Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1908-10-23
FAMOUS THREE
CENT FARE IN
JEOPARDY
CLEVELAND VOTERS TURN
DOWN CAR LINE FRANCHISE
Poor Service Blamed for Un-
popularity of Municipal Trac-
ton Company as Shown by
Result of Ballot

Try Morning journal Special Leased wlrel
Cleveland, Ohio, oct, 22--Thc fran
/ chise under which the Municipal
! Traction company is operating the To-
/ cal street railway lines on three
! cent fare basis was defeated By a
| majority of $40 in the referendum
vote hero today The total vote cast
1 was more than $4,000.
The returns are exclusive of ono
/ precinct which is still missing, but
cannot affect the result Early in the
/ evening the unofficial returns indicat-
| ed majority in favor OF the fran
chise and a celebration was begun
1 by it's supporters. Near midnight an
error was found which changed the
result
The defeat of the franchise may
mean that the railway property VIII
revert TO its original owners and that
the old rate of fare. over which strife
lasted years, will be resumed. The
only alternative will be for the city
council To grant new franchise.
which viii save the property to the
Municipal Traction company.
1t Is stated by unpreiudiced obsorv-
crs that the franchise was defeated
not so much upon the issue involved
as upon general dissatisfaction of the
public toward the service given by the
operating company.
The vote came as the climax to tho
general street railway contest which
has been waged here for years with
/ three cent fare and ultimate munici-
pal ownership as the goal of the city
administration. This was constantly
opposed by the old Cleveland Electric
company which had been charging n
i've cent fare During the progress
cf the strife now company, the For
est city Railway company, fostercd by
the city, began the operation OF cars
over few competing lines on three
cent fare basis. The settlement fn-
ally came under an agreement 10 con
Holidatc Tho two companies and lease
the property to an operating COM
pany. the Municipal Traction COM
pany. which agreed TO make tho gem
oral fare within the city OF Cleveland
three cents. Accordingly new com
panN the Cleveland Railway COM
pany, was organized TO take over tho
consolidated companies. Under the
agreement twenty-five year fran
chise was granted to the Cleveland
Railway company When the property
and franchise was leased to the Mu-
nicipal Traction company for 90 years
upon the condition that the operating
company protect the city and pay
upon the stock of thA Cleveland Rail-
way company, $30,000,000 corpora
tion, 1t has been during only the
past three months that tho operating
company has had "A surplus
To place the property upon pay
ing basis at the lower rate of fare
the service was greatly curtailed and
thls caused much antagonism TO the
new regime. During the first manth
the motormen and conductors declar-
cd a strike because the Municipal
ractlon company did not carry out u
contract the men had with the old
Cleveland Electric Railway company
for an Increase in wages. When the
striking carmen found that they we're
losing IN the fight they decided that
they would compel consideration from
the new company by taking advan-
tagc OF the state initiative and refer
endum law and call for a vote upon
the new franchise. The strike was
dropped ana the former employees III
rectcd their attention to the referen-
dum. THAT vote was held today.