Evening star., 1926-12-09
h0LD RAIL WRECKS
ARE PREvENTABLE
Safety Devices Would Cut
Mishaps, Commerce
Report Claims.

Continuing it's campaign for reduc.
ticn of railroad accidents by promot.
ing installa ton of all practical safety
fevices. the Interstate Commerce Com.
mission announced in it's annual re-
port today that at least one-fourth of
ell accidents investigated by its force
6uring the fiscal year ended June 20
were preventable by train stop or au.
tomatic train control.
One hundred and four collisions and
terallments, In which 1872 persons were
KILLED and 1,611 injured, were investi.
gated. OF this group Is were prob
ably preventable by trains stop or train
control. while of another group of 90,
In which As persons were killed, the
accidents could probably have been
prevented by block signals and could
have been prevented by one of the
other mentioned types of safety de-
vices. Sixty Of the accidents investi-
gated were declared not preventable
by block signals, trainstop or train
control.
The commission report asked in
creased power tc control projected
railroad consultations, and in recon-
mendatiOns included In the report
sought authority to compel promoters
of any given consolidate to include
or railroad property as may be
deemed likely to benefit the public
service when these can be obtained on
reasonable terms.
Asks Control Of Mergers.
Wider Jurisdiction over consolda-
Zion projects generally was also re-
uuested, including elimination of that
section of the present law which re-
quireS the commission to prepare a
general plan by which all the carriers
in the country may he merged into 19
or 90 major systems.
In connection with it's general work
the commission repeated recOmmen.
dation that Congress by law require
railroads to use steel or steel under
frame passenger cars in train service
and to forbid the inclusion of wooden
frame cars in trains consisting in part
of steel cars.
Reviewing it's years work in rail.
road regulation. the commission began
by remarking the general increase in
railroad earnings.
Since 1920 there has been a sub
stantial increase in railway net earn
tngs each year." the report said. '"The
net railway operating income of class
l carriers was practically nothing in
1920. $1,121 900 in 1925. and in 1925 a.
further increase of 1872 per cent ap-
pears in the returns of the first eight
months. This showing is the net re-
suit of changes within the period in
volume of traffic, freight rates, in
wages and in prices of material and
In other influences affecting operating
expenses.
THE growth in net railway operat-
ing income is accompanied by and in
part dependent upon a. growth in the
investment. in the five-year period
of 1920.25 the total railway capital in
creased from $2O.09S, ,046,374 to $21,-
799 ,241 .424. The ratio of net income.
after fixed charges, to the capital
stock was $50 per cent in 1925. This
is nearly equal to the corresponding
figure, $40 per cent. for the calendar
wear 1916, the record year for this
ratio"
Since Congress in 1920 authorized
the commission to allow railroads to
proceed with consolidation projects,
fhe report continued, control over 3D.
900 miles of line has been transferred,
and the question of permitting con-
solidations is pending as to a very
large additional mileage. The merE
aceednS steadily, though in the case
of two of the largest projects for
merger brought before the commits
sion, that of the Nickel Plate Railroad
and of the Norfolk and Western to
acquire the Virginian, the commission
refused to allow the consultations to
proceed.
Railroads are now required by law