The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-03-20

Jackson streets such temporary repairs as
No Material Here.
The company expected to. remove the IN
used track on Jackson street from Sixth
to Eighth avenue. and repave the right
| of-way and remaining permanent track.
! so, first thru inability to obtain the ne
| cessary material by reason of the embargo
placed on the transportation of paving
material by the railroad administration
and later by the unusually wet weather
| and the very early winter. 1t has gem
| orally been possible to pursue construction
work up to the middle of December, but it
will be remembered that we had much
snow and severe cold weather before last
| Thanksgiving.
Work This Spring.
This work will be started this spring
Immediately following the completion of
paving operations Branner and Lake
streets, which were also halted by the early
advent of freezing weather which made it
impossible to do any concrete work, which
is necessary to first class track construc-
ton.
such repairs as the season permitted
were made on West Sixth avenue. and the
other lines included in the commissions
order and this work will be continued this
spring and the lines will be in good shape
! by midsummer unless work is retarded
| by wet weather which does not now seem
| probable.
Low joints cannot be permanently raised
! such conditions repairs must be Of tenn
porary nature. oyer 500 ties were re-
| placed on the oakland line last 1aII.
A partial rerouting of lines was made
and service increased; a more extensive
rerouting was not possible because of in
| ability to obtain certain track special work
| necessary to the proposed plan in time for
! installation last fall and for the further
reason that the demand for expanded serv-
! ice during rush hours, together with the
| increased repair and repafnting program
undertaken Immediately upon issuance of
enough cars available for a greatly ex-
panded service.
! Handling Heavy Traffic.
The present schedules are more than
between rusE hours and the rush hour traf-
fic is being handled with additional cars
and with as little congestion as in any
| city the size of Topeka in the country.
| The congestion of traffic on the cars in
where near approaches the congested condi-
| tion of the cars in kansas City where the
| fares are eight cents cash, two tickets for
15c and five tickets for 55c. There is also
| st. Joseph, Mo, where the cash fares are
&c and two metal tickets are sold for 1Sc.
Tenders are kept in the best possible
| stantly who do nothing but work on fend-
| ers. Tenders are subject to more frequent
! damage than any other part or the equip
| ment of a car, but such damage to tenders
is Immediately repaired. This is daily
Regarding flat wheels: There are two
| kinds of flat wheele: Durable and incurable.
The wheels are cast iron, with chilled
wheels, generally on sanded rails. II the
flat spot penetrates the chill to the soft
iron beneath the flat is incurable and the
wheel is Immediately removed and a new
one substituted. If the chill is not pene-
trated. an Emery brake shoe is put on in
place of the cast iron brake shoe regularly
used. and the car put back on the road,
the emery brake shoe trues the wheel up in
three to four days, and the flat entirely
disappears. The cost of applying a
wheel is $50, and that of truing up cura
BILE flat only a small portion of this
| amount, and it would be an inexcusable
waste to discard wheels that can be read
lily trued up. The incurable flat wheels
are always removed at the earliest posi-
The safety zones were marked last fall
two or three times and in most cases the
marking was promptly obliterated by auto
mobiles running over the safety zones be-
fore the paint which was used had time to
dry. It has been found generally imprac-
ticable to maintain safety zone markings on
the pavement, and in some cities raised
safety, zones or loading platforms have
been built on the street. This plan is
being tried in Kansas City at the present
time. Wooden platforms about feet wide
the pavement have been built at car stops
along the principal streets at that point
In Washington. p. c.. and other cities
erected.
Screens on Soon.
Screens will be installed ON the cars by
windows open, such screens are Always re
moved in the winter months, as they serve
no useful purpose with the windows closed
and render car cleaning difficult A perma-
, nent force of car cleaners is employed and
all of the cars are thoroly swept and dis
infected at night, and are completely gone
over and scrubbed at regular intervals.
Buy New Equipment.
In addition to the above the company
has purchased and has on the ground
safety equipment consisting Of air brakes,
apparatus for opening and closing doors
by compressed air and pneumatic devices
attached to the controller which automat-
ically cuts off the current, applies the
brakes and opens the doors il the motor
man releases pressure on the controller
pneumatic device for ringing the fare
register, for every one-man car operated In
the city. Several of these devices have
already been installd on cars which have
been completely rebuilt within the last
few months and the installation of these
pushed as rapidly as possible. The in
stallatiou of these safety devices will rep
resent an outlay of approximately $4,000.
} Cars without the Asking.
Further than this the company has
J bought and will have delivered within the
next six weeks eight of the latest model
safety cars produced This purchase rep
chases is voluntary on the part of the com
pany and was not required by the com
, mission or requested by the city. The com
. pany could have gotten along with its
present equipment and given its patrons
as good service as is rendered in other
cities of like size and traffic conditions and
= the purchase of this equipment is certain
~ evidence of good faith and the COM
panys desire to give its patrons value re-
ceived.
under the six cent fare is less than they
/ POuld mr.