There was also the added perk of providing some freight business. In an era before automobiles, when steel rails handled nearly all interstate and intercity travel, the interurban concept seemed viable, in theory. However, instead of serving a single municipality this new operation would link two or more. The interurban was conceived as a transit system, developed from the basic streetcars of the era. By 1950 just 1,519 miles remained and the number dropped to 209 miles by 1959.Īs William Middleton notes in his book, " Traction Classics: The Interurbans, Extra Fast & Extra Fare, Volume II," by the end of World War I interurbans were already experiencing financial difficulty. These numbers slowly receded into the 1920's as abandonment hastened through the 1930's. In 1889 there were just 7 miles of interurbans in service, a number which jumped to 3,122 by 1901, and finally peaked at 15,580 in 1916. Once more, a financial setback, the Panic of 1907, ended investment although afterwards another great construction period did not materialize.
![manico trolley manico trolley](https://www.bakaji.com/images/prodotti/Carrello-porta-zaino-lilla-per_01824403.jpg)
The Panic of 1903 ended this fervor but it reignited again between 19 when another 4,000 miles were built. There were three great periods of interurban development the first occurred during the 1890's and then reached a great flurry of construction between 19 when more than 5,000 miles were laid down. 29" issued Januthe entire Belt Line ran from Milepost 90.7 at Bay View, Maryland to Milepost 97.9 at Hamburg Street, Baltimore. According to the railroad's "Official List No. Short conceived another important development, the contact "shoe."īy the time main line electrified systems were introduced in 1895, when the Baltimore & Ohio energized 4 miles of its Baltimore trackage (including the 1.4-mile Howard Street Tunnel), the technology was quite advanced. It opened on Februand proved successful.Īnother important developer was Sidney Howe Short who invented a double-reduction, gearless motor and also learned that overhead catenary was the best means for electrical pickup. He eventually secured a contract in May of 1887 with the Richmond Union Passenger Railway in Virginia to provide cars for its operation. Sprague failed to interest the New York Elevated but others were impressed.
![manico trolley manico trolley](http://shop.partycolare.it/images/thumbs/0001467_trolley-zaino-asilo-con-manico-orientabile-tartarughe-ninja-deluxe.jpeg)
This gave way to the typical streetcar which became such a common sight throughout America. George Hilton and John Due's authoritative piece, " The Electric Interurban Railways In America," points out the birth of the true American interurban began when Frank Sprague developed an electric motorcar in 1886 for the New York Elevated Railway whereby the motor(s) were situated between the axle, along with a trolley pole and multiple-unit control stand.
#MANICO TROLLEY GENERATOR#
What became the classic interurban all began in the 1870's with two key developments in 1870 Zenobe Gramme unveiled a generator for commercial use while Werner von Siemens showcased the world's first electric locomotive at an exhibition in Berlin, Germany during 1879.Īs these technologies found their way to the United States the first examples appeared in the 1880's in 1880 Thomas Edison tested an experimental electric locomotive, powered by a dynamo, which was operated on a stretch of track in Menlo Park, New Jersey.Īs Dr. Ironically, the commuter services inteurbans provided are actually making a comeback as LRT (light rail transit) systems as cities look for alternatives to increasingly crowded highways. Most were out of the business by World War II and only one still operates today, the Iowa Traction Railway (others have shed their "interurban" status and now operate as short line freight carriers). It is rather amazing so much capital was expended on these operations, which struggled to make a profit right from the start.Ī few, such as the Illinois Terminal and Piedmont & Northern, bucked this trend and blossomed into successful freight carriers while the Pacific Electric Railway is regarded as the greatest of all interurbans. Much of the trackage was situated east of the Mississippi River as the interurban offered flexibility and affordability for the everyday commuter.