The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-11-21
BLOCK At GRAND CENTRAL.
,OfJDyT Ni,Bir rHg fRtyrH WiTH.
mr. THI utINO sWTTfH
abolished the 'i'ins switch iss, sWrds, and
Nave Ii-rn IN = ur's I,~r since trains IN
aud out Hours late some Abandoned
Went iia.k To ti,Ina switch last >isht.

VtNF bfffU y ~ FNff 'Nf EFttV' w
aud out Hours late some Abandoned
went Ila'k 10 ti,ina switch last >ish,.
blockade NJ tho Grand Central station
he. Lcou ,nu-,d ~. week hv an mort 10 do
away with tlr n,irg switch. Most travellers
oyer the roads using tho station hnyc noticed
vIcu tlcv alisn'cd from their trains that there
v1s no lucumurIy" ~ tho head just south
If tho tunnel the locomotives usually cn' loose
from m" incoming trains and putting on cN-
Ira speed run away from the trains and arc
switched 10 a track from witch they can
caIlv got 10 the turn'lblo. while a." trains
under their own momentum run into ~" train
he'd. In a station and yard 80 circnmscribod
as the Grand Central this living switch Is Of
The greatest moment II il not 80 much a time
aver n II l. an enabling mechanism" 20
Ia speak. making possible ~" handling of
the enormous business IL tho three railroads
using the station. Locomotives ARE not Ccol'd
M NJ the downtown ends ~ their trains while
other trains ON" in on the same track back
Of them To hold them there all the longer III"
locomotives ar" able to reach the tnrhtable
and get In readiness TO haul ont the cars or
to cross over TO the outgoing station and take
out other trains.
But the danger of the flying switch Is ap-
preCiated more by railroad men than by the
public apparently. For n long time the Grand
Central management has wished To do away
with it and has sought means 20 do 50. While
the diving switch has been oleratcd there for
nearly thirty years with marvellous success in
the way Of freedom from serious accidents. rail-
road men know how in other cities lust one
little error has thrown the free. swift going
locomotive into the train ahead Of II instead
Of on to its proper track. and that is a con-
,ingency which railroad general officers do
not like 10 contemplate. Sometimes II has
happened that through som" disarranremert
of the air brake system after the parting Of
the crciue from the train the brakes hay
been shut down hard and people ON tln train
have been shaken mp IN n way they did NOT
II was decided at las, to do away with the
flying switch and ith" new order went mt "i-
foot this week. tn" result was Immediate
trouble and congestion. delay, complaining
passengers and grumhling relatives and friends
for men and officers Of the station, who on
Monday worked all but fruitlrssly from early
morning TO midnight to stra!ghten out the
had to stralght"n out their own tnugles.
Even on sunday, the fast mail train Which
not get away. until after 8 o'clock, while
passcnscrs sat in the cars ana wondered on
Snnday evening the ,n n ~ ,ho chicago nca LIMITED nut
Of New York until passengers would have been
glad to get Other, transportation home on
a way that surprised them. \ train. on the
New Haven road which j. much used by Wall
Street men, beCauS" II gets them here IN time for
the opening market, was held up in the tunnel
50 long that the passengers did not get down
town until after :, O'clock, f. q" more Than
random would require too much space. a
party 81 dinner guests who were 10 take the
evening, were ov"rtak"n, AT the station by the
host, who was to take the COZ train. At $50
1 nsi, g%i t dITrrv was sol pG to Il and ddViE # s;odd ,hS toq IN
the station until : O'Clock. Coming back. the
three lefr New Roohell" at ,li;?j o'clock IN the
evening, on, a train due AT forty-,rcond street
az i2u2. The train stopped at l25th street for |
a time, but no information as 10 why II stopped
mel, II stopped again and remained standing
half an hour, and Then pulled, down nearly TO
the south end of IA" tunnel and once more cam"
To a stop. II was raining. buy after remain
ing on the train untll ten minutes OF o'clock
IRAN and up som" stairs to the street. The
visitors to New Rochelle were among them.
little relished by the railroad officers as by the
traveller A. the manaselnent' ann was
efforts to secure II practically blocked tho sta
ti"G Delays from q few minutes w To hali
favorabl. times OF the day, and III the afternoon
Il was ordered that III" ~ iny witch hc resumed
20 clear Ia" blockade The result was q better
ing of conditions very soon, bat not their en-
tire readlustmeilt and when the evening rush
was al il height th", mess at the station was
nearly a. illl a. ~ MONDAY 'NiIll'lE, |
On IA" New York Central road the 533 and
trains were abandoned. III" $40 and go
trains taking their passengers and getting ont
when th"v could. Tn" Harlem road abandoned
lis -ch"dul. altogether and ran out trains as
II could get car. On the New Haven road
the New Haven accommodation du" 10 lcav"
the Grand Central ~ : O'Clock had not been
made up a. : O'clock. 4 pcrkskill local on
the Central, whose first stop usually l. Arl~l"y,
got away on time. Tn" Central ordered all is
local trains. during the commuters rlsh, 10 !
make stops N all stations. whether scheduled
or not. 80 that commuters might get home ~
test opportunity offered Local trains were
from fifteen 10 forty minutes late IN getting ont
while III" through expresses Were usually got
ont with not much NOR" than fifteen minutes
DELAY, n the tim" was rDC,Ouod by the rail-
road managers one Western Cypress which
got away on time on Monday evening was a
of an hour lat" last evening. Incoming
trains on the Harlem road were n coIpl Of
hours late and on the other roads wrr" an
hour and a half or more late The Chicago
Limited. which was du" AZ go. got into the
station NJ $50. Among III" outgoing trains
were greatly delayed was the Adiron-
lack and Montreal Express. which due 10 leave
At $50 had not been mad" up an hour later
Than that
rh" reason th1, conditions were NOT i'm
proved To 4 further extent last evening was
hat the living switch had been restored ollv
'o the degree Of about Ono-ihird it, rorulIl
'nici"ncv II form"rl" CAV" access TO nine
'orn tracks. but VS. connected last night with
only five or ~iN.
When = - known that ~ trains ar" handled
Al the GRIND Central s'riion IN one day u
readily 10" seen wlHt an enormous dINi-
rul y l. presented when . chang" e system =
which "ufril~ u-HC'jC1ll" = second hand
inc of all rains that COM" in That j. practi-