Underground railway

“ Less admirable, to be sure, is the public acquiescence in the political manœuvring which blocks the proposed underground railway. Yet the opponents of the scheme have doubtless something to say on their side. It appears, at any rate, that the profits of the "L" road are not exorbitant. It is said to be only through overcrowding that it pays at all. ”

“ Little green oases were to be seen in every part of the House, and on the Treasury Bench even Under-Secretaries (who often have to maintain a precarious perch on one another's knees) had room to spread themselves.
The Underground Railway may, like Nature, be careless of the individual, but it is extremely careful of the typewriter, and insists on making a special charge for this instrument, officially regarded as a bicycle. ”

“ While some extol the underground solution as being the only one that, without interfering with circulation in the streets, permits of establishing a double-track railway capable of giving passage to ordinary rolling stock and of connecting directly with the large lines, others, objecting that such a road could not give satisfaction to the taste of Parisians, and that it would necessitate work out of proportion to the advantages gained, conclude upon the adoption of an open air railway. ”

“ Underground railways are of three general types: the one of extreme depth, built by tunnelling methods, usually with the shield and without regard to the surface topography, where the stations are put at such depth as to require lifts to carry the passengers from the station platform to the street level. ”

“ The immense loss and annoyance through this obstruction is greatly aggrevated by the street being constantly torn up in connection with sewer, gas, water, steam heating and other pipes. The surface and elevated railways offer inconvenient and insufficient accommodation to passengers between that portion of the city devoted to business and that occupied by residences, yet they are crowded to their utmost capacity, because nothing better is afforded. ”

“ District Railway, commenced in 1863 and opened in 1868. The line runs in a curve underground from Sloane Square, crossing Ebury Street at Eaton Terrace, and Buckingham Palace Road at Grosvenor Gardens. From the Underground Station a subterranean passage leads to the Victoria terminus, the starting-point of the London, Brighton, and South Coast and London, Chatham, and Dover Railway Companies. The present station, which has no pretension to architectural beauty, is being greatly enlarged and partly rebuilt. ”

“ Still it remains, to the infinite credit of a national persistence, that there is no record in the annals of American engineering where the workers have finally given up a tunnel job. Lives have been sacrificed, good-sized fortunes swept away, but in the end the resistless railroad has always found its underground path.
The tunnel-workers can tell you of the accident when the subway was being driven under the East River from Manhattan to Brooklyn, three years ago. ”

“ Barbox Brothers stood puzzled on the bridge, passing his right hand across the lines on his forehead, which multiplied while he looked down, as if the railway Lines were getting themselves photographed on that sensitive plate. Then was heard a distant ringing of bells and blowing of whistles. Then, puppet-looking heads of men popped out of boxes in perspective, and popped in again. Then, prodigious wooden razors, set up on end, began shaving the atmosphere. Then, several locomotive engines in several directions began to scream and be agitated. Then, along one avenue a train came in. ”

“ Block-Telegraph Signalling.—However complete the outdoor signals and interlocking at any station, they can only control the movement of trains within their range, and something more is requisite to ensure the safe working of the traffic over the long lengths of line between stations. For some years a time-interval was allowed for the working of trains following one another on the UP and DOWN lines of a double line railway, no train being allowed to leave a station sooner than a fixed number of minutes after a previous train had started in the same direction. ”

“ We knew as a fact that, during the early construction of railways in England, our engineers resorted to tunnels to avoid gradients and curves (especially the former) that would almost be considered favourable at the present day. As experience increased and the power of the locomotive was developed, so did the amount of tunnel [371] work diminish. Hence it is that if the three estimates just stated be correct, the proportion of tunnel to railway on the 1st of January, 1856, was one mile to every 115; on 1st of January, 1863, one to every 144 miles; on 1st of January, 1867, one to every 154. ”

“ Such was the vigilance of the conductors, that, we are informed, no one was ever taken back to slavery from this county while under the care of the Underground Railroad Company. The conductors of this Road were some of the most noble and selfsacrificing men in the world. Instead of collecting fare of their passengers they always paid it themselves. ”

“ The results of the working of railways have been in many respects different from those anticipated by their projectors. One of the most unexpected has been the growth of an immense passenger-traffic. The Stockton and Darlington line was projected as a coal line only, and the Liverpool and Manchester as a merchandise line. Passengers were not taken into account as a source of revenue; for, at the time of their projection, it was not believed that people would trust themselves to be drawn upon a railway by an "explosive machine," as the locomotive was described to be. ”

“ And I believe also that, considering the absence of most of the causes of accidents, there will even be less liability of interruption and less delay in the average resulting from accidents than in the ordinary double locomotive railway.
By the modification of the gradients and by reducing the curves to 1,000 feet radius where any great advantage can be gained by so doing, and by constructing the cuttings, embankments, tunnels, and viaducts for a single line, a considerable saving may be effected in the first cost. ”

“ The train usually waited two or three minutes in each station (instead of ten seconds as now) , and it required a full hour to travel from King’s Cross to Charing Cross. It was impossible to see to read a newspaper, so that passengers, to pass the time, used to rob, assault, and occasionally murder one another. With the coming of electric traction the old Underground was cleaned up and refurnished. At the same time, the Tubes were constructed away down in the [xxi] London clay, where there could be no interference from oozy gravel, or gas mains, or sewers. ”

“ Yet the “Hanging Bridge” is but one of many engineering wonders to be found on this railway. Go where one will over its 1,800 miles of track among the Rockies, and some striking and daring work confronts one at every turn. Here the railway threads its way through a winding abyss, there it passes over the crown of a towering peak, or toils laboriously up the side of a sheering cliff. No two miles are alike. In all it traverses five yawning canyons, each possessing a strange individuality, and crosses the mountain backbone by which the continent is split in twain by three different passes. ”

“ All the other bridges on the railway are being rebuilt gradually on these lines, and when this task is completed the engineer will have one danger the less to fear—the collapse of the slender link of communication across the gulches.
One can enjoy a most exhilarating experience on this railway. This is the descent from Galera tunnel to Callao on a small hand-car. It is a glorious coast downhill for no less than 107 miles. One rushes down inclines, swings round curves, threads tunnels, and whisks across gorges at the exhilarating speed of 45 miles an hour. ”

“ The road clings for the most part to the side of the mountains, crossing deep rifts and wide clefts, as well as cutting through spurs and humps and compassing massive crags.298 Four tunnels were found to be unavoidable, one, 3,580 feet in length, burrowing 200 feet beneath the Great Wall. When the summit is gained, the railway enters a flat plateau, the only difficulty here, as on the flats around Pekin, being the preservation of the road from the attacks of floods. ”

“ The to-and-fro movement of a dense traffic on a four-track railway requires a large amount of switching, especially when each movement is complicated by junctions of two or more lines. Practically every problem of trunk line train movement, including two, three, and four-track operation, had to be provided for in the switching plants of the subway. Further, the problem was complicated by the restricted clearances and vision attendant upon tunnel construction. ”

“ Nor are railways always hideous objects. It is true that in and around the great centres of population where railway lines converge and run in filthy tunnels and along smoke-begrimed viaducts they sound the last note of squalor, but in the country it is a different matter. ”

“ For a good many years New York and Baltimore, in particular, have been pierced with these sub-surface railroads; it is a construction feature that increases as our great cities themselves increase. No river is to-day too formidable to be conquered by these underground traffic routes. A river such as the Hudson or the Detroit may sometimes halt the bridge-builders; it has but slight terror for the tunnel engineers.
The tunnel-work is apt to be a separate part of the [Pg 50] work of building a railroad. It calls for its own talent, and that of an exceedingly expert sort. ”

“ It was to be worked and maintained by the West Midland, Shrewsbury and Coast of Wales Railway Co.; the prospects of mineral and passenger traffic were “most promising,” and throughout its entire length of 90 miles, the promoters pointed out with all the emphasis which italics can afford, “it has only one tunnel, and that slightly exceeding a mile and half in length.” ”

“ One inspiriting phase of the railway-builder’s work is the race against time, and in the fulfilment of such a task many an astonishing performance has been achieved. When one of the great American railways was pushing its way to the Pacific coast, it required a tunnel to be driven for two miles through the Cascades. It was a daring piece of work, and the railway company, after considering the scheme, decided that it could be accomplished cheaper and more quickly under contract than by direct labour. ”

“ The difficulties in making a subterranean or subaqueous railway are only too clear. You have hitherto had means of taking passengers and goods over the river by steam ferries. I am aware that this right has existed a long time—I believe as far back as the 11th century. But it is a remarkable fact that in the last year you conveyed across the Mersey, from Birkenhead to Liverpool, on the steam ferries 26,000,000 passengers, and 750,000 tons of goods. You may say, such being the case, why do you require to have this tunnel, and to have your railway to connect Liverpool and Birkenhead? ”

“ The general height of the subways will be about 11 feet 6 inches and their width 7 feet; they will be of brickwork, excepting where they are carried over the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway; there they will be of iron. In each subway provision is made for water, gas, and telegraph pipes, all of which will be so placed that their joints can be inspected, and repairs made without difficulty.
The mode of construction of sewers, drains, and street gullies is such that it will never be necessary to break up the surface of the Viaduct to repair or cleanse them. ”

“ The system of cast-iron railways is as yet to be considered but in its infancy. It will be found to be an immense improvement on the common road, and also on the wooden railway. It neither presents the friction of the tram-way, nor partakes of the perishable nature of the wooden railway, and, as regards utility, it may be considered as the medium between the navigable canal and the common road. We may therefore hope that as this system develops itself, our roads will be laid out as much as possible on one level, and in connection with the great lines of communication throughout the country. ”

“ In the handling of unavoidable night trains an elaborate protection system was adopted in connection with the tunnels, to prevent disaster to the trains themselves or to the working gangs. No trains were permitted to enter a tunnel until assurance had been made doubly sure that there was no constructional train standing on the only line to court collision, and that the workmen were safe. ”

“ The tunnel was lighted with gas, and the motion in passing through it must have been as pleasing as it was novel to all the party. On arriving at the engine station, the cars were attached to the Northumbrian locomotive engine, on the southern of the two lines of rail; and immediately the other trains of carriages started through the tunnel and were attached to their respective engines on the northern of the lines. ”

“ In other places, according to the peculiarities of the ground, the line is carried on through tunnels under the houses, cellars, sewers, and aqueducts. It is a miraculous railway, and one which has been constructed at an enormous outlay of ingenuity and money ”

“ REBUILDING A BRIDGE ON THE LEOPOLDINA RAILWAY
The masonry structure had to be built beside the original iron structure so as not to disturb traffic.
The solution proved completely successful, and the engines fulfilled their task upon the eight per cent. grades with perfect satisfaction for several years. Then the Baldwin Company, of Philadelphia, undertook to eliminate the special locomotives required on the “Fell” system, and to convert the railway to adhesion working. ”