Note 159 — Chapter VI · INTERRELATION BETWEEN HIGHWAY AND OTHER KINDS OF TRANSPORTATION
Reading edition
Chatburn’s “Highway Engineering,” Wiley & Sons, N. Y.
[160] Cf. “Root, Hog or Die,” by Philip Cabot, Atlantic Monthly, August, 1921.
[161] This estimate includes the following items:
Heavy Car Light Car
2 Drivers $8.00-10.00 $10.00 per day $10.00
Tires 4.00- 6.00 6.00 4.00
Oil, etc. .75- 1.00 1.00 .75
Gasoline 3.50- 5.50 5.00 3.50
Depreciation 4.00- 6.00 6.00 4.00
Interest 1.00- 1.50 1.50 1.00
Insurance 1.00- 1.50 1.50 1.00
Garage .50- 1.00 1.00 .50
License, taxes .75- 1.50 1.50 .75
Repairs .50- 1.00 .50 .50
24.00-35.00 $34.00 26.00
[162] “Root, Hog, or Die: The New Englander and His Railroads,” by Philip Cabot, in Atlantic Monthly, August, 1921, p. 258.
[163] Wall Street Journal, August 26, 1921.
[164] The Railway Review, Chicago, July 30, 1921.
[165] W. Jett Lauck, a union-labor economist, in a report laid before the Railroad Labor Board, specifies the avoidable wastes as follows:
1. Modernizing locomotives.—Gross reparable deficiencies are pointed out which it is claimed might be avoided by the applications of improvements such as superheaters, brick arches, mechanical stokers, feed-water heaters, there would result an annual saving of at least $272,500,000.
2. Locomotive operation.—The magnitude of the railways’ coal bill is considered and certain of the larger wastes calculated, and it is concluded that by use of better methods of coal purchase, coal inspection, careful receipt, and efficient firing of the locomotives, an annual saving could be effected of at least $50,000,000.
3. Shop organization improvements.—The sad and almost incredible inadequacy and out-of-date equipment of the railway shops is reviewed, and defenseless wastes considered, and it is conservatively estimated that by a proper shop organization an annual saving could be effected of at least $17,000,000.
4. Power-plant fuel savings.—The obsolete and wasteful condition of the power plants in the railway shops is considered, and it is estimated that in this field the possible saving of fuel would by itself amount to an annual total of $10,000,000.
5. Water-consumption savings.—The railroads’ expenditure in maintenance of way and structure is reviewed, necessary wastes noted, and it is estimated that easily attainable savings in the consumption of water alone would amount annually to $12,600,000.
6. Service of supply savings.—The expenditure of the railways for supplies has been inquired into and the avoidable losses surveyed, and it is estimated that the wastes and abuses amount annually to not less than $75,000,000.
7. Shop accounting savings.—Attention has been given to the matter of uniform railroad statistics and the use of efficient methods of cost accounting. An annual saving would be feasible to the amount of $10,900,000.
8. Labor turn-over savings.—The industrial losses due to unnecessary labor turn-over and to inadequate training of personnel have been reviewed, and it is estimated that the avoidable wastes incident to labor turn-over alone amount to more than $40,000,000.
9. Loss and damage savings.—Inquiry has been made into the amount of the annual damage account of the railways and into preventable causes of such losses, and it is estimated that an annual saving might be effected to the amount of $90,000,000.
Other alleged losses, he says, would bring the total waste to over a billion.
[166] Report of the Joint Commission on Agricultural Inquiry.