The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-12-02
Street Railway Problems.

those whose companies operate in the
larger Cities are said to view the recent
advances In wages by the railroads with
some degree of nervousness. Every day
brings its report of new, railroads coming
into line and further advances granted
to employees At the present rate it will
not be long before every railroad in the
country will have shown something of an
increase in the wage scale, and then 1t
is feared similar wave will sweep over
the street railways. Managers are ask
ing themselves whether some line in a
large center will start such a movement
or whether the disposition will be to wait
for the men to ask an advance, on the
argument that If the railroads can afford
to raise the wages of employees, the street
railways can do the same. -. An 4
There is some ground for the contention
of the street railway managers, that the
pected to influence them It5does not fol-
low that, because the railroads grant in
creases, the street railways can afford to
follow with correspondence large adj
vances, however difficult it might be to
make out an argument along this line that
would be convincing to the men.
There is this important difference, that,
while the; railroads may advance freight
rates to Offset an advance in wages, the
street railways have, no such resource,
and, having granted an increase, must see
a falling off in earnings, or, make up the
difference by greater economy Of opera
ton. It is difficult materially to increase
the number of passengers carried, and
too close economy in operation results in
poor service and brings down the exc
Grafton of the public. -
There are. many factors entering into
the matter of street railway operation. or
bearing in some way upon street railway
earnings, that the public scarcely appre-
ciates in full. To just what extent the
bicycle injured the business Of the street
railways it would be difficult to deter
mine, but it has been asserted that the
bankruptcy Of the Denver street railway
company was due in part to decreased
earnings following the more general use
of the bicycle in that city. '=~ ''.''5.-
| Now it is the automobile that threatens
street railway earnings. There are some
where between $4,000 and $4,000 street
railway cars in the United States. Two
years ago there were about LOO automo-
biles in the country. To-day there are
said to be $4,000 automobiles in use in
the country, and this is probably not an
overestimate, If the increase in the num-
Der in Minneapolis in the past two years
is a fair basis for the increase in the
country at large. At this rate there will
soon be as many automobiles as street
cars. = 4l=< >. .=-.. .-..-..- :, l. -
The automobile is yet too expensive a
machine to enter much into competition
with the street railways, and a majority
of those who ride in autom obiles would
not be regular patrons of the street cars
under old conditions. But the automobile
Is being modified and cheapened from
time to time and the same ingenuity that
finally produced a serviceable bicycle to
sell at less than one-f1fth the original cost
Of a good wheel, may yet bring the cost
of a serviceable automobile SO low that
its use will not be confined to the few, but
it may come within the reach of the man
of very moderate income.