Open Research Online The Open University’s repository of research publications and other research outputs Electrifying the streets : the surface-contact controversy in five English towns 1880-1920 Thesis How to cite: Colley, Gerald (2015). Electrifying the streets : the surface-contact controversy in five English towns 1880- 1920. PhD thesis The Open University. For guidance on citations see FAQs. c 2015 The Author https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Version: Version of Record Link(s) to article on publisher’s website: http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21954/ou.ro.0000d65c Copyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. For more information on Open Research Online’s data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policies page. oro.open.ac.uk DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY ELECTRIFYING THE STREETS: THE SURFACE-CONTACT CONTROVERSY IN FIVE ENGLISH TOWNS 1880-1920 by Gerry Colley BA (Hons), MSc, CEng, FICE, FCIHT Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the Open University 27 November 2014 DA.IE ot: St..,)£fY\\'G~':':'\O n: 1.7 NO'Je rY"\B eR.. 20 I '-+ D~le o~ AwAkj): \4 tl\ny' 1.0lC IMAGING SERVICES NORTH Boston Spa, Wetherby West Yorkshire, LS23 7BQ www.bl,uk BEST COpy AVAILABLE. VARIABLE PRINT QUALITY IMAGING SERVICES NORTH Boston Spa, Wetherby . West Yorkshire, LS23 7BQ www.bl.uk PAGINATED BLANK-PAGES ARE SCANNED AS FOUND IN ORIGINAL THESIS- NO INFORMATION IS MISSING ~f 5r: - 3 AUG 2015 OJ :' d The Library ····_--·--;;NATION 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis is dedicated to my dear wife Jan, without whose unwavering support this research would have been impossible. I am indebted to my long-term supervisor, Dr Colin Chant for his advice and guidance over several years, and more recently to Dr Debbie Brunton, both of whom are staff members of the Open University. I am particularly grateful to the staff of Wolverhampton City Archives, and the archivists in Hastings, East Sussex, Mexborough, the Guildhall, the British Library, the National Archives, and various professional Institutions, all of whom have been most helpful. I am also grateful to my relatives and friends too numerous to mention who have offered support and encouragement over the years, but above all have shown an interest in a rather arcane subject! 'Carpe Diem' Tunbridge Wells 27 November 2014 4 ABSTRACT The turn of the nineteenth century was an exciting time for urban transport innovation. Inventors and entrepreneurs sought a power source that was efficient and economical. In some towns, however, other considerations were equally important in choices about transport mode and subsequent operation. Technology, socio-cultural, political, and economic concerns, as well as environmental and aesthetic considerations were all factors. This research considers their influence in the social shaping of the design and implementation processes. Opposition to overhead tram traction was widespread but quickly overcome in most towns. However, after lengthy debates, five towns in England opted for the surface-contact system. Of these, Wolverhampton and Hastings are the main __ ~-- I focus for this research because they occupy opposite ends of the social and political spectrum. Lincoln, Torquay, and Mexborough, where surface-contact traction survived for some time, are covered in less detail. Most historians of technology regard surface-contact tram traction as a failure and a temporary deviation from electric traction development. They maintain that surface-contact was technologically and economically unattractive compared to conventional overhead systems. More recent historians have suggested that aesthetic arguments were a surrogate for other interests. Through an analysis of primary and secondary source material, this thesis investigates those claims. It finds that despite technical difficulties, surface-contact traction survived for several years in the five towns, fulfilling the aesthetic ideals of the time and supporting economic and social development in the process. To this extent, the thesis judges surface-contact to have been a success. - 5 The evolution of urban transport, the development of the towns, and social dynamics including networks of power are all covered, together with aesthetic, environmental and economic considerations, as well as political and commercial pressures. The thesis examines how these diverse issues influenced decisions, and concludes there was no single factor that prompted either adoption or abandonment. 6 ABBREVIATIONS BET - British Electric Traction Company BoT - Board of Trade DS&W TC - The Dudley, Sedgley and Wolverhampton Tramways Company LCC - London County Council LMBC - London Metropolitan Borough Councils LUT - London United Tramways MTC - Midland Tramways Company WDET - Wolverhampton District Electric Tramways Company NECC - National Electric Construction Company WTC - Wolverhampton Tramways Company 7 ( (' 8 LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES and APPENDICES Figures 3.1 - The art nouveau fa~ade of the Wolverhampton Industrial Exhibition. 3.2 - Decorative Lucy boxes in Wolverhampton. 4.1 - Map of St Leonards district in Hastings. Tables 1.1 - Number of approved Acts for the laying of tramways. 2.1 - Comparison of tramway provision between the UK and the USA in 1902-03. 2.2 - The ratio between tramway track and population. 2.3 - Comparison between the UK and the USA of tramway systems in March 1904. 2.4 - Surface-contact installations in the UK. 3.1 - Population statistics for Wolverhampton 3.2 - Population statistics for Wolverhampton's suburbs. 3.3 - Occupational composition of Wolverhampton's councillors. 3.4 - Wolverhampton councillors who were Freemasons 3.5 - Report on first year operations of Lorain system. 3.6 - Comparison of receipts from August 1902 to August 1903. 3.7 - A report on surface-contact traction. 4.1 - Population statistics for Hastings. 5.1 - Population statistics for Torquay. 5.2 - Population statistics for Lincoln. Appendices 1 - Chronological charts from 1820 to 1919. 2 - Illustration of the attitude to steam trams on the streets. 3 - The cable traction system. 4 - The Dolter surface-contact system. 5 - Contemporary advertisement for the Dolter system. 6 - Sector model of Wolverhampton. 7 - Population growth rates. 8 - Other actors and their roles in Wolverhampton. 9 - Map of Wolverhampton tramways. 10 - The Lorain surface-contact system. 11 - The Lorain system in Washington DC. 12 - Typical ornate tramway support poles. 13 - Hastings Borough Engineer's report. 14 - Secret funding of the anti-tram movement. 15 - Poems about the Dolter system in Hastings and Mexborough. 16 - Map of T orquay tramways. 17 - Map of Mexborough tramways. 18 - Map of Hastings tramways. 9 ( 19 - Tramway statistics for Wolverhampton and Lincoln. 20 - Capital investment in tramways in the UK. 21 - Conflicts in the decision-making process. 22 - Overhead wires. 10 CONTENTS Acknowledgements Abstract Abbreviations List of Figures, Tables and Appendices Chapter 1 - Introduction 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Sources for the study 1.3 Aesthetic concerns and opposition to tramway development 1.4 The effect of the regulatory process on private enterprise 1.5 Public versus private enterprise 1.6 The British Electric Traction Company (BET) and the National Electric Construction Company (NECC) 1.7 The duties of the Board of Trade 1.8 Prominent actors in the surface-contact debateo 1.9 Health and safety issues 1.10 Conclusions Chapter 2 - The development of transport systems in the nineteenth century 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Technological development 2.3 Horse-drawn omnibuses 2.4 The origin of tramways - horse-drawn trams 2.5 The limitations of horse power 2.6 The move towards mechanisation 2.7 Steam traction - a source of inanimate power 2.8 The fireless steam engine and the Mekarski compressed-air system 2.9 Cable traction 2.10 Accumulator cars 2.11 The advent of current electricity 11 ( (" 2.12 The open-conduit system 2.13 Surface-contact systems - the aesthetic answer? 2.14 Conclusions Chapter 3 - Wolverhampton: an industrial city 3.1 Introduction 3.2 The geological divide 3.3 Modelling Wolverhampton's development 3.4 Demographic diversity - a profile 3.5 The evolution of local government 3.6 Early transport networks 3.7 The steam tram experiment in Wolverhampton 3.8 A separate enterprise in Wolverhampton 3.9 Municipalisation 3.10 The introduction of surface-contact trams 3.11 Networks of power - the middle classes 3.12 Religious influences 3.13 Corruption and freemasonry - were they factors in the decision-making process? 3.14 The controversial extension of the system 3.15 Aesthetic amelioration 3.16 Conclusions Chapter 4 - Hastings: a seaside town 4.1 Introduction 4.2 The development of Hastings 4.3 The political dimension 4.4 Early transport developments 4.5 The Hastings and St Leonards Omnibus Company 4.6 The threshold of a new era 12 4.7 The final stages 4.8 The installation of the Dolter system 4.9 Conclusions Chapter 5 - The other surface-contact towns 5.1 Introduction 5.2 The impact of local government reform 5.3 Torquay - a seaside town 5.4 Lincoln - a historic city 5.5 Mexborough and district - small industrial towns 5.6 Urban contrasts in London - the surface-contact areas 5.7 Conclusions Chapter 6 - Conclusions Bibliography 13 ( 14 CHAPTER 1- INTRODUCTION Surface-contact traction was 'one of the few striking engineering failures of the century'.1 1.1 Introduction In the view of Klapper and some other transport historians, surface-contact traction for tramways was a failure and a deviation from the true path of electric traction development. They reached this conclusion on the grounds that surface-contact was costly to install, difficult to operate, and expensive to maintain compared with the more traditional overhead systems. As a result, councils either failed to adopt or quickly abandoned the system. This thesis .challenges that conclusion. Contrary to Klapper et a', I will show that despite high costs and technical difficulties, surface-contact systems survived in a number of towns for several years in the UK and elsewhere, fulfilling a hitherto unsatisfied demand for mass transportation, and supporting economic and social development in the process.