Southwest Washington labor press. [volume] (Hoquiam, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1925-09-25
BY IRA NELSON MORRIS
President Of Uncle Sans Voters,
In..ls..A n n

portation. Newspapers are now adj
vertising bus lines just as they have
in the past featured railroad adver-
Using. and from competitor Of the
street cars the bus has become q
threat to the profits Of railroad lines
in every part of the country.
An official of Washington, D. C.,
who is making study of bus trans
portation, found that he could travel
from the National Capitol to st. Paul
and Minneapolis by bus, with the ex-
ceptition Of short stretch in Indiana
about 40 miles. In many parts of
the country the railroads are asking
permission to remove their tracks,
and buses are replacing train service.
Josephus Daniels is among the many
who have commented on the condi-
ton, and has raised the question
whether, if bus transportation contin-
ues to develop as it has begun, the
railroads may not be put pretty much
out Of business by the bus lines. The
buses appear to be able to carry
passengers and freight at lower prices
than the railroads, and Mr.. Daniels
quotes a friend as expressing the pre-
diction that the railroads would hardly
be able to survive two decades more,
under present conditions.
Will bus transportation eventually
supersede the railroads7
YES
1. Railroads are placed under ehor-
mously heavier than bus lines, and
must charge rates high enough to
make a profit. The bus line can ex-
list on q rate schedule that would force
railroad out of business. At pres
ent fares on the bus lines are gen.
orally based upon rates charged
by railroads; but long-distance truck
ing charges are independent of rail-
road charges, and it has been shown
that shipping many kinds Of freight
by bus is cheaper than to send it by
rail.
2. Bus lines furnish cleaner and
more comfortable transportation for
passengers than do railways, for there
are no cinders, and dust is negligible.
Moreover, the bus as a rule does not
jolt as violently as a train, and its
heavily upholstered seats are as COM
Portable as those in Pullman car.
3. Bus lines can leave passengers
where they wish to be let off, instead
of taking them to arbitrarily selected
stations, and they can reach cities
and towns off their regular routes If
for any reason those places take on
new Importance. Moreover, they are
not confined to any one route, and if
road is closed there are usually de-
tours available.
4. The railroads have in general
experienced a great many financial
difficulties of late, partly owing to
the fact that so many persons own
their own automobiles and use them to
travel or to transport certain kinds
of freight. A number of miles of
railroad have been pulled up, and the
companies have asked permission to
remove others This process is likely
to continue until most of the unprof-
table branches have been disposed
of. For suburban and short-haul traf-
fic many lines are now compromising
with the bus by using motor buses
mounted on Hanged wheels that can
operate on railroad tracks.
5. The New Haven roads rates
have recently been increased greatly.
That is only an example as one of
many roads wrecked by reckless or
dishonest financiering, and the public
will probably resent paying the bills.
NO
1. The railroads have their own
field, in to which the bus lines can
not enter. The bus line can not trans
port passengers as rapidly as a train
can, and even though the airplnae or
airships may take away the fastest
passenger traffic from the railroads,
there will be a number of passengers
who, for trips Of 200 to 400 miles,
will save a day by rail, as compared
with the bus and travel at less expense
than by air. Moreover, the fast
freight Of the nation win give the
railroads of the country plenty to do
for many years to come.
2. The present railroad lines con-
stitute an economic asset to the coun-
try that will have to be utilized, in
spite of any possible development Of
bus lines. Highway facilities could
not for years be made equal to the
task of transporting the great guam
titles of freight the railroads now
carry.
3. There viii be a reaction against
bus lines. The public win discover
that the lower cost Of operation will
have to be made up in taxes to keep
up raods torn up by the busses. The
railroads have their own rights of
way, and maintain the roadbeds at
their own expense. The bus lines use
public highways and pay nothing be-
yond franchise tax for their use.
Moreover, bus lines are likely to be
only moderately capitalized and have
not the same degree of financial re-
sponsibility as a great railroad sys-
tenn, in the event Of an accident in
volving injury to passengers or pedes-
49,