[PRCo] Re: Rankin Car House

[Harold Geissenheimer]

Fred and all
I am not familiar with PRC having to pay to move people when a barn
closed.  You had to have a system pick and they could use their seniority
anywhere.  It probably still is the procedure.

Harold Geissenheimer

Fred Schneider wrote:

>And for some years I had a neighbor who was a Conestoga Transportation driver
>... actually he ran the last Ephrata car in 1947.  By the late 1960s and early
>1970s he was Numero Uno, and picked a suburban route in the winter and extra
>list in summer ... he loved those long summer charters to Nashville or the
>Grand Canyon.
>
>Your first statement comes right back to what I was wondering ... motormen
>would live near the carbarn.
>
>Who's got a 1937 union contract for PRC that shows what the company had to do
>if they closed a barn and moved the men?  Since Castle Shannon closed in the
>early 1930s, I would believe the issue was still fresh.
>
>Harold Geissenheimer wrote:
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>>Fred and all
>>
>>Motorman would like to live near thebarn..especially for 3AM runs or
>>late pull ins.
>>Also extra board operators wanted to live close
>>
>>I believe that PRC ran some early 3AM trips on lines to get people to work
>>Om 2d ave to glenwood or places with out all night service.
>>
>>Certainly all night service made S Hills a good assignment
>>
>>Always interesting which employee bid which type of run.
>>
>>Many of the oldest wanted 3-4AM starts to get home early.
>>Others wanted them for the opportunity to get extra work
>>
>>Harmony's most senior bid the extra board because he wanted to work
>>charters (The famed Sam Bardonna of Bardonna road off of route 8)
>>
>>Augie at Harmony and Community bid the last out in the AM rush
>>because he did not like to drive in the snow,
>>
>>One driver always took 2 weekend days and 3 weekday because
>>traffic was easier.  When wives worked or school considerations also
>>affected bids.
>>
>>Ray M and Bob L from Butler picked a afternoon combination where
>>they could drive together to Tarentum.  They had seniority to work mornings
>>but could not get a good match.
>>
>>Types of eqipment and time of  rush hour trips in Pgh also affected picks.
>>
>>Many operators study run picks for hours before making a choice.
>>
>>Harold
>>in the afternoon.
>>
>>Fred Schneider wrote:
>>
>>    
>>
>>>Follow up on previous e-mails:
>>>
>>>Rankin Bridge collapsed June 26, 1937 and was reopened November 25,
>>>1937.  A sidewalk opened in August.
>>>
>>>On July 10, 1937 Rankin Car House closed as an operating facility.
>>>Routes 55, 60 and 61 were moved to Homewood.  Route 59 went to
>>>Glenwood.  Routes 67 and 68 went Craft.  The route cards for each route
>>>began with, "Because of the collapse of the Rankin Bridge, ....."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, we have no information on the factors PRC used in their
>>>decision to move the routes out of Rankin in 1937, or for the failure to
>>>return those routes to Rankin later in the same year.  Perhaps the
>>>company had been wanting to close it for sometime and the collapse
>>>simply made shifting of jobs easier.  Apparently the other barns now had
>>>sufficient capacity for all the routes, and they continued to have
>>>adequate capacity throughout World War II.
>>>
>>>Thirty years earlier most operators would have lived in the neighborhood
>>>where they worked ... generally within walking distance.  Perhaps mostly
>>>within one-half mile.  If you moved men to another division, you might
>>>have had to move them to a new home.  West Penn Railways did that when
>>>the Iron Bridge Carbarn was closed; the company moved the men to new
>>>houses at Greensburg or Connellsville.  But this was 1937 and most
>>>families in the state had an automobile (ownership was lower in urban
>>>areas like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia).  Moving men may have been more
>>>of an annoyance than major problem.  My recollection is that most
>>>carbarns in Pittsburgh did not have an abundance of parking for
>>>employees.  This may not have been a problem at Homewood because there
>>>would have been five blocks or more of street spaces beside the company
>>>facility.  Glenwood may have had some space in the 1950s but I don't
>>>know about 1930s.   Space was probably at a premium around Craft Avenue
>>>... certainly the presence of Magee Woman's Hospital next door would
>>>have put a premium on street space.   I would love to see what the rest
>>>of you are thinking.
>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>>      
>>>
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