The Need for the Motorbus.
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Professor F. Douglas Fox, M.Inst.C.E., in the course of a paper before " Section G " of the recent meeting of the British Association, at Dublin, on " General urban and inter-urban transportation and railless electric traction," presented several interesting views upon the motor omnibus and its prospects. He said the question as to whether urban transportation on the surface is best accomplished with or without rails had yet to be solved by actual experience. The solution might demonstrate the superiority Of one or the other, both from a technical and commercial semdpeint, or it might prove the usefulness of each system in its own place. The principal technical points to be considered were :simplicity of mechanism, ample capacity, speed, power of rapid acceleration, comfort, and convenience. The 00111mercial features were moderate capital expenditure and cost of operation, including ample depreciation. On the one hand, the cost of construction of electric tramways had been -steadily mounting up. Even in its most economical form, the cost of the permanent way exceeded that of some railways. In addition, the authorities in many cases demanded an underground current supply, either in conduct or by the surface contact system. The analysis of the commercial results of corporation-owned tramways of the United Kingdom on the overhead trolley system showed, as a whole, an unprofitable business.
Other Systems in Possession.
The mechanical omnibus could be installed for less than half the cost of a tramway, but its working expenses were somewhat higher. When interest on capital was combined with working expenses, and both together were reduced to ,cost per car-mile, it would be shown that there was not much ;margin of profit between the tramway and the petrol bus. If, however, the mechanical omnibus were no more than on a commercial parity with the tramway, it would, if there were still a clear field and no favour, be preferable on account of the lower capital expenditure. This country had, however, committed itself heavily to the tramway system, haying embarked capital in it to the extent of about 35 millions of municipal indebtedness, so millions of corn-panics' obligations and 20 millions of -preference and ordinary stock. In other words, the cream of urban traffic had already gone to the tramway. The motor omnibus could not now displace its rival, but must look for its field with some exceptions either to the smaller towns or to suburban extensions of city tramways, or to foreign countries, Since the denser and more remunerative traffic.. was already dealt with, the motor omnibus should, in order' to succeed in Great Britain, he able to pay with a lower revenue than the average of the tramways.
Street Railways a Nuisance.
As to the technical features, on the one hand, a railway was an unnatural adjunct to a city street. On its own right of way, it was unexceptional, but, in the midst of a public thoroughfare, it interfered with a dense, heterogenous traffic, both during construction, operation and repair. On the other hand, the tramcar as at present designed was superior to the motor omnibus in comfort and capacity. The latter could handle an enormous traffic, it could travel quite as fast as was consistent with safety, and in point of comfort had been lately greatly improved. It was, however, limited as to its capacity, from respect for the road surface, to onethird the weight permissible and allowed on IIle iraIllWay.
Some Comparisons.
The mechanical omnibus had to he considered in three forms : that operated by (i) the internal-combustion engine ; (2) by the. electric secondary battery; and (3) be the trackless trolley system. The tramway would be considered from the analysis of the statistics of 71 corporation-owned undertakings in Great Britain, serving populations varying from s3,000 at Maidstone to over a million at Glasgow.
There were actually 75 municipal tramways, but as to four of them the data were not complete. Capital had up to the present only been embarked in the mechanical omnibus to any large extent in that form where the petrol or steam motor was used. In London alone, sonic at; millions of capital had been invested, which, at the market quotations, would appear to have a present value of about a million. There could be little doubt that the motor omnibus was bound to come, but it seemed to have come too quickly. There was no restriction to public carriers on highways such as there was to railway companies, and mutually destructive and competitive undertakings in the form of omnibus lines could be carried on to any extent. When capital poured into motor omnibus companies, the existing horse omnibus companies were driven into adopting motors also, to the prejudice of their commercial standing. The 31 millions of capital above-mentioned did not include that of many companies which had disappeared.
Tramway Results.
In the 71 cases of corporation-owned tramways, the working expenses varied from about 41d. to 8Ld. per car-mile. The capital charges of interest, sinking fund and depreciation, similarly reduced, varied from 2d. to s!,d. The averages of these data were 6.34d. and 3.62d. respectively. These two figures added represented an average minimum remunerative revenue of 9.96d. The actual average revenue obtained was to.52d. per car-mile. Thus, the average net profit barely exceeded 1d. per mile. In the petrol omnibus, the working expenses and depreciation together were estimated at so,86d. per car-mile. Adding to this for interest and sinking found at 6 per cent. and reducing similarly, the minimum remunerative revenue was estimated at 11.7d. per car-mile. The variation was great, and under certain conditions the figure might be well over is. per car-mile. [Professor Douglas Fox has quoted high figures.—Eol In the tramway list considered, there were only to out of the 71 cases in which the traffic receipts reached I t.741. per car-mile. On the other hand, directly an omnibus line was able to earn a profit at all, each 1-cl. per car-mile, when reduced to percentage on its much smaller capital, meant three times as much -profit as it did on the tramway.
Accumulator-driven Omnibuses.
The electric omnibus with accumulators, popularly known in London as the electrobus, was estimated as capable of meeting its expenses and depreciation at 9.5d. per car-mile, and adding to this a 6 per cent. allowance for interest and sinking fund; the minimum remunerative revenue became to.25d, per car-mile, In the tramway list there were 35 of the 71 in which the traffic receipts reached this figure.
The electric omnibus with overhead wires, the trackless trolley system, was estimated as a possible paying concern with a revenue of from 7db to gd., according to class of construction. In the tramway list there were 65 which had a revenue of over 7d., and 50 of over 9d. per car-mile.
General Conclusions.
As compared with the tramway, the mechanical omnibus was still in its infancy, and was continually being improved. There was, moreover, a great stimulus to invention, in order to save the outlay on permanent way, and to occupy the immense field oT public highways which await occupation by improved methods of mechanical transportation. In India alone, there were said to be 15o,000 miles of good roads, upon which both passengers and goods traffic could be handled upon a prodigious scale.
Tn conclusion, Professor Fox said :In the developments or urban transportation which have been the result of private enterprise, there has been, until lately, no attempt at comprehensive treatment, and much disastrous competition. Of late years, in London, a broader policy has been followed, of endeavouring to make the various methods as far as possible mutually helpful, but even in that city a Central Board of Traffic is still required. The railways, the tubes, the tramways, the motor and horse omnibuses, each and all have their proper sphere, and it is to be hoped that in the future transportation engineering will become more and more an exact science, in the application of the various available methods to the spheres of usefulness for which they are best suited, and the avoidance of that great barrier to progress, the waste of capital.