Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1908-04-10
To be Continued.
A MILLION A MINUTE.
What II Sometimes Costs to Cut Down
a Train Schedule.

What It Sometimes Costs to Cut Down
Train Schedule.
To save a few minutes in the sched-
ule of it's trains a railroad is often
IcompelIed to spend millions Of dollars
in improvements. The experts figure
out that the New York Central and the
Pennsylvania are spending in their
big terminal improvements $1,0OO'OOo
for each minute saved.
According to Moody's Magazine. the
Pennsylvania in the last few years has
built bridges, bored through noun
tains, tunnelled rivers and actually
blown the heads off five or six noun
tains TO shorten its track and lower
it's grade.
The grand total Of expenditures OF
this one road for these time savings
improvements apprOXimates $22O'OoO'-
OO0. Between Pittsburg and Phlladel-
phia hardly a mile of the old track
remains, and the same can be said OF
the 1O5 mile track between Philadel-
phia and Harrisburg.
About $7O,OOO,OOO was spent to low
er the grades between the two former
cities. saving thereby about ninety
minutes in the regular running time,
averaging nearly 100000 for each
minute saved.
| This engineerong feat included the
dynamiting of half a dozen mountains,
the Strengthening of tracks and lower
ing of the grade over some 354 miles.
The filling Of ravines, digging new
channels for streams, bridging rivers
and tunnelling hills and small noun
tains were all included in this stupen-
dous and costly task.
Likewise between Philadelphia and
Harrisburg the time allowance Tor
express trains has been reduced from
three hours to one hour and fifty-five
minutes at a total cost of something
like $13,O00,O00.
| This section was the cheapest saw
| ing Of time on the whole system, aver
aging only 100000 e. minute. The
saving of three minutes to Trenton on
the other hand cost over half million
dollars. or about 100000 a minute.
| The economy of such huge expen-
ditures appears more in the freight
department than in the passenger
Heavy grades and numerous curves
are the bane of all good railroad man.
ayers.
| The famous Lucin cutoff on the
Southern Pacific is another instance
of costly engineering for the purpose
of saving minutes. The old time from
Ogden to Lucin has been cut from
six to four hours by building a great
highway across the Great Salt Lake
| The Lucin cutoff cost millions, and
was one of the engineering feats OF the
century. but it saved 120 minutes at an
lapproximate cost Of $4,000 for each
one. But the actual economy appears
again more in the freight department
than in the passenger.
BY the old route the freight trains
had some short grades to climb OF
ninety feet to the mile, and frequent
ly three and four powerful locomo-
tiyes had to haul the train up these
steep grades. Today a single engine
can take the train across the new
highway system at far less expendi-
ture of coal than several could do by
| the original route.
The same road is now engaged in
tunneling the SierraS at an approx
mate cost of $5.OOO.OOO and half as much
more in Strengthening the tracks west
Of New Orleans.
The Santa Fe has also been engaged
in this battle Of minutes. The Belen
cutoff in New Mexico will shorten the
line nearly seven miles between Text
co and Rio Puerco. but more import
ant than the time. it will avoid climb
ing some 1850 miles to cross the Ration
Mountain. The grade up the old line
is one of the steepest in the country
reaching in many places 1875 feet to the
mile.
The Missouri Pacific was originally
| Ot'N
could draw on the map, and included
in these numerous curves were steep
grades that made freight hauling an
expensive matter For five years now
the present managers have been pour
ing millions into the line to straighten
out the curves, cut down the grades
and shorten the route between import
ant points.
In this process the cost has often
averaged a million dollars a mile, and
for each minute gained a cool half mil
lion dollars had to be expended.
1t is estimated by railroad construc-
tors that nearly $75O.OO0,000 has been
spent in the last few years in tunnels
bridges. improved grades and cutoffs
for the purpose Of saving time and eX-