The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-06-20
Straiehtening the RaiIroads

When one mentions Strengthening out our rail-
roads he is likely to think at once OF adjusting their
tangled finances This, Of course, is the ultimate
problem but many of the financial kinks could be
eliminated if some Of the geographical knees and
elbows in our railroad systems were Strengthened out
Most of our railroads to have been built
without any realization Of the basic geometrcal prop
osition that straight line is the shortest distance
between two points. The reason in many cases is
that the first great system Of steam transportation
was carried on by river steamboats,.
The railroads tried to cut in and compete with
this traffic For that reason and also to gain easier
grades they built their lines along the great river
valleys.
The incidental and immediate advantages may
have been great but such construction enormously
increased the length of the line between major cities
and corespondngly raised the cost of transportation
What now are great railroad terminals insgnih-
cant towns in the early days.
Hence, there was little effort to plan construction
for the purpose Of reaching such terminals in the
most direct and economical fashion In light of the
metropolitan and industrial map Of 1881, OF the
great railway systems laid between 1850 and 1889
seem aboat rational as a crazy-quilt
But there Is no reason which the construction mis-
takes of 1850 1860 1870 should survive to ruin rail-
reading in 1881. The slogan Of the future we'll may
be consolidate and straghten out die" Professor
w z. Ripley authority railroads, has indicated
what this has meant with respect to two of the great
systems, the Baltimore &c Ohio and the Erie
OF the former he says 1.-The old line started at
Philadelphia and went clear to Washington before
heading west toward Chicago and st. Louis. That
was right for the port Of Baltimore, for which it
originally was constructed But it roundabout
from Philadelphia and unattainable from New York"
The B. & O. now is linking up with the Central
Railroad of Jersey, the Reading, and the Buffalo,
Rochester 81 Pittsburgh. This considerably reduces
the distance between New York and Chicago cuts
the grade over the mountains by 800 feet, and gives
a New York terminal
The Erie even in its original form, came far closer
TO "crow-fight line" to Chicago than the Pennsy-
vania the b. 81 o. or the New York Central. But
at that it operated under great physical handcaps:
First it has to surmount stiff watershed into
the Delaware valley; and then to climb another to
reach the Susquehanna.
But It's real grade troubles begin only after it
leaves this stream in western New York And it
seems to have been laid out purposely to avoid any
good-sized cities 1t is uphill and downdale prop
osition most of the way"
Then the Van Sweringen Brothers bought the
Nickel Plate line which had an almost straight water
level route from Buffalo into Chicago But they
blocked from New York An arrangement made
TO tie up with the Erie
The result is a direct route to Chicago fifty miles
shorter with crossing of the Alleghenies on
grade 500 feet lower than the original line.
Professor Ripley emphasizes: These are the
things that make for mile-long trains. high speed.
fuel economy, dividends-the very fairness of rail-
reading"
Economies like these ultimately might put the
railroads much farther ahead than such temporary
stimulants as rate boosts.