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Commendable Advance of the Trolley-bus

2nd December 1932
Page 35
Page 36
Page 35, 2nd December 1932 — Commendable Advance of the Trolley-bus
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

AS tramway tracks become clue for renewal, an increasing proportion of abandonments IC tramway systems is noticed, the change made being, in most cases, by the substitution of trolley-buses, The development is not only interesting, but commendable, for municipal operators can, generally speaking, be 'relied upon not to make the mistake of instituting trolley-vehicle service.where the motorbus would be a better economic proposition.

The heavier capital outlay on the trolley=bus makes it suitable only when the,, traffic is com paratively heavy, but it is, to some extent, minimized because, in so many cases, power Plant in . good repair exists, not to mention overhead gear, which, with adaptation and some strengthening of poles, can be made satisfac torily to serve the new system. .

The trolley-bus is a silent vehicle and has excellent acceleration, hill-climbing and braking. It is flexible in traffic and does not cause vibration or fumes. The single-motor type of power unit is proving satisfactory, because of its simplicity and cheapness, and its high over-. load capacity is greatly in its favour. As the rail system is dispensed with, heavy cost in track maintenance is eliminated, whilst a serious objection, namely, that passengers must board trains in the middle of the road, also is removed.

The fact that trolley-buses must operate in sequence and cannot pass each other is inconvenient for certain routes, and, of course, for the opening up and serving of the less densely populated areas the motorbus is supreme.

It is to be hoped, therefore, that the success of the trolley-bus will continue, particularly as It makes use of home-produced fuel.

Fair Play for the Oil Engine.

ri VERY new development in road transport -1-4 requires a trying-out period, which may be either short or long, according to the importance of the move and the ease or difficulty of the problem to be solved. No one will deny that many difficulties confront the builder of an oil engine who has not had previous experience in this direction. Considerable experimental work must be undertaken, and the engines tested for long periods under service conditions. Some makers have more than passed what may be termed the "teething" stage and have produced compression-ignition units which are proving themselves to be economical, reliable and easy to maintain.

To permit of further progress, it is essential that suitable engines should be in the hands of as many users as possible. Efforts are, however, being made to raise doubts as to the potentialities of this new form of power unit, by circularizing operators and putting before them not those points for which the oil engine can justly be praised, but criticisms and difficulties, many of which are based upon early experience and are steadily being overcome.

This is not playing the game. By all means let the oil engine progress on its merits, as it undoubtedly will do, but to impede it by questionable accusations as to its economical employment may well have a boomerang effect.

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