The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-09-25
THE AUTO and THE RAILROAD.
an MILES AN HOUR PROMISED
Ry' r. j. GLIDDEN'S TRIP.
FROM New York 10 Philadelphia In One
Hour and TO the Pncific Coast I'm 80
Vours-PossIbiiitie shown by 1000
Nle Journey in an Auto on the Rails.

,,ne Journey in an Auto on the Rails.
Charles j. Glidden of Boston recently
ado AN automobile trip from Minneapolis
- vancouver which has set railway men
md automobile and locomotive manu-
fscturers all over the country wondering
n tha performance does not forecast an
.rtirelv new method Of transportation.
Nr Giidden's 1900 mile Journey was
made over the tracks of the 500 and Cana
oian Pacific Railroad in "a horse power
automobile which. save for the steel Hanged
rheels substituted for the ordinary wheels,
did nov differ in any particular from the
.-d,nary road machine. The automobile,
aosr,,te the fact that it is much lighter than
locomotive, appears to have travelled
lstter on the rails than on macadam
road.
The machine ran smoothly, not rocking
90 much as the ordinary day coach. Curves,
switches and frogs were all crossed without
Danger Of derailnent. and the only defect
which the experiment brought out was
nm occasional hot box, which was very
SIMILAR to those occurring on railway cars
while travelling at an equal speed.
That the automobile developed hot boxes
onoe In while is not to be wondered at
when it il explained that at times the car.
IN level stretches of track, attained speed
NJ more than 80 miles an hour. The trip
oave Mr. Glidden 80 much encouragement
that he is confident that still greater speed
can be attained by a railway auto and kept
IN for considerable length Of time.
with clear right of way and my present
comparatively low geared motor, he said,
u could have made an average speed of
s,tv miles an hour and carried gasolene
suficient for a 900 mile run without stop
ping, fabrication being supplied auto
matically.
NV outfit runs close to the ground,
making it, to all intents and purposes
light locomotive capable of high speed
under all conditions. 1t is admitted that
railway power is far ahead Of roadbed
and tracks on account of weight. But
weight is saved by the adoption of gaso-
lene moter in place Of locomotive, and
believe an automobile can be built which
will run on railroad tracks as fest as the
present foreign racing cars and will carry
a limited amount of freight or passengers
safely at a speed of ninety miles an hour.
That means Philadelphia to New York
IN one hour, and New York to the Pacific
Coast, allowing for slower speed in the
mountains, in fifty hours. stops being made
only at Chicago and Ogden.
Il am satisfied, too, that an automobile
can be run from Boston to Chicago on rails
at a speed of from rs to 100 miles an hour
without stop, making the distance in
twelve hours. Mechanical experts who 40
oompanied me on the trip agree with me
in this statement
Mr.. Glidden found that travelling on rails
produced a speed of fifteen more miles
an hour than would have been developed
BY the same amount Of power on good
macadam road. The consumption OF fuel
was similarly affected. On the rails q
gallon OF gasolene gave distance OF twenty
miles, while the same amount carried
lar only fifteen miles on the road.
The performance OF Mr.. Glidden's auto
locomotive has stirred up considerable
conjecture as to the possibility OF fange
tired gosolsne oars on railway tracks, and
\ Western firm Is already turning out light
runabouts With wheels fitted to run on
car rails These machines, although small
as regards horsepower. develop speed OF
thirty miles an hour and are being urged
upon railway people as cheap and trust
worthy cars for track inspection and
emergency trips. Their cost Is the same
as that OF the road runabout type from
which they were modelled.
1t has also been reported that President
Underwood Of the Erie Railroad had fitted
one OF the touring autos for use on the
tracks of his road and that when in use on
the line the machine Is to be put down on
the train sheet as a special.
As automobilists ponder over the posi-
Lihties OF the machines on rails, they declare
that an automobile could well take the place
OF a special locomotive for many emer-
genciee One man would take the place OF
an engineer and fireman, thereby saving
the pay OF one man, while the cost Of fuel
and wear and tear, both on machine and
roadbed, would be considerably less, were
the automobile used in place OF the loco
motive.
On the whole it is estimated that an auto
mobile used in place of a special locomotive
would effect a saving Ia expense OF at least
one-half Lighter rails would suffice for
sasolene cars, and as the expense OF laying
them and the cost of rolling stock would
he smaller than for q steam road 1t has
aven been declared that with gasolene
oars built for railroad travel new country
might he opened up where at present
even trolley line would fail because Of the
cost of maintenance.
And if every railroad had at least one
automobile equipped to run on the rails
it would be ready at moments notice,
10 carry physicians or division superinten-
dents to wreck, washout or any other
place along the line where trouble occurred.
These are but few ideas which have been
evolved as the result OF Mr. Gliddens trip.
Even the most optimistic of the auto
mobilists do not dare to hope that auto
mobiles will ever be allowed to run on
the tracks OF the railway trunk lines. That
could not be done without interfering with
the regular train service. But why, ask
the theorists, should not the automobilists
have their own tracks, to be used exclusively
by the Hanged tired automobiles?
road from New York to Philadelphia,
Tor instance, could be built at a cost much
ess than that Of regular railway line,
which would require heavy rails and bal
last. An elevated structure all the way.
thus avoiding all grade crossings, would
not require a tremendous outlay of capital.
and m such a road, which would be COW