COMPARATIVE DIAGRAM SHOWING
TOTAL TONNAGE, OVER AND UNDER
THE ALLEGHENY RIVER BRIDGES.
to accompany report of
Col. Thomas W. Symons.
Frederick Law Olmsted.
Before referring to the statistics in regard to traffic over these bridges we wish to point out that much the greater part of it is of a kind daily and intimately affecting the business and the convenience of a large population. Any delay affecting the transportation of passengers over any of these bridges, and any delay or any increase of cost in teaming package freight and supplies from freight stations and warehouses and stores on one side of the river to their destination on the other side, would be felt very sharply by a considerable fraction of the manufacturers, merchants and other citizens of Pittsburgh. The inconvenience arising from any interference with traffic of this class would clearly be greater in proportion to the volume and value of the traffic than in the case of the slower moving river traffic. Ten minutes' delay to people in reaching their offices or an hour's delay beyond the expected time in the delivering of household food supplies or express packages, etc., for a number of families, is a much more serious matter than a corresponding or even a greater delay in the delivery of a barge-load of gravel or coal, even though the barge-load were of equal value with the delayed lot of supplies.
Details in regard to the volume of traffic over the bridges and estimates of the value of the goods transported and the equipment engaged in the traffic are given in Appendix I and are summarized in graphical form in Diagrams 1, 2 and 3. The amount and importance of bridge traffic may be summarized by stating that there passes over the existing Allegheny River bridges each year about 108,000,000 tons of traffic roughly valued at $9,350,000,000; and about 62,700,000 human beings, passengers and pedestrians.
$9,366,973,935
OVER BRIDGES
$105,000,000
UNDER
BRIDGES
COMPARATIVE DIAGRAM SHOWING
TOTAL VALUE OF TRAFFIC OVER
AND UNDER THE ALLEGHENY RIVER
BRIDGES.
to accompany report of
Col. Thomas W. Symons.
Frederick Law Olmsted.
(b) River Traffic.—The data in regard to existing navigation under the Allegheny bridges consist of detailed reports of vessels and cargoes passing Dam No. 1 and counts of the number of vessels passing under the several bridges during representative periods of from one to two months in 1909. From these data we have estimated the annual river traffic under each of the bridges, and very roughly, its value.[32] These amounts are shown graphically in comparison with the corresponding figures for traffic over the bridges in Diagrams 1, 2 and 3. To briefly summarize, it may be stated that the river traffic of the Allegheny River in one year amounts in the aggregate to about 3,500,000 tons, including all freight carriers and power boats, roughly valued at about $105,000,000; and about 35,000 human beings, passengers by boat.
It seems well here to note that the water-borne traffic of the Allegheny River has been steadily decreasing for many years and is now but a small portion of that which once existed. That this decline in river traffic is not due to the interference of the bridges is shown by the statement that the navigation facilities are better than ever before. It is due to the lack of modern terminal facilities, boats and methods of carrying on business.