, 1907-01-23
MAY AFFECT
THE TERMIN|
BUILDING OF ATHOL HILL CUT,
OFF SETS PASSENGER TRAIN
MEN To DISCUSSING.
Possibility of Changing North Platte.
Cheyenne District &c Laramie TAX
ing Hold of Men Who Have Homes
at Cheyenne-Distance Figured to
Favor the Changes.

Since the announcement was made
that the Union Pacific would build a
cutoff ilom Carr to Burie, west of
Cheyenne, thus building ~ line practi.
cally around that city, there have
from time to time come sumises that
the building of the cutoff wo I'D result
in the reorganization of the different
districts of the Wyoming and Colorado
divisions, the new line making the
Colorado division more than ever a
part of the western division of the
Union Pacific system. 1t was asserted
at the time the contract was awarded
a few days ago that a new freight dis
trict would be formed between Denver
and Laramie, at least for through
trains from the Kansas City terminal
of the Union Pacific, n that there
might be a shifting of the passenger
district terminal for the Colorado-Wy.
oming division from Cheyenne to Lar.
annie. 1t was stated by railroad men
at the time the possibility of two pas,
senger trains and perhaps three com.
ing direct with crews from Denver
to Laramie. The distance between the
two points is about equal to the aver,
age passenger district, and the strateg.
ical location of Laramie on the map of
the road is in favor OF such a culmi-
nation of figuring.
Almost Equal Distance.
Now railroad men, and particularly
passenger conductors and brakemen,
are figuring on the possibility, which,
in the minds of some OF them, is even
more than a mere possibility. of a
change of the passenger districts of
the Wyoming division to include Lara
ME as one of the termini. 1t is point
ed out that the distance between North
Platte, the present eastern. terminus
of the Wyoming division n the divis-
ional terminal for the passenger runs
from Omaha and Cheyenne, and Lara.
ME is 1924 miles and between Lara.
ME and Green River is 250.9 miles.
The North Platte-Laramie district
would be about thirty miles longer
than the Laramie-Green River district,
but the distance can be covered in
about the same time or less and the
run is less fatiguing to the men.
Cheyenne Men Uneasy.
This matter has reached the discus
sion point among the men in this SER
vice who have homes at Cheyenne, and
they are not feeling the best in the
world about the matter. Some of the
passenger men, on the other hand, and
they seem to be in the majority, are
favoring the change, IS it would ease
their work to some extent and divide
it with the North Platte-Cheyenne men,
who have a very short and not a diff
cult run. Those owning homes in Chey-
enne are making considerable stir in
the matter and are met by argument
from the other side that seems to have
weight.
Road Building Means Business
One thing is certain. The spending
of nearly a half a million dollars in
the building of the cutoff arounu Athol
hill is not mere sport on the part of the
management of the system. Railroad
builders are not spending their mon
ey to make the road look straight on
the maps. The new line is a business
proposition, the management figuring
on a return of the cost of construction
in the easier and better handling of
trains.