New-York tribune., 1920-10-16

VI . per cent we shall probably see
substantial revival of construction of
new railroad mileage.
OF course the Immediately pressing
problem is to expand the capacity Of
the railroads we have. Probably the
thing which it is most essential to do
IN order TO increase the capacity of the
existing lines is to enlarge their
yards and terminals. 1t has been esti-
mated by one authority that to enable
the railways satisfactorily to handle
the traffic now being offered, and also
provide for the growth of traffic, there
ought to be built 10000 miles Of yard
l92O-1922. This may seem a large esti-
mate, but, as l hive shown, between
1903 and 1918. to handle an increase
of Is per cent in freight and IS per
cent in passengers the railways in
creased their mileage of yard track
and sidings "a per cent There is no
reason to doubt that if the growth of
production is not interfered with by
lack Of means of transportation or
other causes the increase in traffic
IN the ten years ending with 1923
will be relatively as large as it was
in the ten years ended with 1913. In
that case, there probably would be
needed relatively as large an increase
IN the mileage of yard tracks and
sidings. An increase of 81 per cent
in yard tracks and sidings between
1913 and 1923 would amount to 51,40O
miles. In the first five and a half
years of this eriod, that ended with
l91S-which was the last year for
which we have complete figures re-
earding the amount of railroad facili-
yard tracks and sidngs, as before
stated, was only 1920. This
shows that the development of yards
and terminals had fallen far behind;
and this deficiency must be made up,
as we'll as future growth of business
provided for, if the development of
the country and the increase of its
prosperity and wealth are not to be
seriously hindered.
Double Tracking Needed
Mos of our railways are now single
track lines. The total mileage oper-
ated is about 259,000 miles, and of this
only about $4,000 miles has two or
more tricks. Many single track lines
need to be double tracked. Many
others are rapidly approaching the
time whcr they will eed to be- 1t is
impossible to estimate how much sec
ond, third, and even fourth track mile
age should be built within the next
few years, but it is a substantial
amount
Of the total mileage of the railways
only 102, 900 miles is now operated
under the block signal system, and of
this only $4,000 miles is operated under
the automatic BIZ system. Safety
and expedition in the handling of traf-
tc make desirable a large and steady
increase in the mileage operated under
the block system.
There are innumeroble other addi-
tions to and engagements of the fixed
structures of the railways which must
be made adequately to increase their
capacity. Every increase in the num-
per OF locomotives makes necessary an
increase IN the capacity of the round
houses for handling them and of the
shops for repairing and maintaining
them. Every increase in the number
OF cars requires increases in the capac-
lty of the shops for repairing and
maintaining them. These additional
and charged roundhouses and shops
must be equipped with ma .hinery ap-
propriate to their work At many
points new or enlarged freight and
passenger stations will be required.
VIII the railways provide the addi-
tlonal facilities needed? They will if
they a able. Their ability to do SO,
as often has ben pointed out, will de-
pend on their ability to raise new cap
ltal, and this upon the net return thew
earn.
Borrowing More Funds
1t is assumed that under the new
rates fixed by the Interstate Commerce
Commission they will be able to earn
an average of 6 per cent on the value
OF the railway property held for and
used in the service of transportation.
AT present railway companies with
even the best credit are obliged to paw
Z per cent or more for new funds. But
the railway companies are setting out
to raise all the capital they can on any
thing like reasonable returns, and to
invest it in new facilities. They had
made arrangements to invest about
S75OO00,000, including loans from the
government, before the recent decision
IN the rate advance case was rendered.
1t will take some months of operation
under the new rates to determine Just
what net operating income they will
yield to the railways as a whole and to
individual lines. 1t is the custom of
most managements to make up in the
last months of one year their budgets
of extensions and improvements for
the next year. This means that most
of the budgets for the year 1921 will be
made up in the closing months of the
year 1920. If general business and finan-
cial conditions are only fairly favorable
the year 1921 should witness a larger
expansion of the facilities of the rail
ways than has been seen for a long
time, and if regulation continues to be
reasonable and constructive this ex-
pansion undoubtedly will be carried on
until the transportation capacity of the
railroads will again be brought abreast
of the productive capacity of the coun-
try.
1t must be borne inmind, however,
that the growth of the railroads has
fallen far behind that of the other in
dustries and that even though every
effort is made and vast sums are ex-
pended, it will be years before they
will be able to handle the country's
business as we'll as before the war.
copyrighted 1920, by the Mcclure News
paper Syndicate.)
(This is the sirth Of a series Of t,Oelpe
articles on transportation problems BY
railroad presidents and chai,mcn. H. E.