Railway Construction

by William Hemingway Mills

It is natural to look to the railways of the first rank for the latest advances in construction, appliances, and equipment, and it is generally there they are found. Great trunk lines, crowded with traffic of all kinds, have not only the opportunity and means, but all the strong inducements to try or adopt any

arrangement which promises greater facilities for dealing with the ever-increasing demands made on their carrying powers.

Passenger and goods traffic are so dissimilar in their requirements that when both of them are steadily increasing it becomes difficult, if not impossible, to work the two classes over an ordinary double line. In some cases much assistance has been obtained by shortening the lengths of the working sections and introducing intermediate electric telegraph block stations between the ordinary stations. Long refuge-sidings have also been introduced at many of the signal-cabins or stations, into which goods trains can be shunted out of the way to allow fast passenger trains to pass through without stopping. Up to a certain extent this arrangement works fairly well, but where there is a very frequent service of fast and slow passenger trains, combined with a heavy and constant service of goods and mineral trains, the two lines of way are practically incapable of accommodating such a number of mixed trains without causing serious detentions. The goods trains must shunt out of the way some time before a passenger train is due, and this frequent shunting into sidings results in hours of delay in the transit of the goods and cattle traffic; and when one of such trains is allowed to proceed again on its way up to another station, dove-tailed as it may be between two fast passenger trains, there is always the tendency to run at a much higher rate of speed than is prudent for the class of rolling-stock of which the goods train is composed. To overcome this difficulty some railways have introduced additional UP and DOWN lines on the busiest part of their system, making four lines of way in all, two of these being reserved for the fast passenger and through trains, and the other two for slow trains, goods, and mineral trains. This arrangement of the four lines has afforded great relief to the traffic of all kinds, and has enabled the service to be worked with much greater facility and punctuality. The goods trains being restricted to their own separate lines, can proceed regularly in their order, at their uniform working speed, without having to resort to the spasmodic fast running too often expected from them when passing over some parts of an ordinary double line. Doubtless this four-line system, or rather the principle of laying down two additional lines of way, will go on extending, and will be accelerated in its accomplishment by the growing demand for still higher speed of our fast passenger trains, and still longer distances to be traversed

without stopping. High-speed long-distance through trains can only perform their journeys with punctuality, when the route is kept clear of all other trains or obstructions which might interfere with their free running. Any check or stoppage in their course would cause loss of time and prestige.

It is to be regretted that in so many of the cases where two additional lines of way have been laid down, more space was not left between the sets of rails for the fast traffic and those for the slow. In many instances the dividing space is not more than 7 or 8 feet. It would have been better and safer if it could have been made 20 feet. An ordinary goods train is made up of several kinds of trucks, some empty, some loaded, many of them unequally loaded, all of them subject to heavy work and rough handling, and more likely to give trouble than the higher class vehicle, the passenger carriage. The breaking down or derailment of one or two goods trucks on a line of rails close alongside the fast passenger rails, would in all probability so foul and obstruct the passenger line as to cause a very serious accident to an express train which could not be stopped in time. The greater width would not only provide more clearance in case of breakdowns, but would afford increased safety to the platelayers and other workmen engaged on the line. The permanent-way men have to be very watchful to keep out of danger on an ordinary busy double line, but they must be very much more on the alert where there are four lines of way close together side by side.

In the neighbourhood of large cities and important manufacturing centres, railways have created a distinct traffic for themselves by providing means for a large portion of the population to reside in convenient suburbs. Local trains running at suitable business hours have induced people of all classes to select homes a few miles away from town, and the gradual growth of this suburban traffic has produced its own advantages and requirements. At the large terminal stations platform after platform has been added to accommodate the increased number of trains which arrive in the busy parts of the morning or depart in the evening. Every facility has to be provided to permit of the expeditious ingress and egress of the large crowds forming the respective trains—ample platforms, over-line foot-bridges, subways, convenient booking-offices, waiting-rooms, and left-luggage rooms.

The enormous train service on some of these first-rank lines demands the highest efficiency in the signalling and interlocking arrangements, and the use of any devices which will ensure increased facility and safety in the working of the traffic. With a crowd of trains passing a signal-cabin in both directions, and often over four lines of way, it is quite possible for a signalman to make a mistake which cannot be rectified in time to prevent an accident. To obtain increased security many railways have adopted the lock and block system previously described, or some adaptation of the same principle, and this method of working will go on extending as the traffic increases. These additional appliances entail additional care and inspection, for although automatical machinery may be exempt from the human frailty of preoccupation of mind or forgetfulness, it is somewhat delicate in its organization, and requires constant supervision to maintain its efficiency.

On many of the large lines, much has been done to give improved carriage accommodation. Carriages have been made longer, easier on the road, loftier, better furnished, and better lighted; but there is still a very great deficiency in those conveniences so essentially necessary, especially on trains running long distances without stopping. Drawing-room cars and dining-room cars are no doubt attractive, and may contribute considerably to the popularity of certain routes; but it is questionable whether many of the lines at home and abroad which have adopted such luxuries, have not in doing so commenced at the wrong end, and whether it would not have been more to the public satisfaction to have begun by first providing those conveniences which are found in every carriage on every line in the United States. It is satisfactory to find that there is a steadily growing tendency to so construct passenger carriages that their occupants may, by passages or corridors, communicate with all parts of the same carriage or with the adjoining carriages; and there is every reason to assume that the carriage of the future, either by legislation or consent, will combine both the items of conveniences and intercommunication, and will confer not only greater comfort to the passengers, but also increased protection against those outrages which, unfortunately, too frequently occur under the system of isolated compartments.

It will be instructive to watch the results of the passenger

receipts on those lines where only first and third-class carriages are used. The elimination of the second class may at first sight appear an innovation; but if there is not any pecuniary loss sustained, there must be a gain in the reduction of unoccupied seats to be hauled. It is customary to provide in every train a liberal number of spare seats of each class to meet contingencies; and the omission of one class may mean the saving of two or three carriages—a very important item in locomotive power.