ELECTRIC RAILWAY ERA

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 7, 4 October 1920, Page 5

ELECTRIC RAILWAY ERA

FORESEEN IN ENGLAND. London, September 22. That the electric railway era is beginning is foreseen in those areas where the traffic justifies the initial outlay. The chicf electrical engineer of tha North-Eastern Railway Company recent, ly specially visited America to investigate the situation thore. His railway has now considered plans for electrifying the important line of traffic between Newoastlo and York. It haa been encouraged to undertake this by the proved value of the electrified railroad installed during the wnr between the Durham minefields and the Teesido blasting furnaces. A strong Departmental committee has unanimously reported its decision to the Minister of Transport that thoro should be standardisation of electrical equipment for railways, and that tho rollingstock should be interoheiigeable with that of the old nteam linen. The battie of gauges and brakes on different systems should ,be avoided. Among the aHvantagee of tha eiactrieal system would be tho avoidanco of washing boilers, of turning the engines, of cleaning, no painting of signals, and no risk of burning corn crops. There would be no dirty and incidentally no smut would get into passengers' cye6 or dirty their faces.—Renter.