The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-09-01
YEARLY LOSS sos, 900, 900.
WastefuI Use of Freight Equipment in
United States.

According to calculations made by
the Wall Street Journal, there is a
ment by the railroads of the country.
| 1t computes that the supply might be
reduced by 33 per cent and no incon-
venience be put upon anybody. The
| loss through extravaganza, in inter-
est, depreciation, etc, it estimates at
$63,00O,0O0 a year. In discussing this
matter 1t says:
I'm 1903 the interstate commerce
commission reported the railway
freight car equipment as 1,635,782
cars. To this there should be added
about $4,000 for the private cars,
bringing the total up to $1,738,782.
The ton-miles made were 173, 222, 27S,-
993. Each freight car therefore,
moved 1881 ton-miles. The average
capacity of all freight cars owned by
railroads in 1902 was twenty-eight
tons. For 1903 we roughly estimate
it at thirty tons. If the loaded freight
cars were fully loaded they made on
this basis 1921 miles per year. But
normally about one-thfrd of car mile
age is empty, so to make these ton
miles our average car should have
travelled. 1886 miles o.
considerable freight movement oc-
ours on Sundays as we'll as week days.
If for compromise we assume freight
cars moved $50 days in the year, we
shall be safe. That would mean that
our average car moved but II. miles
per day. The average rate of freight
try today is probably not far from
ten miles per hour; therefore. our
freight car was moving but IL hours
per day.
I'm this reasoning we have assumed
that loaded cars were loaded to their
full capacity, which is not correct
Since the bulk freight cars are includ-
ed, we shall be safe in assuming that
the loaded cars were loaded to two
thirds of their capacity.
eff this is SO, our average car was
moving is hours out of every TWEEN
ty-four hours per day. The average
haul in 1903 was about 1913 miles,
therefore if each loaded car under a
two-thirds load moved 4,9S6 miles.
each car carried, all told, 37.4 differ
ent loads during the year. A day and
a half for loading and a day and
half for unloading would have cost 112
days. 1t is purely an assumption that
such time was taken, but in view of
the fact that all classes of cars are
tank cars, as well as the package
freight cars, this does not seem an I'M
reasonably short allowance. If 1.8
hours each day was consumed in
movement during the $50 days of the
year when movement was possible, the
result would be 576 hours in move
ment. AS a great deal of movement
is in the night, it may perhaps be as
Sumed that for fifteen hours each day
our car can be moving. Five hundred
and seventy-six hours reduced to fif-
teen-hour days gives 1874 days, or, say,
forty days for the time consumed in
movement.
zone hundred and twelve days for
loading and discharging and forty
days for movement give a total of
1852 days for actual use. If we call
this $50 days, we have kept our car
in actual use only one-half of the
time. The other half of the time we
have kept it in our classification yards
and it has been idle. It has been idle,
because, owing to absence of an equip
ment pooling arrangement, it is not
free to move over the country with
the progress of the seasons. 1t is a
part of the excessive margin of equip
ment which each railroad must carry
to meet the fluctuations of business
on it's particular lines. If we give
over our average freight car one-half
of the remaining $50 days of the year
to the yardmaster, we still have an
unaccounted one-fourth of the year.
"It would be most conservative to
say that we could reduce our freight
equipment by 33 per cent and put no
inconvenience upon anyone On a
total of 1,73s,7S2 cars at an average
valuation of only $500, this would
mean saving of $2S9,797,O 900. As
Stunning a f1fteen-year life, annual
maintenance at $50 per car and per
cent money, there would be a saving
in interest. depreciation and mainte-
nance of nearly SEA. 5000 900 per year.
TS If worth while 7''