HOUSE No. 141

Cbe Commontoealtft of Qgassacfiusetts!

SPECIAL REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF METRO- POLITAN PLANNING RELATIVE TO FACILITIES IN AND TO OPERATION OF THE BOSTON, REVERE BEACH & LYNN RAILROAD BY THE BOS- TON ELEVATED RAILWAY COMPANY.

[Transportation.]

Division of Metropolitan Planning, 20 Somerset Street, Boston, November 30, 1935. To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled. Chapter 46 of the Resolves of 1935 reads as follows:

Resolve providing for an Investigation by the Division op Metropolitan Planning relative to the Extension of Rapid Transit Facilities in the East Boston District of the City of Boston and the Acquisition by the Boston Metropolitan District of the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad and the Operation thereof by the Company. Resolved, That the division of metropolitan planning of the metro- politan district commission is hereby authorized and directed to in- vestigate the subject matter of current house document numbered eighteen hundred and fifty-nine, relative to an extension of rapid transit facilities in the East Boston district of the city of Boston and 2 HOUSE —No. 141. [Jan. to the acquisition by the Boston metropolitan district of all or a part of the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn railroad and the operation thereof by the Boston Elevated Railway Company. Said division shall report to the general court the results of its investigation, and its recommendations, if any, together with drafts of legislation neces- sary to carry its recommendations into effect, by filing the same with the clerk of the house of representatives on or before the first Wednes- day of December in the current year.

In accordance with said resolve this Division respect- fully submits its report. The substance of the resolve is direction for an investi- gation of the feasibility and desirability of the acquisition of a part or all of the Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad, hereinafter called the Narrow Gauge road, by the Boston Metropolitan District, and its operation thereafter as a part of the Boston Elevated Railway sys- tem, with universal transfer and without an increase in fare, that is, with a 10-cent fare for Winthrop and Revere and a 15-cent fare between Boston and Lynn. From a public standpoint, the advantages would accrue chiefly to the inhabitants of Winthrop and Lynn, who would, after such a consolidation, be enabled to travel from their respective town and city to any part of the Elevated system for the existing fares of the Narrow Gauge road. There would be little public advantage to the inhabitants of Revere, as the Elevated will soon ac- quire the Chelsea Division of the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway, and when that is accomplished people living in Revere can travel to Boston or any other portion of the Elevated system for a 10-cent fare via trolley serv- ice to Maverick Square and the tunnel from Maverick Square to Boston. The running time from the main Revere Beach station to Rowes Wharf via the Narrow Gauge road is twenty- one minutes. The time by trolley from Beach Street, Revere, to Maverick Square and thence to Devonshire Street is twenty-four minutes. It will therefore be seen that, both from the fare standpoint and from the time standpoint, there will be little gain to the inhabitants of 1936.] HOUSE No. 141 3

Revere in the acquisition by the Elevated, except as the running time from Revere would be slightly less if rapid transit service were extended from Maverick Square to Orient Heights and a transfer from the Revere trolleys made at Orient Heights instead of Maverick Square. The engineers of this Division, in co-operation with the engineers of the Elevated, have made a careful study of the cost of the extension of the East Boston Tunnel to Day Square and also to Orient Heights.

Extension to Day Square. The cost of an extension to Day Square is estimated to be as follows;

Cost of rapid transit extension, including cars, equipment, shop and yard 13,800,000 Cost of Narrow Gauge connection and loop 700,000

Total 14,500,000

The added charges on this extension are estimated as follows;

Interest and sinking fund on the cost at 5 per cent 1225,000 Additional operating cost to Day Square 110,000

Total 1335,000

Without the ownership of the Narrow Gauge road or an arrangement with them by which they would abandon their ferries and turn over all of their passengers to the Elevated to Day Square, we do not believe there is any financial justification in the Day Square extension. The abandonment of the ferries and the turning over of the Narrow Gauge traffic to the Elevated at Day Square or Orient Heights, without a corporate consolida- tion, is not feasible, because the Elevated will have to charge a 10-cent fare to Narrow Gauge passengers from either Day Square or Orient Heights to Boston or else- where on its system; and the Narrow Gauge would have to charge its own fare from Winthrop, Revere or Lynn 4 HOUSE —No. 141. [Jan, to the Elevated terminal. Even though the present Nar- row Gauge fare were reduced, the result would be a higher charge for passengers travelling on the Narrow Gauge than they now pay, and while they would have full transfer privileges over the Elevated, we feel sure they would seriously object to any such increase in the cost of reaching Boston. If on the other hand a corporate consolidation of the two roads is effected, we are sure that Orient Heights rather than Day Square is the proper terminus of the Elevated rapid transit system. We therefore dismiss as impracticable an extension of the Elevated system to Day Square without the acquisition of the Narrow Gauge road, and we believe that if the Narrow Gauge road is acquired, the transfer between the two systems should take place at Orient Heights.

Extension of the Elevated Rapid Transit System to Orient Heights and the Acquisition of the Narrow Gauge Road. For reasons hereinafter given, we have assumed that the entire Narrow Gauge system must be acquired for not exceeding $1,000,000. We have further assumed that the Winthrop Branch would be standard-gauged and that the Elevated would use its surplus center-entrance cars to bring the passengers from Winthrop to Orient Heights. We have still further assumed that the Elevated would continue to operate Narrow Gauge trains between Lynn and Orient Heights. With these assumptions, we find that the capital cost of the extension and acquisition would be as follows:

Cost of rapid transit extension to Orient Heights, includ ing cars, equipment, yards and repair shop . . $6,150,000

Broad-gauging of the Winthrop Brandi .... 150,000 Buses 100,000

Acquisition of the Narrow Gauge road .... 1,000,000

Total $7,400,000 1936.] HOUSE —No. 141. 5

The added charges and operating expense of this ex- tension are estimated as follows:

Interest and sinking fund on cost at 5 per cent $370,000 Extra operating charges of rapid transit system 190,000 Operation of Winthrop Branch 90,000 Operation of trains between Lynn and Orient Height 250,000 Taxes 25,000

Total $925,000

The traffic over the Narrow Gauge road in 1934 was approximately as follows:

Between Lynn and Boston 2,600,000 Between Revere, Orient Heights and Boston 2,000,000 Between Winthrop and Boston 2,000,000 Local rides 1,050,000

Total 7,650,000

The gross income to the Elevated from this riding we estimate as follows:

2.600.000 passengers from Lynn at 15 cents . . . $390,000 2.000. passengers from Revere and Orient Heights at 10 cents 200,000 2.000. passengers from Winthrop at 10 cents . 200,000 1.050.000 local passengers at 5 cents 52,000

Total $842,000

We feel sure that with thorough, quick service and uni- versal transfer over the Elevated system this passenger riding would increase by at least 10 per cent, particularly from Lynn, thus increasing the estimated revenue to $926,000, which is substantially equal to the estimated operating expenses of the extension and consolidation. The Elevated will, however, lose certain fares which it now collects from passengers who have entered Boston over the Narrow Gauge road. Counts have been taken at Rowes Wharf and Orient Heights, and the engineers 6 HOUSE — No. 141. [Jan.

of the Elevated estimate that the loss of revenue would be as follows:

2,600,000 passengers who use the Elevated buses to and from Rowes Wharf at 5 cents . $130,000 300,000 passengers who use the Atlantic Avenue rapid transit line at 10 cents 30.000 230,000 passengers who use the Elevated cars to and from Orient Heights at 10 cents 23.000

Total $183,000

Because of these necessary deductions, we estimate that the extension of the East Boston Tunnel to Orient Heights and the acquisition of the Narrow Gauge road would result in a net loss of approximately $lBO,OOO an- nually, until such time as increased traffic from Lynn, Winthrop and Revere make up the loss. As the Elevated is not earning the full cost of service, and there is an annual deficit to be assessed upon the cities and towns in which the Elevated operates, this added operating deficit would increase the assessment on the cities and towns of the transit district. We therefore reluctantly conclude that, from an immediate financial standpoint, the Nar- row Gauge road cannot be acquired, even at the low price of $1,000,000, and rapid transit service extended to Orient Heights without added cost to the taxpayers.

Price to be Paid the Narrow Gauge Road for the Acquisition of their Property. The book value of the assets of the Narrow Gauge road is approximately $4,328,000. As against this there are outstanding the following liabilities:

Capital stock $1,060,800 Funded debt 1,998,000 Current liabilities 420.000 Unadjusted credits 841.000 Corporate surplus (approximately) 8,200

Total $4,328,000 1936.] HOUSE— No. 141. 7

When we turn to the operating statement, however, we find an unfortunate picture. For the year ending De- cember 31, 1934, revenue and expenses were approxi- mately as follows:

operating Total revenue 1873,000 Total operating expense, including taxei 785,000

revenue Net $BB,OOO

ihe i oad s interest and amortization charges were ap- proximately $126,000, leaving a net deficit after interest of $38,000. Furthermore, we cannot disregard the fact that upon the acquisition by the Elevated of the Chelsea Division of the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway, and the establishment of a 10-cent fare from Revere to all points on the Elevated system, a large number of those who now travel over the Narrow Gauge from Revere will Probably travel via the Elevated. Two million people now ride over the Narrow Gauge road between Revere and Boston, and we think it conservative to estimate that at least one half of those riders wall hereafter use the Elevated system. This would mean a further net loss to the Revere Beach road of $lOO,OOO in income. If this forecast should prove true, the Narrow Gauge road would not quite earn its operating expense, and hence would not have anything left for interest and amortiza- tion. W e therefore felt entirely unjustified in assuming an acquisition price equal to the book value of the Narrow Gauge road, and at the price we have used of ■11,000,000 the transaction still seems impracticable from a financial standpoint.

Conclusion. For reasons given in this report, the Division cannot at this time recommend the acquisition of the Narrow Gauge road by the Elevated and a rapid transit extension either to Day Square or Orient Heights. However, the acquisition of the Chelsea Division makes 8 HOUSE — No. 141. [Jan. 1936. desirable from an operating standpoint a rapid transit extension at least as far as Day Square; and after the Elevated has operated this division for a reasonable period, and the future financial status of the Narrow Gauge road is more definitely determined, we believe this matter should be reconsidered. The development of the bus and its substitution for trolleys and trains may change the entire picture.

Respectfully submitted,

DIVISION OF ME TROPOLITAN PLANNING

By Frederic H. Fay, I ice Chairman and Acting Chairman.

Wilson Marsh. Richard K. Hale. Abraham C. Webber. William F. Rogers. John F. McDonald.

Henry I. Harriman, Director.