Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-04
SAYS ACCIDENTS
ARE AvOIDABLE
APPALLING LOSS OF LIFE
UNNECESSARY
WRITER DECLARES WRECKS GAN
BE MADE IMPOSSIBLE
II Railroads VIII Adopt Automatic
Signals and Devices Chances of
Collision May BE Reduced
TO Vanishing Point
By WILLIAM p. SMITH


Within the past few years there have
been many fearful wrecks on the rail-
roads, causing great loss of life and
property; many of these have been
head-on or rear-end collisions, which
could and should have been prevented
by the modern automatic block system.
The superintendent of telegraph and
signals of the Chicago, st. Paul, Min
neapolis 6 Omaha railway gives the
following description of this up-to-
date method of protecting trains.
The automatic block signal, as used
on this road, is of the semaphore type
and is electrically operated. The pres
ence Of a train in one block automati-
cally displays a stop signal on the
block signal 4 its rear and caution"
signal in the next block signal farther
in the rear; thus an approaching train
meets with both caution" and a
"stop" signal before it reaches the
block that is occupied. This applies to
trains running In one direction only
on the same track. Where trains are
run in opposite directions on the same
track, the presence of train in a
block automatically sets signals to q
stop position both in its front and
rear. The automatic block signals are
coming into general use, and being
automatic they eliminate to great
extent the human factor of careless
ness and forgetfulness which are ever
liable TO arise in connection with a
manually operated signal
Since the installation of block sig
nails on this road some ten years ago,
not a single passenger has been killed
in train accidents.
Wrecks Are Now Avoided
For several years the Cincinnati
Southern division of the Queen Cres-
cent route has been equipped with
automatic signals, of which the Rail-
way Age gives the following descrip-
tion:
"The Cincinnati Southern is the busi-
est portion of the line and extends
from the city of that name to Chatta-
nooga, Tenn, a distance of 1886 miles,
nearly all of which is single track, with
frequent curves of 6 degrees; with
gradients reaching in many places 20
feet to the mile; nevertheless this line
earned at the rate of more than $40 900
per mile In the year ending June 30
1904 A question arises as to how this
is possible. The answer is simple and
should be known by every railway
operating officer in the United States
signals.
up to the year 1889 there were long
periods when collisions occurred every
day, and in one month of thirty days
there Is a record Of thirty-one collis-
ions. Yet today they are almost un-
heard Of though the traffic amounts to
thirty trains each way every twenty
four hours; although trains are run
with remarkable regularity, wrecks are
scarcely known and collisions have
practically disappeared as class of
accident. The reason for this still is;
Signals. The most difficult part of the
line is the Chattanooga division from
Somerset southwark to Chattanooga,
a distance of III miles, which embraces
nearly 40 per cent of curvature and AZ
per cent of bridges and tunnels. AS one
officer expressed it, We always ran
out, either against a mountain with
2-nile tunnel or a 500-foot precipice
and a. million dollar bridge From an
engineering standpoint the line is mag
nificent, and would be difficult to i'm
prove except at very great cost.
"A peculiar arrangement exists in
the neighborhood of Hartman June
tion, where the double track merges
into single track through tunnels 25
and 26, and again over the Emory
river bridge. AT all four of the re-
sulting junction points the traffic over
the single track is controlled by auto
matte block signals absolutely ire
spective of train rights and entirely
without train orders;. In other words.
first come, first served.
"The automatic signals are used both
for blocking trains and for showing the
position of the switches. These signals
are controlled by track circuits, SO that
signals cannot resume proceed posi-
tion until the switch is set and locked
for the desired route, and also until the
track on the block in advance is clear.
On difficult or dangerous parts of the
line, where watchmen are maintained,
plugs governing the signal circuits are
placed in each watchman'S Shanty for
use in case the track should be OBJ
structed by falling rock or a slide. This
has proved of great value in many in
stances. 1t is not an exaggeration to
say that for safety of method, COM
blinded with simplicity of operation, the
33e miles from Cincinnati to Chattanoo-
ga is not equaled or even approached
on any other railway in the United
States, and probably not in the world.
1t is an object lesson for those who
wish to know, as well as for those who
ought to know, what can and should be
accomplished upon the railways of the
United States toward securing the safe
ty of their trains.''
However, many of the principal rail-
roads have for several years been equip
ping their lines with automatic block
signals. Notable among these is the
Pennsylvania railroad with It's four
tracks.
This system of signaling and protect
ing trains is now used on about 5000
miles of track, leaving nearly 100000
miles yet unprovided for.
The interstate commerce commission
reports that thirty roads of consider
able length and Importance have not
yet adopted block signals of any kind.
Almost all of the train wrecks have
occurred under an antiquated system
or where no block signals were used,
some of them being operated by very
young and inexperienced men, working
long hours.
Surprise Signal Tests
Surprise signal tests have been made
on some OF the railroads using the auto
matte system, and 1t has been shown
by these tests that engineers attend
strictly to business and do their part
well. when an engineer knows that
running stop signal means instant
and permanent dismissal he will OBJ
serve the signal. This is proved by a
series of tests made by the Chicago a.
Northwestern in 1906, when not single
failure to obey signals was detected
in total of over 1000 instances coming
under observation. The PENNSYLVANIA
railroad has made surprise signal tests
within the past few months, involving
signals affecting 2252 trains 81 per cent
of the enginemen coplied with the rules.
The per cent who were marked de-
fcient brought their trains to a stop,
but not until after passing the signal
Commissioners Favor APPLIANCE
1.-THE following resolutions regarding
safety appliances were passed by the