Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-09-08
for an all-bus operation when
we shall certainly require other
than surface transportation.
Robert E. Wallich.

Robert E. Wallich.
4 4 \ 4
I have known them all-the
horse cars, the cable cars. the
trolleys, the underground
current electric cars, even the
old Sixteenth street herdics
complete with straw in the aisle
and finally the bus. I have no
wish to return to the days Of
the horse cars, but please.
can't somebody do something
about keeping the streetcars?
I have ridden uncounted
miles in cars and buses and I.
can find but one advantage
the bus has over the car. The
bus draws up to the curb Cor
near it, to let one on or of.
The cars are cooler in sum-
mer. not so stuffily hot in
winter. they do not reek Of
gas" they have wider aisles
in which to walk or stand,
they have more comfortable
seats, they hold more people
"a great comfort In rush
hours, standees do not have
to crouch to watch for their
stop. they do not clog traffic
as do the buses. The long
distance rider can read COM
fortably in the car but not in
the juggling bus, the nervous
rider knows that the car. safe
on its rails. will not skid on
an icy street.
AS for the theory that when
an accident occurs to q bus
the others viii continue to run,
I recommend that you try
standing at a bus stop and
watching the full land over
loaded buses roll by without
stopping. That will not be
because the operator of the
bus can't see you since his
plea, please keep back Of the
white line" has been unavail-
ing, but because you could not
be inserted into the bus with
a shoe horn.
Please, please, let us keep,
the streetcars that we now
have.
r. B.
I read with interest an
article in This Week" on
why people refuse to move
back in buses. Speculations as
to their reasons did not in
clude the reasons why / re-
fuse to move back in the bus.
which I consider reasonable
and not the result Of a psyche
logical twist or warped per-
sonality.
In the first place. I dislike
buses and am very uneasy
about the prospect of having
streetcars removed. Buses jolt
and jerk, sometimes throwing
passengers to the floor: they
skid on slippery streets: they
are hotter than streetcars in
the summer, especially that
back seat on top of the en-
CINE: windows are difficult
and often impossible to open;
seat backs which passengers
have to hold onto are so low
I have to lean over Il am five
feet five and half, so I won
der what a really tall person
does), and they are full Of
choking gas fumes.
But the reasons why I will
not move back are these: Back
of the side exit the floor slopes
upward, making 1t even more
difficult to keep my feet, and
the seat backs are lower than
in front. Secondly, in the far
back people sit on seats fac
ing each other with their legs
crossed and feet stuck out so
far they nearly touch. 1t is
possible to force ones way
into this bramble patch. but the
result is usually soiled cleth-
ing and snagged nylons. I
don't have to submit to this
and have no intention of do
ing so. The side exit is as far
back as I will go.
In considering the removal
Of streetcars, the big brains
seem to have forgotten the
war, when gasoline was scarce.
We were very glad to have the
cars then. Although we are
not fighting a war at the mo-
ment, peace in our time looks
long way of, and this should
be taken into consideration.
The transit situation and
the traffic problem are so in
tegrated that they should be
considered together. Every rise
in fares results in more private
cars on the streets. Anyone
who goes back and forth every
day as I do can notice the diff
ference. Private cars are given
preference over public trans
portation. and this is one
factor in the present difficult
ties of the transit company.
Transit Rider.