Bad Track

[Fred Schneider]

Baltimore probably invested in track on the basis of how long it would take
to recover the money.  Perhaps the last voluntary rebuilding job was done
about 1951 on Gwynn Oak Blvd.  I think about 1949 or 1950 they redid the
outer end of route 8, removing it from the side of Frederick Road and
placing rails in the paving. About the same time, there was a major
relocation in Sparrows Point. 
By 1953, the company was sufficiently aware of migration to the suburbs and
declining city population and revenues that they were not about to throw
good money down a sewer.  I always though the candidate for the worst track
in the 1950s was PTC.  

		-----Original Message-----
		From:	Jim Holland [mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net]
		Sent:	Monday, February 28, 2000 3:10 AM
		To:	PRCo -- WP -- JTC -- The Big *3*
		Subject:	Bad  Track

		Greetings!

			While PRCo was rather good at electro / mechanical
maintenance, the car
		bodies and track were lacking.  Not complaining - just
observing.  But
		even though the track was not the best, it was still
possible to open a
		car up in most cases while PRCo was still in charge.
			But while looking thru *Streetcar Scenes of the
1950s-in Color* I
		noticed that Baltimore might beat PRCo out for the worst
track! 
		Certainly the track in Baltimore was no better than PRCo.

		James B. Holland
		------- -- ---------
		        Pittsburgh Railways Company (PRCo), June of 1949 --
June of 1953
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