The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1903-03-12

being that there are slight ridges along
the outside edges the wearing sur
face, which tend togkeep the wagon
wheels in the track The rails came
In foot lengths and were riveted to-
gether by means ofthree splice plates,
one bn the under side: Of the main web
of the channel, having three rivets for
each rail, countersunkso on the top sur,
face. The other two plates connect
the fanges, each with two rivets to
fange. The rails are spaced 5h feet
apart, center to center, and every 1872
feet longitddinalfy they are tied to-
gether with A-inch rods, bolted
through the outside fanges. The
foundation for the rails is IL inches
Of broken stone resting on the old paw
ing blocks replaced by the rails. The
under surfaces of the rails were coated
with tar and the rails then bedded on
thin layer of fine gravel.
In addition to this roadway in MUIR
ray street, which will be subjected to
the heaviest kind of traffic, it is pro-
posed to lay another stretch of the
steel road on Seventh avenue, in the
Sneighborhood Of One-hundred-and-
twentieth street. There the pavementis
an old naacadam, and there will neces-
sarily be notifications of the founda-
ton and the methods of construction
to suit the locality. A trial will also
be made on some dirt road, for the
advantages of the steel rail are con-
sidered to be as great for country
road as for city streets.
5 At. the present price of steel it is
stated that the rails can be furnished
for $4,000 per mile The cost of con-
struction would, of course, vary with
local conditions, and as the work SO
far done is experimental and work.
men had to be taught how best to per-
form the various operations Of laying
the track, no reliable estimate has
been made as to the total cost of lay.
ing this roadway. II. s. :. ri
A thorough series Of traction tests
are to be carried on in connection with
the roadway in Murray street, and the
other places where the rails are laid.
A dynamometer will be used and the
tractive force necessary to draw a
truck over the grranite paving will he
compared with that necessary to draw
it along the steel roadway. In addition
to this test, records have been made
showing the amount and weight of
traffic on the street previous to the
improvement, and further observa-
tions will be taken from time to time
to see whether there is cry increase.
in the traffic passing up this street.
Gen. Stone has made very exhaus-
tive study Of steel highways, and has
had several patents issued to him in
regard to constructive detaf1s These
he states are to be entirely; free to the
city of New York to make use of,
should the experiments prove as sue
cessful as IS hoped In rolling raids for
further experiments it is proposed to
make useof psspecial loll hayfs g Slight
projections on it's surface, perhaps an
inch square. The last time the rail
goes through the rolls this will be put
on and will leave corresponding de-
'Pressiens in- the, finished. rail..rIhe OBJ
ject of this it to reduce to minimum
tie danger from horses slipping, and
issap important cpnsidera ton. How
ever. it is claimed that tie use OF steel
rails will soSredpcs 1.-THE amount of
-tractive force required that under
ordinary conditions there will not be
much danger from that source. An.
other proposed modification is to have
the bead along the edges of the
!, tread, futed SO as to prevent wheels
from skidding as they leave the track.
.Aa@some eases it 7nightsalsos be, sdvanr
tageous to have the fanges Of the rail
faring outward from the web on both
sides, thus preventing wider base.
There have been few experiments
on small scale in this country with
steel trackways, conducted by the