The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-06-18
TRANSIT IS
MORE RAPID.
The Work on New
Line Begins to
Buzz.
FOUR OF THE
CARS SET up
Crossings Being Laid and Finish.
ing Touches Are Being Put
on Power Plant.

Work on every branch of the Rapid
ed. The car sheds, in which the big
forty-foot cars are being set up, re-
sound with the noise of the hammer,
while in the engine and boiler rooms,
machinists are engaged in putting on
the finishing touches The engines and
boilers are in place and the electric at
tachments are being connected with
the great dynamos. A number of al
terations had to be made to add GER
tain Improvements which were found
necessary in order to make the plant
complete in every detail, and this work
has delayed matters somewhat. The
heavy pipes over the artesan well just
sunk are being placed in position, and
it is hoped that some time during this
week the wheels can be turned.
The street work is progressing, and
two crossings have already been set in
place These are at the intersections of
Fort and Hotel and Nuuanu and Hotel
streets, the work being done at night,
in order that general traffic may not
be impeded. The trolley wires have
been strung on the Punahou section,
and next week work on the Palama sec
ton from Liliha street will be COM
menced. The company plans to open up
the Hotel street section first Rails
will be placed en- the new street open
ing between Alapai and Punchbowl,
through what is know as Printers lane.
The rails are already connected to
preserve the continuity of the electric
current. and no trouble is anticipated
from this source, once the cars are
started over the line. Residents of
Honolulu little realize what tremen-
dous amount of work has been done in
starting this enterprise, and have lit
tie knowledge of the expensive plant
of machinery which has been installed
in the big, long brick buildings which
occupy much of the ground between
Young, Alapai and Beretania streets.
Inside will be found already erected
one of the finest electric power plants
in the United States. The great dyna-
mos are of the finest patterns obtain
able while the boilers represent the fin
est type of mechanical construction.
The company has sunk an artesian
we'll by which it can obtain at least
$500, 900 gallons of water per day.
In the car sheds workmen have set
up four out of the eight forty-foot
cars which will be started. These are
forty feet long, tubular in shape. hav-
ing a seating capacity of forty persons
each. The cars have vestibule plat
forms which are provided with power
full Westinghouse motors. The interior
of the cars appears somewhat odd, on
account of the tubular shape. By this
means, however, the cars can be made
either open or closed, within the space
of five minutes. The seats are arranged
like those of a railroad car The win
dows are curved to accord with the
bulge of the side of the car. These can
be pushed up until they lay in hori-
zontal position along the ceiling of the
car. If necessary the wood sill from
the lower part of the window to the
floor can also be raised in the same
manner in slots arranged just beneath
those for the windows. BY this means
the whole car, by sections. can be
thrown open. Side rails extend the
length of the car on each side
Electric push bells connecting with
an alarm bell on the motorman's plat
form, are placed just above each seat,
doing away with the straps and cords
now used in the present horsecar sys-
tenn. Each car will be provided
on the interior with three clusters of
electric lights Single lights are also
placed just above the vestibule en-
frances. Electric headlights, as well as
electric direction globes, will be at
tached to the front ends.
There are also two large trolley-party
cars of the finest make, and supplied
with all the comforts of parlor cars. A
number of smaller cars are still encased
in the boxes in which they arrived
from the manufacturers. These will
be set up as soon as the large cars are
out of the way.