Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-02-17
Old DObbin Has Been Handed a jolt by Motor
Trucks During Past Year; Horse Eliminated

discovered that the trucks must carry
I. less than their capacity load and
stand mction!ess most Of the time.
The prcblem requires careful account
| ing TO discover what conditions have
a bearing ON the basic formula.
The following are the most import
ant external factors which affect the
speed or load OF trucks and conse-
quentiy affect the work or returns to
be expected from them: ~.
/ IL Size of Business. Obviously
the size OF given business deter
mines whether there is a transports
ticn problem big enough to involve
the use OF even one truck AS gen.
eral rule a merchant having more
than two single-horse wagons should
begin to give consideration to the
question OF motorizing his delivery. II
Is generally said that one truck will
replace four such wagons. No one
can say definitely how many teams
can be replaced by one truck. except
in given instance. There are certain
kinds Of business. notably freight and
transportation lines. in which one
truck has replaced Is single horse
wagons The size OF the business,
however. gives one merely a prelim-
mary idea as to the. ACCESSIBILITY OF
motorizing. A further analysis of the
conditions of delivery is necessary be-
fore reliable conclusion can be
drawn. :.sis a
(2D Long Hauls. The condition par
excellence in favor OF motor truck
operation is one involving long hauls
In fact Il may be almost said that
anyone having to make long hauls In
his business should motorize at once
without further debate, as the case
for trucks Is practically settled by the
mere statement of this condition. In
making long hauls the truck has the
chance to show that speed which is
half the secret Of its efficiency. Even
IL the other half-the capacity for
load-were entirely missing and 1t
horse and wagon. II would still do
the work of four or five horses, be-
cause II would operate from four to
five times as fast. Commonly, how
ever. il has good load to carry as
well. i'm which case both factors of
our formula. speed and load. are pres
emit, making the resultant product.
work" very high. On long hauls a
single truck has often replaced
dozen or more horses and wagons.
81 Short Hauls. Transportation
involving short hauls is the diverse
of the medal. and as general thing
represents a condition unfavorable for
the operation of motor trucks. The
factor of speed is of course the most
noticeably affected. In going short
distances the truck has scarcely time
to get up to high speed when It has to
stop. OF more serious consequence
than that. however, are the stops
made to deliver goods. Frequent In
action. of course, reduces the average
daily speed just as. effectively as slow.
driving. II truck were going at full
speed half the time and we're inactive
the other half. its daily speed would
be computed as one-half its potential
speed Moreover. the factor of load
Is affected by short hauls. For ex-
ample. If it takes whole morning to
deliver a load piecemeal, while no
load is carried in the afternoon, then
the average load carried is only one
half what the truck might haul.
The experience OF many concerns is
worth noting, however, that deliveries
made TO several points which are over
three blocks apart are Just outside
the classification of short hauls, and
at these distances. limited though
hnx e. - ,fk
perform to such advantage that its
substitution for the horse and wagon
will prove advisable.
(4 Combination OF Long and Short
Hauls. II sometimes happens that al
though business requires long hauls to
certain districts II becomes necessary
to make many short hauls and stops
= the course OF actually delivering the
merchandise In such cases II is nee
essary to figure carefully to prevent
the error of buying and using trucks
wastefully. Obviously while the truck
is spinning along at its maximum
the region in which the distribution of
goods must take place, it is develop.
ing its full working efficiency. Once
arrived there, however, and employed
in making house to house deliveries,
1t becomes scarcely more efficient
than single horse and wagon It's
speed, which is its chief asset, is cut
down to almost nothing And more
than that, its load suffers a gradual
reduction over a long period of time.
so that in many instances a truck en-.
gagged in deliveries of this nature may
work whole day, with an average
load of but half its capacity.
Many traffic managers, when con-
fronted by situation of this kind.
employ one or two trucks to make
trips at high speed along the radii
which leads to the outlying districts
where actual deliveries must be made
Once loaded. these trucks without
stepping deliver their entire burden to
suitable stations from which, after re-
distribution into small units, 1t Is
taken up again by horse-drawn We
hicles. more suited to the work Of
house to house delivery. Department
stores which make deliveries to dis.
tant suburbs sometimes find II profit.