Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-12-21
Electrified Railroads

"HE announcement that the Chilean
Governments new loan of seven and
! three-quarter million pounds in gold
will provide for the electrifcation of the
State railways draws attention to a realm of
scientific and industrial enterprise in which
the people of the United States are particu-
larly interested.
1t was more than two decades ago that the
Baltimore and Ohio railroad tunnel trains
were electrified. Some ten years later, in
1906, electric motive power was applied to
the New York Central terminal, and also to
the West Jersey and Seashore. In 1910 the
Pennsylvania's New York terminal under
went the same improvement, as did also the
Detroit river tunnel. And in the years i'm
mediately preceding and following, the .-ews-
papers would report from time to time the
electrifcation of sundry short lines of rail-
| roads.
1t was in 1915, however, on the Three
| Forks-Deer Lodge division of the Chicago,
Milwaukee and ST. Paul system, that the dis
placement of steam by electric locomotives
was inaugurated on an extensive scale. That
+, particular division is one hundred and ff-
teen miles in length and crosses the main
Continental Divide, striking right through
the rugged heart of the mountains and en-
countering many long grades and short
| radius curves. 1t was selected as the sys-
TENS severest test of the new engines power
and dependability. r.s
With what success the venture was re-
warded may be inferred from the fact that
today the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul
is electrically operated along six hundred
and forty-nine miles of its main line, the
change having recently been completed to
it's Pacific coast terminals at Seattle. Con-
corning the character of the service, an Of
fetal of the road has said: "Our electrifi-
cation has been tested by the worst winter
in the memory of modern railrOaders. There
were times when every steam locomotive in
the Rocky Mountain district was frozen, but
the electric locomotive went right along.
Electrifcation has in every way exceeded our
hopes, not only as respects tonnage handled
and mileage made, but also in regularity of
operation"
Engineers of the highest ability and re-
pute say that the substitution of electricity
for steam makes possible a gain of fully ff-
ty per cent in the available capacity OF
tracks and other facilities; and they esti-
mate that by the same means at least one
hundred million tons of coal could be saved
annually. 1t has been pointed out in this
conn ,ction that on a certain Southern coal
road, having long hauls to reach the con-
sumner, approximately twenty-five per cent of
the coal output sis used on the locomotives
which haul the co.,, to market and return the
'empties.'"
That electrlhcat1on or Americas rail-
roads will come suddenly is almost incon-
ceivable, so prodigious would be the capital
outlay and so manifold are the problems
which the individual lines and systems pre-
sent. 1t appears altogether likely, however,
that in time electricity will largely supplant
steam in this sphere of transportation The
action of the Chilean Government is in line
with that of nearly all natiors which re-
Gently have given the matter attention. In
a country so rich in water power resources
as the United States, the change seems, vir-
ITALY fnraphnA