The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1910-03-28
PREVENTING RAILROAD ACCIDENTS

Out of the S35 devices offered. some
500 have been examined, and only
twenty-four We're possessed of sufil-
cient merit To warrant the recon-
mendation that further effort he
made to perfect them. OF the dozens
of signalling devices offered only
three are now being tried out. the
law having provided that all trials
shall be without cost to the govern
mcnt.
The only device that has proved
satisfactory as Yet Is the Roweil-Pot-
ter system This consists of an au-
tomato block system coupled with
an automatic stop. The power which
actuates the machinery controlling
the signals and the stops is derived
from the passage Of train wheels
over treadle on the track. by a
system of levers this winds up num-
! Der of heavy coil springs !, The pas
sage of two cars and an engine will
wind up the mechanism sufficiently
/ to set the signals and the automatic
! stop There was danger that in the
passing of the many wheels of a long
| train the springs might be wound too
/ tight, and to overcome this an auto
matte eut-out and cut-in was INSTALL
ed. When wound up to a certain
! point the winding mechanism is auto
/ matically cut out to be thrown In
gear again when certain degree of
! looseness is reached, this operation
also being automatic.
The automatic stop Is so arranged
that whenever the signals call for
3the stopping of train II must stop.
There is lever reaching up from
the track which engages another lever
on one of the axleS of the tender.
/ When the signals call for a stop this
lever is up. and strikes the one on
the tender. thus throwing on the air
brakes and enforcing the stop order
Ii would be too technical to enter a
full description OF the signals, but II
remains only to be said that the sis
nails are so arranged that II there is
anything wrong with them their po-
sition goes to stop" This. of course,
Is the prime essential of successful
block signal system. An open circuit
system, when out of order. would
show clear track, but the closed
circuit system warns the engineman
of its own defects as well as of other
troubles
The Northern Pacific Is now trying
out what is known as the &
method of block system operation.
Under this system the dispatcher
never issues an order for the run
station When 1t reaches that sta
ton it must receive another order be-
fore ii can proceed. The Northern
Pacific has found that t can move
it's trains over the road in 20 per cent
less time with the A II c system than
L under the old block signal-schedule-
dispatcher system. Yet even this new
system has its Weaknesses The the
oretical stopping place Is at the tow
er post approaching the system. TWO
trains coming head on witt. theoreti-
eally, stop with only the width OF
the signal post between their pilots
Sometimes the brakes may fail to
work. Sometimes the dispatcher con-
fuses his orders as to which train
shall take the station siding and
which keep the main traek. Two col
lisions resulted in consequence Of
such confessions. and these accidents
le,i to the adoption of a rule that
every train shall stop at the end OF
the siding it first approaches. II this
i rule is obeyed there can be no col
4 lisions.
On some OF the New York traction
lines automatic block signal systems
with automatic train stops have been
installed. and with these safeguard
the trains are operated ut speed
81 fifty miles an hour. IN only nine
ty seconds between tcem In busy
hours. The railroad oThcials declare
that not once has train gotten BY
| tire combination of standardization
when the order was for a stop. On
the marlborough the device has
worked many million times.
Another train-stoppinS device thai
Is being experimental With consists
o. heavy iron bar suspended ovei
the track. 1t In of such weight that
when II is struck by lever on tor
of the engine cab IL pushes the lever
far enough out OF position to put on
the air brakes and stop the train