Show MAY DECLINE Eli LINE FRANCHISE FR ANCH IS Short Line Is Reported Deported to Dislike Viaduct Ordinance Transit Gets Busy From present Indications It would ap appear appear appear pear that th of the franchise by bythe bythe bythe the council last lat Monday night for the Street viaduct did not nol close the Incident It Is now reported that General Manager W y H IL Bancroft of the Short Line to whom the franchise was referred for acceptance on behalf of the railroad has turned the measure down At the same time that is report was made public the Ogden Rapid Transit company begun began gan the laying of tracks on street the proposed loca location location location tion of ot the east approach of ot the structure structure structure ture Early yesterday morning the street car people had a gang of men at work on street They began at atWall atWall atWall Wall avenue and by last evening they I had the track a temporary one laid about the distance 01 ot the proposed east eastern eastern ern em approach leet feet During the aft afternoon afternoon afternoon a car of ot cross ties was shoved I in on the Wall Vall avenue spur indicating that they intended to construct the line further along street The franchise passed by b the city coun council council cil last Monday night provides that the city care for the roadway of or the viaduct and for the railway company to maintain the other half and the structural structural structural tural work It further furtner provides that in incase Incase incase case a franchise Is granted for a street streetcar car line to pass over the viaduct then it shall relieve the from main maintaining maintaining taming any part of ot the viaduct To all appearances at this time this is where the hitch comes in as far as the street railway people are concerned In a recent Interview C H Kircher secretary of or the company Is quoted as assaying assaying saying We are not at all opposed to the via viaduct viaduct viaduct duct but on oue e contrary we think It is only a matter of common Justice to the citizens of 01 this town that the railroads should be compelled to construct such a viaduct The many lives lost lose at this crossing have long ago cried out for this safety safet and now that the railroad com corn company company pany Itself cannot get along without a viaduct they are willing to build It on the condition that the city give them a warranty deed to West street To this the city has consented but the railroad company compan asks for tor still stillmore more First they wanted the city elt to bear the entire burden of or maintenance Finally they concluded they were willing to maintain half haU the surface and they hey may ma insist that half halt is the walks alks and therefore less expensive At all events the city Is undertaking to half of the for all al altime time to come railroad company now attempts to force any an street car or in interurban Interurban interurban company crossing the viaduct to perpetually maintain the 1 portion The only effect such require requirement requirement requirement ment could have would be to prevent the people from ever getting street car ser Ber service Bervice vice across the viaduct It would take for many years ears to come the entire gross Income of the street car traffic to pa paa pay paya a small part of the maintenance of ot the viaduct This company com pan already alread has a franchise on street and cannot sit alt silently by b and permit the railroad people to take away awa our rights and In addition relieve themselves of i their own burdens by shifting them upon our shoulders Besides as the ordinance now reads the railroad company will doubtless claim that as the Rapid Transit corn com company pany has already been granted the right to cross the viaduct they are immediate immediately ly relieved from maintaining it The city certainly cannot force the Rapid Transit company to pay for such main maintenance maintenance maintenance and It follows that the railroad company will settle this extra expense upon taxpayers Upon the whole It looks to me rae as being hasty legislation Undoubtedly we should have a via duct and have it at once It Is a much needed Improvement and everything should be done to encourage its construe construction tion It is not necessary however that the rights of 01 the citizens of Ogden should be curtailed The viaduct can be built without doing injustice to anyone |