The star-progress., 1921-07-20
SAFEGUARD FOR CROSSINGS


dangerous railroad crossings on all
three lines entering here. We hvae
advised the roads and requested the
city authorities to take steps to force
these lines to install automatic gates
though the city council did, on one
occasion, instruct its attorney to no.
tify the roads to place in effect some
means whereby the chances Of acct
dents and near-accidents would be
minimfzed. If the roads paid any at
tention to this official demand the
public has not been so, informed. The
Southern Pacific, it is true, stops
trains at important crossings and
sends a flagman ahead to guard the
erossing until the train passes. This
is an expensive method and doesn't
fill the bill at all, and at the same
time it delays all passenger trains.
The Gulf Coast Lines and the Tex
as and Pacific have not made even
this half-hearted attempt to safeguard
their several crossing. AL three
roads have the ancient and unreliable
bell system to ring the approach OF
a train. It is so unreliable that 1t is
the laughing stock of everyone VINO
has ever paid the slightest attention
to its peculiar antics. Some times
the bells ring and often times they
don't, and occasionally short circuit
in the battery system causes one OF
them to ring necessarily when there
isn't a train in sight. The entire sys-
tenn is such a bowling Joke as to
bring down the jeers and ridicule OF
all the jokesmiths in the city.
There have been several fatal acci-
dnts and several nar-accidents here
and only last week damage case was
finishd afer two weeks trial in dis
trict court, occasioned by what the
plaintiff charged as negligence on the
part of the railroad company that was
defendant in the suit At this writ
ing the case is not in the hands Of
the jury and its probable outcome
IL not to be guessed at. However, if
the trial jury should render judg-
ment in favor of the plaintiff and
that Judgment is upheld by the su-
preme court, the case will have cost
the company healthy sum Of money
for the carelessness of its employees
and the poor methods it has in effect
for safeguarding the street crossings
over its tracks. Perhaps the proba-
BILE sum it will eventually have to pay
would go a long ways toward install
ing an automatic system which would
prevent such accidents and relieve
the company from the necessity Of
defending damage suits in court and
paying huge sums as costs for kill
ing or naming people.
Trains over the Gulf Coast Lines
that is, passenger trains-run at
terrific rate of speed through the city
limits after leaving the station, L9s-
pecially the westbound limited. The
only thing that favors the running Of
this train at such a speed without dan
ger to life and limb is the fact that
1t passes through Opelousas at about
2 o'clock in the morning when there
are few about the streets and there
is thrfoer little danger Of running into
a person, an automobile or other We
hicle. It is bad practice anyhow, no
matter what the hour, and the road
should be forced to discontinue such
practice unless it constructs safety
system that will be adequate.
We have always believed the auto
matte gate system, seen so frequent
ly in larger cities, to be the only thing
which will meet the local require
ments, and If the roads find it safer
in other places they should be COM
PEELED to construct the same thing
here. We have not the least idea of
the financial cost of installing these
gates but no matter what the cost
the roads should be forced to install
them at once. In fact, they should
not wait for orders from the authori-
ties but should act on their own initia-
tive and put in the gates at once, or.
if that be not feasible, then they
should employ a permanent flagman
at these several dangerous street
who will prevent any acci-
dents in the future There are some
rural crossings over all three roads
that are also very dangerous and the
police Jury should investigate them
and force the railroad companies to
either put in gates or bell signals
that would work without going out OF
commission.
STOCKHOLDERS MEETING
Notice is hereby given that there