The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1922-12-21
Lake Shore Transportation
Company Sells Out to
T. M. E. r. & L.
PLAN new SCHEDULE
Company Now Owning Both
Bus Lines, Plans Fifteen
Minute Service to Racine.

Announcement was made this morn
ing by Morris Plous, president of the
Lake Shore Transportation company,
former owners and operators of the
gray bus line between Kenosha and
Racine, that the equipment and good
will of the company had been sold to
the 7. M. E. R. & L. company of Mil
waukee. The railway company which
purchased the bus line on Saturday
night was already the owner of the Red
Bus Line, which also operates between
the two cities, and of the Milwaukee,
Racine and Kenosha electric railway
line; its new schedule will provide for
15-minute service to Racine by uniting
the three lines and eliminating the
competitive service which has existed
for the past year and half.
The sale of the gray line was closed
Saturday night just after o'clock in
the offices of Attorney A. L. Drury on
Market square. Ora L. Koenes, man
ager of the Kenosha branch of the Wis
consin Gas & Electric company, closed
the deal for the T. NJ. E. R. & L. COM
pany with Morris and Louis Plous and
Frank Fink, owners of the Lake Shore
Transportation company, acting for it.
Take Over All Equipment.
The amount involved in the transac-
ton was not made public. ut was
stated that the price paid was fair
price for the five buses owned by the
company, this being all that was sought
by the former owners. For several
months due to the competition which
had arisen, the Lake Shore Transports
ton company had not made big profits
and for this reason the company was
willing to dispose of it's equipment.
At midnight Saturday the FIVE buses
of the company we're turned over to the
new owners.
Recently the Lake Shore company
was denied permit to operate its line
between Kenosha and Waukegan which
extension it had planned for next sea-
son. This action by the Illinois state
commerce commission is reported to
have Influenced the company to abandon
the Racine-Kenosha end Of the line.
To Continue Bus Service.
Manager Koenes, representing the T.
morning that the company had no in
tention whatever Of abandoning the bus
service between Kenosha and Racine.
He declared that a system was being
worked out whereby the bus lines
would be correlated with the street car
service so as to give 15-minute service
between Racine and Kenosha. Two in
terurban cars and two bUsses each
hour will be used to maintain this
schedule.
Formerly all of the lines were com
peting and for that reason all left at
approximately the same time. 1t is the
belief of the company that the public
will find the new service more convent
emit. One of the provisions of the sale
was that the tickets sold by the Lake
Shore Transportation company would
be honored by the new owners.
Manager Koenes declared that SO far
as he knew, the T. M. E. r. & L. COM
pany would not be interested in the
project to extend the lines to Wauke
gan and that no attempt would be made
to renew the application made to the
Illinois commission for a franchise to
operate in that state.
Deny Big Deal Report.
A report to the effect that $4,000
was the sum paid for the line was
vigorously denied by Manager Koenes
of the Wisconsin Gas and Electric
company.
absolutely ridiculous" was the
comment which he made regarding the
report He added that he was not
privileged to make public the exact
amount involved in the deal, but re
peated the assertion that the sum was
not in sexcess of fair value for the
five cars included in the deal.
Negotiations for the merger have
been in progress for several months,
but despite this the announcement
that the deal had been closed came
as surprise to all who had been in
terested in the negotiations.