The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-10-04
STREET RAILWAYS IN EUROPE.
Municipal w. Private Ownershtp a.
witaessed Abroad.

Munietpal w. Private OWnerehtp -
witaessed Abroad.
From Municipal Affairs.
We look this country over in vain to nrd
. single example OF municipal ownership
and operation Of street Railways In Car
ada there Is one example, found in Port
Arthur. TOWN Of 27oo inhabitants, which
owns an eight-m mile line on<whish four
cars are operated In Germany. the worlds
center OF advanced soctai.st4c thought.
thEe are but four cases. and these among
the smaller towns, such cities as Berlin
Hanover and Hamburg being served BY
private conpanseAL In Switzerland there
are three CASES Of operation By cartons. In
France. Austria, Hungary. Belgium, Italy.
Russia. Spain and Holland c!.ies have ap-
parenfly no intention Of assuming OPP
Grating responsibilities in this direction
In Great Britain there are six cases OF
municipal ownership and operation OF
-uamwzys," rs against about Us privately
controlled. One OF these six cases, that in
the city of Glasgow, Is worthy Of special
study. In 1894. the corporation Of GiaEg7w
obtained from parliament the powers
necessary to take over'' the lines Of
private trsInway company, whose twenty
cne-yezr rights were then expiring. and
TO operate these lines On It's own account
The experience 50 far gained Cup 10 May
81. 1870. has covered q period OF two
years and eleven months, and is for horse
operation only
The Glasgow tramway system Ia an ex-
alnpie-ali too rare-of q municipal enter.
prise managed with honesty. skill and in
telligenee. and strictly In the interests OF
the public, 50 far as those interests are
Understood by the public itself The sched-
uie OF fares in Glasgow is on basis Of dis
lance Travelled. the highest fare being Sd
Is cents1 for maximum ride of about SIX
miles. Until the purchase by the city OF
the old tramway system, the minimum
fares were two cents for distance rf
about one mile, but the municipality has
reduced this minimum fare TO / cent per
one half mile. This action has beea quite
generally misunderstood In this Country
being taken by many 10 be an actual re-
ductIon OF fares to one-helf former rates.
Let lis look a little more closely into
this matter OF fares The city Of Glasgow,
with It's suburbs, covers an area OF nearly
tweny-three square miles, and Its popuia-
ton contained therein is about 500 900,
the population density being. therefore,
about $500 per square mile. The two
American cities corresponding most Close
ly 10 Glasgow in population are Brooklyn.
n. Y. and Boston, Mass. The former. in
urbe within scent fare limit. contained
about 100000 inhabitants by the census Of
1880. distributed over al area of about
forty square miles, and having, there
fore a population density Of about 90 e05
per square mile; aud the latter, with its
immediate suburbs. contains about 100 600
Inhabitants distributed over an area o.
122 square miles. and having. therefore a
population density Of 500 per square mile.
Now the average fare paid by tie pas
sengers on the Glasgow tramway system
was. in lis lat financial year ending May
81. 1897. LIS cents. From this figure and
In the light OF the previous statement re-
esrdiEg fare schedules in Glasgow IL
would appear that the average distance
Travelled per passenger Is somewhat less
than one mile. and examination o, tie
map OF Glasgow shows that the various
1ramwey lines. measured from the central
business distrlc. from which they radiate,
are from TWO to THREE miles only in length.
II Is evident that the Glasgow citizen is a
Short distance rider" by necessity