The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1890-03-16
ELECTRIC TRACTION.
The Jersey City and Bergen
Railroad Company
Contracts for
Motors.
EXPERIMENTS ON THE HILL.
4 Much Needed Improvement Which
Will Benefit the City.


Il was ascertained last nighs that fh
Jersey City and BergenR Railroad Company
has taken decisive step towards the ss-
adjustment Of an electric motor service
on its car Hnes in this city, 4 CONTRACT
has already been drawn between the
company and the Jersey City Electric
Light Company, by which the latter
company IS to supply it with its power.
and the signatures ofthe parties to ID vii
be attached within few days
The company viii first Introduce its
electric motors in The cars from Bruins
wick street to the car stables that i the
cars oyer that stretch Of territory win bs
run bEit. It will be experimental but on
large scale.
The company, as has already been re-
ported in the Sunday or daily issues Of
IKE News, has long been considering the
advlsahlzlfy Of moving its cars by cleo
tr1cify. A conclusion as to the best
method Of applying the electricity
Is the point that has chiefly
exercised its officials. Il has been a
propelIing the cars BY power each carries
with il, or carry the power TO the cars
through the medium Of overhead wires.
Il has been assumed that the ears could
not be driven up the hill sides-as the
Montgomery street and the Newark ave
nue. hills-by storage batteries. and that
il would be necessary to use the overhead
wire system at such points.
OVERHEAD WIRES
the company has been canTassinQ the
project Of running their cars by storage
batteries On the level surfaces and Of
having the ovsEhead wire power applied
at the foot Of the Hill 10 CARY them up
fine Hill
The fact that the company intends to
make its first applications Of the power
on the Montgomery street and Hill iz1<li-
Gates therefore that the first trial is 70 be
with overhead wires
The overhead wire system IS cheaper
than the storage battery system, and the
success Of the Newark roads Ia inducing
the city authorities there 20 permit the
erection Of overhead wires IN all tha
streets there, may encourage orr local
company TO make an effort 70 use the
system ID all parts OF this city
The application Of the company 70 the
Board Of Aldermen far permission TO use
electricity came before the Board an
September "A, aud occasiDued noDsideKa
Bile discussion. Alderman PriEEe was
very anxious to know whether the COM
Dany proposed 10 use the AuFerheadn or
storage system Alderman 0sAeil1 said
that ne supposed That the company would
use whichever system suited it best The
overhead system was in vogue in Boston
aud other cities he said and he cid not see
why Il should not be used anz Jersey City
PROTEST AGAINST OVERHEAD WIRES
Alderman @ Rourke protested ega5 nst
the nse Of the over cad systefn zetI zsg
that il was dangerous both to life an1
property
There was more discussion Of this ma
ture, but the ortlinance was finally
adopted by a vote of to 4
IL 4<.x.44
sidered at the time to be a great benefit
for the city It was said that ii would
save from five to eight minutes In the
running, and WAS much cleaner than
the horses. President Thurston, of the
JERSEY City and Bergen Railroad Com
pany, said that the maximum speed for
which bids had been received was twelve
miles an hour, but that the speed could
be increased TO twenty miles If the COM
pany chose to adopt it,