Trolley (electric)

“ The end of the century sees thousands of these electric roads in existence; a comparatively new industry involving over $100,000,000; a passenger traffic running into the billions of people; a prospect that the trolley will succeed the steam-car for all utilizable purposes within the gradually extending influence of cities and towns upon their rural surroundings.
In speaking of the passing of the horse-car and its substitution by the trolley, a distinguished writer has well said: “Humanity in an electric-car differs widely from that in the horse-car, propelled at the expense of animal life. ”

“ Enthusiasts say the trolley is only the beginning of electric locomotion, and that there is already in rapid evolution an electric system which will supersede steam even for trunk-line purposes. In vision, it presumes a speed of one hundred and twenty-five miles an hour instead of forty; greater safety, cleanliness, and comfort; and what is most momentous and startling, an economy in construction and operation which will warrant the sacrifice of the billions of dollars now invested in steam-railway properties. ”

“ Our civilization owes more to them than could be rehearsed in catalogue form within the limits of one issue of this magazine. We have nothing at present that can be employed as a satisfactory substitute for the ordinary electric railway. The underground trolley is a safe substitute, but the great expense of installation renders it available for very few localities. The overhead trolley, with two wires and no ground return, is cumbersome, vexatious, and unsightly. ”

“ Although the electric railway has been introduced throughout the civilized world with the most remarkable rapidity, replacing cable as well as horse roads, there has always been a strong opposition to the use of the overhead trolley, and in some places, as, for instance, the city of New York, this opposition has been so strong as to prevent the introduction of the system until some other means of conveying the current to the moving cars was devised. ”

“ Once safely out of the cable car, however, at the upper terminus, we smile, and think the worst is over. It is true, we see awaiting us another innocent looking electric car by which we are to go still higher; but we are confident that nothing very terrible can be experienced in a trolley. This confidence is quickly shattered. I doubt if there is anything in the world more "hair lifting" than the road over which that car conveys its startled occupants. ”

“ Ninety-five per cent. of the world’s electric tramways are worked on the overhead principle. The distribution of electric energy is by means of a wire, called the trolley wire, upheld by insulated brackets on poles twenty feet above the ground, along the entire track, which is divided into sections, each section taking its current from the main conductor-wire, which is laid underground, through the iron poles. Should any one section of the trolley wires meet with mishap, only the cars working on that section are stopped ”

“ The rails laid along the inside of the stockade made a two-mile track, as well ballasted as any regular railroad right of way. In addition the overhead equipment was costly.
To eliminate any possibility of the trolley wire breaking, a strong steel cable, called a catenary, was slung just above the trolley wire. To this catenary the trolley wire was suspended by hangers at short intervals. ”

“ The operation of our ordinary electric railways is very simple: the current is taken from an overhead, side, or underneath wire, directly through the air, without the intervention of a trolley, and the fast cars, for they are no longer run in trains, make five miles a minute. The entire weight of each car being used for its own traction, it can ascend very steep grades, and can attain high speed or stop very quickly. ”

“ Second; that owing to the lightness of construction, electric motive power, sufficient for the attainment of high speeds, can be applied to each car as an independent unit, instead of requiring a special electric or steam locomotive to haul one or more cars, thus obtaining for high speed railroads all the flexibility and advantages of the trolley system, as now employed in street passenger railroads. ”

“ When an electric current travels along a wire it loses a certain amount of power by reason of the resistance or electrical friction of the wire itself, so in order to keep the supply of current up to the proper pitch required for working the motors at all points of the line, these "feeders" are run out from the power-house, and they literally feed the trolley-wire with the current that the cars are always demanding from it. ”

“ Damon, getting up and tramping about the room in his excitement. "I thought the trolley cars that run between Shopton and Waterfield were about the fastest things on rails."
"Not much. The trolley car is a narrow and prescribed manner of using electricity for motive power. The motor runs but one car—or one and a trailer, at most," said Tom. "As I have pointed out, the problem is to build a machine that will transmit power enough to draw the enormous weight of a loaded freight train, and that over steep grades.
"A motor for each car is a costly matter. ”

“ Such a form of twin conductor trolley will permit the collection of a heavy current through the twin contact of the pantagraph with the two trolley wires, and should assure a sparkless collection of the current at any speed. ”

“ Damon. "Will the electric trolley pull us to a charging station?"
"No, we'll not need to go to a station," answered the youth. "If we can get my car to the trolley tracks I can charge my battery from there. And I think we can push the auto near enough. ”

“ In electric tramways, except in some few instances where there are objections to the use of an overhead construction, the current is conveyed to the motors through a trolley pole carrying a wheel running on an overhead bare copper wire. A hand-operated drum controller, directly controlling the driving and electric braking of the motors, is used. ”

“ From the wheel the current passes down the trolley arm to the controller, which is operated by the driver, and from there to the motors beneath the car. Leaving the motors it passes to the wheels and then to the rails, from which it is led off at intervals by cables and so returned to the generating station. The current carried by the rails is at a pressure of only a few volts, so that there is not the slightest danger of shock from them. There are generally two electric motors beneath the car, and the horse-power of each varies from about fifteen to twenty-five. ”

“ It is purposely laid out with many an unnecessary curve, to accentuate the conditions of actual travel, and demonstrate the ability of electric traction to do its work satisfactorily under extreme conditions. The trains are made up of a motor car and three trailers, all four cars being arranged to seat passengers, the space occupied by the motorman at the extreme front end of the motor car being no greater than that of the ordinary trolley car. The cars are open, with the seats extending clear across the car body, each pair facing upon the entrance aisles. ”

“ The trolley wire and current are the cars' electric line of force and they come and go in their circuit propelled by the electric generator at the central power house, in very much the same way as the planets revolve and come and go on their orbital circuits around the sun by the moving force and electric power of the sun. ”

“ Owing to the uniform control of speed afforded by the electric system, there is less jerking at starting or stopping than is general with a petrol-driven omnibus; but in spite of that advantage, tyre wear on a trolley omnibus must remain an important item. Something must also be allowed for the effect of vibration upon the car body and electrical equipment—an effect which is of course much less pronounced when a vehicle runs on rails. ”

“ The first thing which strikes one about the trolley omnibus in comparison with the electric tramcar is the cheapness in first cost. All the expense of concrete foundations, heavy rails, and granite paving [Pg 62] is avoided. On ordinary roads the overhead construction is much less costly, as a single line of poles supporting two wires is sufficient for the up and down services. Estimates show that the equipment of a mile of roadway on this system will cost only from one-fourth to one-third of the corresponding tramway system. ”

“ The trolley is also being used upon hard-surfaced roads without tracks by buses and trucks. Steam railroads running into New York City [124] through the tubes use electric locomotives to draw the trains, thus avoiding the smoke nuisance and the danger therewith connected. The Milwaukee Railroad is using electric locomotives on its mountain division in Montana and Idaho. Electricity is generated by water power; also the trains going down grade are run against a dynamo and storage battery thus acting as a brake as well as renewing the batteries. ”

“ Our own investigations make us absolutely certain that if the public understands the true situation, it will not be misled by the specious arguments of the United Railroads. The conduit electric system, despite what the United Railroads and its representatives may say, is practicable, safe, efficient and superior to an overhead trolley. ”

“ Electric tramways have reached a period of middle age in which they are more concerned about their internal economy than the prospect of enterprise in new directions. Such development as they feel capable of making under present legislative conditions is only by proxy and tentatively, with the aid of the trolley omnibus. ”

“ Except in very small tramway systems, the power is generated as high-tension alternating current, and transformed and converted at substations suitably placed in the area covered by the tramway (see Electric Power Transmission and Distribution) . The low-tension D.C. power is distributed from the substations to the trolley wire. The car rails are earthed, and provide a return path for the current. In order to minimize the flow of current to other conductors in the vicinity of the car rails, copper cables returning directly to the substation are connected to the rails at suitable intervals. ”

“ In the ordinary types the motorman sits in front, controlling the locomotive with levers and mechanical brakes placed within easy reach, but sunk as low as possible. As a rule, the motors are geared to the truck axles, either inside or outside the locomotive frame. An overhead copper wire supplies the current by contact with a grooved trolley wheel mounted on the end of the regulation trolley pole. An electric headlight is used, and the ordinary speed attained by the compact motors is from six to ten miles an hour. ”

“ By the use of electric locomotives in terminals for switching service great economies are effected. Since the electric locomotive operates in either direction and takes its entire power supply from the trolley or third rail, much useless mileage of locomotives in going to and from the turn-table, the water-tank and the coal-chute is avoided. ”

“ While the United States and Canada have been and still are the theatre of the enormous advance in electric traction, as in other electric work, many electric car lines have in recent years been established in Great Britain and on the continent of Europe. Countries like Japan, Australia, South Africa, and South America have also in operation many electric trolley lines, and the work is rapidly extending. Most of this work, even in Europe, has been carried out either by importation of equipment from America, or by apparatus manufactured there, but following American practice closely. ”

“ Apart from these special extended sleepers with wire carriers attached, the line is constructed in the ordinary mariner with rails 14 lb. per yard and upward. As the electric locomotives are lighter than steam locomotives, the weight of rail required is somewhat less. The special trolley for erecting the wires along the railway line is shown in Fig. 3. This consists of an ordinary four wheeled platform wagon with ladder, and wire drum with tightening gear and clamps or grips for anchoring the trolley to the line. ”

“ The car is 55 ft. long by 241⁄2 ft. wide. The electric motors are under the control of the driver in a cabin on the car. The trolley is an articulated frame 77 ft. long in five sections coupled together with pins. To this are fixed the bearings of the running wheels, fourteen on each side. There are two steel-clad series-wound motors of 36 B.H.P. For a test load of 120 tons the tractive force is 70 lb per ton, which is sufficient for acceleration, and maintaining speed against wind pressure. The brakes are magnetic, with auxiliary handbrakes. ”

“ OF all the wonderful operations accomplished by the aid of electricity at the present time, none so completely mystifies the beholder as the action of the trolley car. The electric light, although incomprehensible to the average layman, does not excite his curiosity to the same extent. ”

“ Existing tramways can be adapted to this system with rapidity, and all experts bear testimony to the fact that electric haulage is comparatively so cheap, and the development of traffic on its adoption so great, that horse traction has no chance against it.
There are four kinds of electric-tramway traction which, though apparently rather puzzling, are readily explained. These are the Conduit; the Surface Contact; the Overhead (or trolley) ; in each of which the{133} current is conveyed to the line—as in an electric railway—from a power house ”