Monday, July 8, 1918

The Hudson Valley Railway’s request for a one-cent streetcar fare increase gets a chilly reception in the Saratoga Springs city council tonight, The Saratogian reports.

James McPhillips, an attorney for the Hudson Valley, tells council members that they won’t be voting to increase the fare themselves. The company simply needs them to pass a resolution waiving the provision of the street railway franchise for East Avenue that sets the fare at five cents. That will permit the state public service commission to review the railway’s request for an increase to six cents.

McPhillips has barely finished speaking when public works commissioner George W. Ainsworth abruptly moves to table his request.

“The only condition on which I will ever vote for that resolution is that the Hudson Valley Railway company agree to remove the snow from the tracks in the winter,” Ainsworth explains to a stunned McPhillips, “The tracks have been left in a dangerous condition and the railway company has done nothing about it.”

Mayor Harry E. Pettee backs Ainsworth in the confrontation. When McPhillips promises to send an engineer to confer with Ainsworth on snow removal, the commissioner says, “All right, he’ll find me here anytime. Ordinarily I’m a Christian, but I’ve changed since I’ve had jurisdiction over the Hudson Valley tracks.”

The council finally agrees to consider the Hudson Valley proposal at next week’s meeting. — Kevin Gilbert