Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-17
MOTOR COACH SEEN INFLUENCE
IN AMERICAN MODE OF TRAVEL
Transportation by Means of Cars Has
Grown Materially in Last Decade,
According to Report

THE railroads are using motor
coaches in several ways, the most i'm
portant of which are:
I'm replacement of local train service.
GAS additional service auxiliary to
local train service.
LAS additional feeder service to make
local stops between zone points OF fast
trains.
LAS feeder lines.
I'm carrying employees to and from
railroad shops.
LAS train connection service in ter
minal cities, as in New York City.
I'm touring service to Summer re-
sorts, national parks, etc.
Service of the type mentioned has
been furnished by the railroads for sc me
years. Train connection is best ex-
emplifled by the operation of the Bel
timore & Ohio Railroad motor coaches,
Which, take passengers from the COM
| panys rail terminus direct to hotels or
motor coach stations in the heart of
New York City and Brooklyn. Notable
examples Of touring service are the
services of the Boston & Maine, Santa
Fe, Union Pacific and other railroads to
resorts and national parks. In general,
the railroads have found it best to con-
duct their motor coach operations them
| selves, or through contract with exist
ing motor coach operators, or through
a subsidiary company organized by the
railroad company, Operation by sub
sldlary company s become very popu-
lar and is the most general practice.
The steam a ID electric railroads are
making money in two ways by using
motor coacheS-hrSt. by reducing losses
| on Improbable train operations, and,
second, through actual increase of pas
senger revenue from motor coach lines
acting as feeders and supplementary to
long distance rail service. An excep-
tional case is one in which a steam
railroad is saving more than SIS, 900 per
year where one motor coach replaced a
daily train. The railroad companies
solution of the short-haul passenger
service problem in many places is to
give motor coach service by buying out
independent motor coach lines, by con-
tract or through stock partnership
IN well organized motor coach compa-
MES that are rendering necessary and
convenient transportation service In
their territories.
2S,3OO Companies Now.
cat present 23,3o0 companies, includ-
ing independent operators as well as
electric and steam-railroad companies,
are operating such service. During 1928
motor coaches of these companies car
r1ed more than 1873, 900 passengers.
Obviously the development Of so vast a
system of transportation is certain to
have its effect upon the steam and
electric railways. Since motor coach
trafnc reached great volume in 1925,
passenger traffic on the railroads has
steadily declined. This Is due largely to
the private automobile, as only a small
portion of the railroad traffic was lost
to the motor coach. The number of
motor coaches operated by steam rail-
roads increased from scarcely 200 at the
end OF 1924 to more than 1900 in 1929
and now more than So railroads main
tain motor-coach service. The electric
railway industry was not so slow to
adopt this form of transportation. and
already more than so per cent of our
electric railways operate motor coaches.
TO operate small local train one
mile costs approximately $1.25, as COM
pared with Is or 80 cents per mile for
the motor coach. For the railroad.
these are out-of-pocket costs only and
do not include fixed charges, roadbed
maintenance and the like. Thus the
ratio is not far from to / in favor
OF the motor coach. For a steam train
the average fuel cost is % cents per
mile, while for the motor coach it Is Z
cents per mile. Wages per mile for the
motor coach are cents, as compared
with 20 cents for the train. The Bos-
ton & Maine Railroad found that the
cost per mile of operating a steam pas
senger train, without any charge for
roadbed or rail maintenance, was 81 SO:
of rail cars, 70 cents, and Of motor
coaches, 20 cents.
Real progress has already been made
In applying the motor coach to railroad
requirements, and the railroad officials
from high to low are earnestly striving
to properly coordinate the two trans
| portation facilities"