Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-12-23

Senators morse, Democrat o
New Jersey, wrote q letter TIT
lover the District Commissioners
failure to try out the firms re-
Iquest. The lawmakers were on
1.-THE Senate committee which
helped settle the transit crisis
there last summer.
On the financial front, o. Roy
Chalk has announced D. C.
Transit paid the $50 million to
1.-THE Chase Manhattan Bank on
November 80.
Big Saving on Interest
It's early repayment saves d. c
Transit some $32, 900 monthly ir
Interest, an official Of the com.
Ipany estimated.
The money had been pledged
Ito the bank from funds D. C
Transit took over from its pred:
Iecessor, Capital Transit Co.
when etc was sold.
Mr.. Chalk announced the
prepayment to stockholders Of
Trans Caribbean Always. The
transit firm is a wholly-owned
Subsidiary Of Trans Caribbean
'This- represents a reduction oil
more than IS per cent of total
ID. C. Transit bank loans" he
said.
Senators Case and Morse
wrote their letter to Robert E
Mclaughlin. president of the
Board of District Commissioners.
I'VE do feel" they wrote, "that
such enterprise deserves encour-
lagement."
Offered 9-Point Program
Mr.. Chalk asked the city last
month for approval of a nine
point program to speed service
and cut costs.
His fifth proposal was for an
immediate test, effective not
later than December l." OF
transit lanes on nine downtown
streets. The District Comission-
erS agreed to the request if ii
were recommended by Traffic
Director George E. Keneipp and
by the District Public Utilities
Commission.
In conference with Mr.. Chalk,
Mr.. Keneipp offered tryoutS of
transit lanes on three streets
along the streetcar tracks in the
center of Ninth and Eleventh
streets NV. ana along the curbs
of H street from FifteenCh street
NE. to Massachusetts avenue
INV. if engineering studies
should prove it feasible.
Mr.. Chalk turned down the
center lane suggestions, on the
ground it would interfere with
streetcar operation, and REIN
stated his request for bus lanes
on all nine streets.
The New Yorker later assailed
plans for curb-lane operation on
H street as a single-shot tryout
which would attract traffic and
invalidate the results of any
test.
Now. Mr.. Keneipp says he is
ready to recommend a tryout of
the curb lanes on H street be-
tween Second and Fifteenth
streets NE, after January tests
to determine the speed of traffic
there. and after new tests of the
results Of relocation of several
bus stops.
The senators pointed out that
last March they had recon-
|mended that the District Com
misSioners consider various
means Of expediting the move
|ment of public transit vehicles
on the downtown streets of
Washington. Among these was
the reservation of street lanes
for such vehicles"
The lawmakers insisted, "This
technique has been used during
rush hours in several major cities
in order to improve service by
up transit vehicles. This
tends to make transit travel at
tractive to more patrons and also
to reduce the cost Of transit OPP
CREATIONS"
The two Senators were men,
bers of the joint House-Senate
Conference Committee which
granted Mr.. Chalk a 20-year
franchise with exemption from
the Districts 2 per cent gross re-
ceipts tax, and conditional ex-
emption from the six-cent-a-
gallon gasoline tax to the extent
he fails to make a 61a per cent
profit.
"As you well know" the Sen
ators wrote Mr.. Mclaughlin.
public transit systems have been
in financial difficulty in many
communities in addition to