This episode is from the WNYC archives. It may contain language which is no longer politically or socially appropriate.

O. Roy Chalk, who took over the Washington, D.C., transit system a year earlier, talks about why he wants to buy New York City's Transit System.

Jay Nelson Tuck moderates the panel discussion. Bill Larkin, of the Fordham Student Bar Association, and Bernie Lufkowitz, of City College, question Chalk.

Chalk: There are many areas for improvement, many areas that haven't been explored. Start with the human element: make employees happy by showing an interest in their welfare. Convince the public to use public transit. The transit system in Washington has been improved by painting buses in pastels and white to reflect sunlight, making it safer late at night. Cost of ride for school children. Children going to school should be subsidized, but not by the transit system. Any increase in fares requires a hearing. Assurance the system wouldn't be broken up and sold off. The system has been operating under "inherent handicaps." No plan to reduce the number of employees. The city must maintain a transit police force and allow for reduced fare for children. Suggested 5 cent increase. The public isn't getting a good 15 cents worth of service currently. The city would be better off allowing freedom of enterprise.

Audio courtesy of the NYC Municipal Archives WNYC Collection

WNYC archives id: 71610
Municipal archives id: LT8326