Los Angeles herald., 1906-08-02
HOUGHTON SURE
Of owl CARS
THINKS TROLLEY ROADS WILL
YIELD TO PUBLIC
Companies May Plead That Running
Power Houses All Night Is
Expensive--say There Is
Way Out

Councilman Houghton was so much
occupied yesterday that he could find
no time to gather his special "owl car
committee and talk to the attorneys for
the street railways. Houghton is chair
man of this special committee of the
council and Councilmen Healy and
Kern are associated with him. The
three will get together quickly, how
ever, TO push along the crusade for
after midnight cars.
Houghton is confident he will expert
ence little trouble in inducing the street
car companies to put on a late night
service If they do not agree to run all
night. The councilman from the Sixth
favors an all night service, but his COL
leagues on the committee declare they
will be satisfied if the street car COM
panies will only agree to extend the
time. to o'clock in the morning.
This committee will probably be met
by tales of the great expense of keeping
the Juice in the wires all night and the
street car companies will very probably
spring their joke about preferring to
furnish cabs for all who are compelled
to stay down town al night, rather than
incur the expense of operating the
cars" said a city official yesterday.
But If this committee is wise, and I
believe it is, it will not insist that the
street car companies run their plants
al lllSIJ IL lllGy uOll NdIl W. Leu
them put on motor cars or compressed
air cars. We will not care so much
what kind of cars thny are if we get it.
I'm few other cities the street rail-
way companies shut down their electric
systems at night and use hydraulic or
motor cars for the night system. They
can do the same in this city"
Owl Cars Certainty
(From the Los Angeles Record.)
That system of "owl cars will be
established on local trolley lines is now
regarded almost asSa certainty. The
statement was made Wednesday that
the Los Angeles Railway company
would take the matter up, actively
upon the return of II. e. Huntington
from San Francisco later in the week.
On request of petitioners the city
council will present the request for
"owl cars" to Attorney w. T.. Dunn,
chief counsel of the Los Angeles Rail
way company.
The date on which the "ow1'' service
will be inaugurated and the time at
which the last night cars will leave
the downtown starting places are mat
ters yet to be worked out.
About five years ago the last cars
left downtown at 11:30 p. m. Gradually
the time has been extended until now
the last cars leave at 1890 a. m. Prob
ably when the "owl cars are put on
there will be a service as late as 8
a. m.
1t is held by street car officials that
the "owP' service must grow with the
city's advance in population and bust
ness That Los Angeles is ready for
another step forward in the matter of
street car service is too well known to
admit of argument.
The custom of the trolley manage
ment has been to add late car service
as the late cars show that they can
pay cost of operation.
A number of lines are now in posi-
tion say street car officials, to pay for
extra late cars. But demand will fol- |
low from the patrons on all the lines
as soon as the first "owls'' are es-
tabished.
For this reason the street car .man-
agement may go slow. 1t is said that
the University line and the Main street
line will be among the first to be rec
ognized with "owls."