The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1889-09-06
THE ELECTRIC CARS.
REASON WHY THE SERVICE Is SO
POOR.

No., of the Armatures OF the Cars burner
out-DimcuIiy Of Having Them He
,,i.red-I,effer service Promised ~ soon
a. po-sibIe-LocaI News in General.
There is nothing which has created
more unfayorable criticism than the
poor service furnished the people OF
/ Richmond by the Union Passenger
Railway Company, popularity known d.
the electric line.
The TINES last Wednesday morning,
| in an interview with Captain Andrew
Pizzini. the secretary and treasurer on
the company. gave the report OF the
work done by the company.
which showed that the aver
ace rim Of cars per day during the
month Of August was eighteen; mum
Der # round trips daily. 24O; number Oh
passengers carried. 2O4, 747.
Yesterday The TINES reporter visited
the car sheds and had conversation
with Mr. F. J. Farrell, the superniend-
ent Of the line He very obliglngly
showed the reporter all through the
sheds and workshops. The sheds were
filed with cars.
"How mary cars have you! was
asked.
The original number was forty. Ten
of these are window cars TO side.
twenty are six-window cars, seating
thirty people, and ten summer, or open
cars
How il it that they are not on the
track givisg accommodation to the
people 2
because they are disabled. Look
here: come with me- The reporter
went with him. and was shown twenty
Il sabled cars. They had no machinery
1T all. Three more cars are at the
Richmond Locomotive and Machine
Works being repaired and reprinted.
why cannot YOU supply these cars
with machinery -
Because the armature. were burnt
and worn out. and necessitatod rewiud-
ing. There are fifty-twO pounds OF
wire to be wrapped on these armatures,
aud IL can only be done by those who
understand the business. We sent
forty armatures to the Sprague Com
pany IN New York. and they returned
them because they were so full OF
worl; that they could not wrap them by
the time we wanted them.
Where are you doing that work
now"
Part OF it at the power house, where
men have been employed for the pur
pose. part at the shops Of IraylOr *
Co. Of this city, and a few of the anna
lures have been sent 10 Cleveland. Ohio. /
/. fattr.
armalures. forty are needed, and we
cannot equip the cars until they are
completed.
How many cars have you on the
road to-day;
We have eleven on the main line. /
two running from Cary and Reservoir, /
and one each on Seventeenth street aud /
Fifth street, mskiug a total OF fifteen
in all. We expect 10 have two more /
equipped for service to morrow. To- /
day.
What does it cost you day for your F,
IN tive power
I'VE pay the Virginia Electric Light /
and Power Company fifty dollars a day. I
II We ran thirty. thirty five or forty /.
cars a day 10 would not cost us any more F.
for power. We have run as low as nine /
ears bat the price for power does 'nt /
change. /, stauds at iifty dollars.
Isn't the road making money :
1T ought 70. but can't make much .
with So few ears running. Mr. Farrell f
then showed the reporter a rough bal
ance sheet for the mOnii of August.
The receipts were little over SlO.eOc.
The expenses including wages, salaries.
m0tiye-p1Ner. ROTkmen 40 the stables
and shop there, repairs at the car
works. interest. discount. old debts.
&C.. left a balance earned Of little
over $500 The Old debts amounted TO
about the same amount-S3OO.
Mr.. Farrell further said that il cost
500 TO rewind AN armature. There
was al work all the time IN the shops
at the sheds over thirty men. lie
showed the reporter over forty ma
chimes which were only awaiting the
armatures To be plscsd ID them. aud
large force of men at work on the yarl-
Gus points Of the electrical machinery.
when do you expect 70 improve the
service. put on more cars. and stop re-
quiring people to wait from half to
one hour for a carr
rh-4t w IT. as BUM 90 80 tit'
machinery. lis far more profitable 10
run twenty five cars than tn run fifteen.
work night and day. and do the very
best that I can with the facilities
placed 40 my command.
"ilOw about the cars for the Main
street electric lines -
We have all of the summer cars
ten IA number. Four are in the sheds
and the other six at Reservoir Park.
They are awaiting equipment with the
machinery.
THE closed cars. what about them;
Ten have already been manuiac-
turcd by the Richmond Locomotive
and Machine Works. They are now
being painted and finished up.
Here Mr. Farrell was called off to at
tend 70 some matters of business and
Z la. l.