The New York Rapid-transit Subway

56 DISCUSSION ON NEW YORK SUBWAY. [Minutes of Wolle Barry, driven off the London railways by the wearisome delays due to stop- ping at (to them) unnecessary stations. The Author was also very fortunate in having 5 cents as a uniform fare as compared with 2d.; and he supposed that must be put to the credit of the decimal coinage. Happily for those who had made the subway in New York 5 cents was, he supposed, the equivalent for the English 2d., but people did not seem to recollect that 1d. added to 2d. was a very large addition ; and if those who were interested in London railways could by a stroke of the pen add 4d. on to the fare of every passenger they carried, their balance-sheets would look very different. He supposed the London railways would have to start at 34., as they could scarcely adopt 24d., and if that were done the shareholders would be still better off, if they could secure the same number of passengers, which, how- ever, he did not think they would. It was lucky for the New York Company that in America 5 cents was apparently almost a negligible quantity ; but the extra 4d. made a great difference in the finances of the undertaking. He had been much struck, also, with the admirable section of column shown in Fig. 3, Plate 5, which must be very cheap. As far as he could form an opinion, the section was well designed and simple, and its parts were easy to roll. Tlie work under the river almost required a Paper and a discussion of its own, and he had not had time to study the drawings in the way he would have liked ; but he was certain they would be very useful to those who had to look into such matters hereafter. On the whole, The Institu- tion had received a very interesting Paper, and the members had every reason to be grateful to the Author for coming among them, giving them the results of his experience, and pointing out improvements to which English engineers ought certainly to give careful consideration. He might express his personal regret that he had never seen the subway in actual operation ; but in his mind’s eye, and with his know- ledge of London traffic, he thought he could very nearly judge the ease with which the traffic was carried on, and New York was to be highly congratulated on having taken the matter in hand so thoroughly. As far as he could judge, the great improvements in New York which had been described in the Paper were due to the establishment of the Rapid-Transit Board. That Board was not only a consultative body but had also power to act, and it had acted in a very judicious way in the laying-out of the lines and the appointment of the Author. A body of that kind was what all engineers sighed for in London. It was the main thing recommended for adoption by the Royal Commission on the Traffic of London ; yet it had been utterly neglected by both Governments, and London was now in the same position as it was before the Royal Commission sat. There