PAT Snow Removal

[Fred W. Schneider III]

Yes, somebody had to clear the snow.  You can only move a rail car, bus,
automobile or horse through so many inches of snow.

And Yes, franchise agreements usually forced the railways to clear the
streets on which they ran.  If the other streets were cleared, the
taxpayers paid that bill.  This was another of those many expenses that
bus conversions eliminated.  

Edward S. Miller (the photographer from Pittston, PA) has a nice picture
in the 1954 winter) of the entire Scranton streetcar fleet idle in the
snow in the car yard.  The sweepers were also idle.  Reason, the company
planned to abandon anyway.  Their logic was screw the city.  This time
we really don't care what the franchise agreement calls for because we
won't have to remove any snow when we go to buses.  So for that final
snow, they apparently put a few extra buses out, perhaps with G R
Suburban cards in the window, probably justified on an emergency basis. 
Scranton Transit let the city remove the final snow of the streetcar
era.

One of the reasons many companies cited for no longer using snow removal
equipment was a changed attitude among motorists.  Philadelphia makes a
good example.  By the 1960s, motorists abandoned automobiles on the
streets.  Tracks were blocked because drivers apparently, as group, felt
no obligation to exert energy digging out a parking space at the curb. 
Whether or not a streetcar could get by was no longer a concern, either
because of a general decline in a concern for others or maybe because
the motorists never gave a transit patron the lest thought.  PTC simply
couldn't get the sweepers through.  And, if the sweepers could not be
used, why maintain the fleet?  

There is, of course, one fundamental reason why transit authorities
don't remove snow.  The subsidy money is there whether we run or not. 
It often costs less to shut down than keep running.  Instead of spending
a small fortune plowing snow, today the storm can help balance the
budget!  

Charles Brown wrote:
> 
> Okay, since PAT and other LRV systems no longer have snow removal
> equipment, that brings up my next question.  Were snow removal cars
> (plows, scrapers & sweepers) a necessity for PRC and other companies in
> maintaining rail service?  Or was it primarily for clearing streets as
> might be required in franchise arrangements?
> 
> Charlie
> 
> Charlesebrown at webtv.net