The Importance of Punctuality.

One of the most worrying features of passenger train running, so far as the problem of maintaining punctuality is concerned, is the constant tendency to spend, on station duties, precious minutes which should be given over to running. The keenest supervision is called for on many routes in this connection, if punctuality is to be maintained, and in suburban traffic working in particular the question of time occupied in station duties requires the closest attention.

Many devices have from time to time been subjected to experiment with a view to bringing home to station staffs and passengers the importance of punctual departures, and on the Underground Railways of London great success has been achieved by the employment of a special syren to give warning that the station time has been exceeded. At many busy stations on this important system, an automatic syren comes into operation after a train has stood at the platform for a pre-determined period, provided the stating signal is “off” and the train has not started. The warning blast from this syren has been found a most effective reminder to all concerned of the passing of time, and although the arrangement lends itself peculiarly to conditions ruling on a busy system like the London Underground, it would appear that some similar device might with advantage be employed at many main line stations where difficulty is experienced in the prompt despatch of passenger trains.