day it
costs me to drive into WASH
ington every day. Instead OF
discontinuing streetcar service,
would like to see 1t extended.
We need line up Lee high
way to Falls Church, so we can
have all-weather transporta-
ton. Lines should be built
to Alexandria and other Vir-
ginia and Maryland points. At
present. buses are hopelessly
stalled in traffic approaches to
the District. Streetcars on
elevated lines would not be
hindered. What we need is
q high-speed, steel-wheeled
transit system serving the
whole Washington area.
Man In the Street.