Evening star., 1925-05-04
ELECTRIC RAILWAY
NOW 81 YEARS OLD
First Overhead Trolley Sys.
tenn Started in Richmond
Is Still Operating.
BY j. {. ROYLE.


Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, May 4.-Continuous
electric street railway operation is 81
wears old today. on May 4, 1883,
Frank J. Sprague started in Rich
mond, Va. the first complete over
head trolley system, which is still
operating. At that time there were
10 companies making more or less
futile attempts TO run, but within two
years after the Richmond line started
service there were 200 companies
carrying passengers over LOO miles
of tracks.
Today there are $50 electric railway
lines in the United States, running
over A. 900 miles of track, with 100000
cars and carrying between $4,000 .0OO,-
coo and 1900 100000 passengers an
nually. From the most accurate fiS-
ures available there are in addition
about 25 900 automotive busses in oper-
alton. carrying l,500, 100000 passen-
gers. so that, despite the tremendous
strides of the motor bus, that industry
still is far behind the electric roads
in patrons served.
40 Railroads Add Busses.
The electric railroads. in fact, are
themselves rapidly absorbing many OF
the bus routes. over 40 railway COM
panies have bought buSSes within a
year. Bus service by electric railroads
increased 129 per cent in the last year,
and 1925 seems likely to record an
even greater increase. Popularity OF
the automobile has not checked street
railway expansion The riding
habit" is growing steadily, and the
average number of rides per person
has risen from 80 per cent in 1871 10
nearly 120 at present.
The street car lines employ approx
imatclv 300 900 whole time workers
and 500 900 part-time hands, VINO
make electric railway supplies. ABOUT
$50 900 investors hold stocks or bonds
in electric railway companies, their
securities totaling over Sc 600, 900 900
in value. In addition, $4,000 .oOO,Ooo Is
invested in factories and industries
making supplies for the carriers.
The first street railroad to run
commercially in the country was
operated in Cleveland in 1884, the
cars establishing electric connections
through an underground trolley run
ming in q slotted wooden box
Boys Rode On Top of Cars.
The development of the overhead
trolley is accredited to j. Henry, who
built the second practical line in Kan
sas CITY in 1885. That line develop
ed not only the overhead trolley, out
the trolley rope, since at the start
it was necessary for small boy
10 ride on the top of each car 70 see
that the trolley did not come of the
wire. The difficulties of early opera
ton can be estimated from the fact
that Henry could secure copper wire
only in 6O-foot lengths and had TO
use horseshoe nails in bonding the
rails of his line.
Despite the competition which faces
them, the traction companies TO-DAY
are in shape to better their earnings
for this year. Generation of electric
current has increased and operating
efficiency has made large strides, help
ed by betterment of personnel and the
hooking up of super power circuits.
Roads i'm Good Shape.
The financial structures of the trac-
ton companies have been reha abilitated
in the ma jority of cases. The roads
are in better physical condition and
fares have been advanced sufficiently
to cover added costs of labor and oper-
alton. The average for 272 cities of
25 .001 population or over now is 7.49
cents.
Keen investors, recognizing this
trend. are seeking eagerly for traction
and public utility properties. Produc
ton costs of electricity now are lower
relatively than ever before in the
history of the industry. The use OF
pulverized fuel has increased the
power ratio of coal and the general
trend is against any sharp increas sc
in bituminouS costs.