Photos

[Fred W. Schneider III]

And to continue on the same subject, we have adequate documentation that they
refused after 1930 to do anything because:

1.  They shut down the alternate route from Scottdale to Greensburg via Hunker
because Youngwood wanted to repave a street ... they paid part just to escape.

2.  They shut down the Buena Vista or Scott Haven line in 1932 because the
engineering costs for adding rails to the new Allegheny County - owned bridge
over the Yough was more than a years worth of fares.

3.  They shut down the whole McKeesport system, which earned more revenue per
car mile or per car hour than any other part of the empire, because there would
be inadequate return on an investment of new rail on Walnut Street.  And their
people recognized that Walnut Street was only a part of the new rail that would
be needed in that city.

4.  And if the strongest part of the system didn't earn enough money, it doesn't
take a whole lot of gray matter to understand what would have happened if
Greensburg wanted to repave Main Street or Connellsville needed to redo
Crawford.

"Edward H. Lybarger" wrote:

> It's really quite logical:
>
> 1.  West Penn had lots of money in the '20s, even though they weren't quite
> making the bond interest out of operations after 1920 (they had those
> 866,000 or so shares of power company stock that paid great dividends).
> Thus when the street work had to be done, they went along as a matter of
> course, though not without an argument -- which they won -- about girder vs.
> T-rail in the replacement track.  The latter was selected because of lower
> cost.
>
> 2.  The business declined by about 50% by 1932, followed by line
> abandonments.  In each case (except for the flood washing away the
> Leechburg - Apollo route), a paving or construction project was cited in the
> abandonment petitions.  So while it was clear that management would continue
> to operate an existing facility because it produced SOME revenue (they still
> had those bonds to pay down, remember), they would not invest in anything
> major after the onset of the Depression.
>
> 3.  Had agreement not been reached to repave Crawford Avenue when they did,
> it would still have worn out and required replacement.  The company knew in
> the very early '30s that it would be getting out of the trolley business;
> they just didn't know when.  "When" for the main line would have been when
> this major expenditure was needed.
>
> Ed
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> [mailto:owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org]On Behalf Of Donald Galt
> Sent: Saturday, July 01, 2000 5:10 AM
> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> Subject: RE: Photos
>
> On 30 Jun 00, at 10:52, Edward H. Lybarger wrote:
>
> > I'll leave the subject for now with the pronouncement that if
> Connellsville
> > hadn't resurfaced its main street in the 1920s, West Penn would have been
> gone
> > in the Depression.  No one has ever said that before!
> >
>
> Nor has anyone ever left us dangling quite so badly! C'mon, EL, drop the
> other shoe.
>
> Don