Modernization of a transit system — Factors that determine the choice of vehicle

THE transit industry is facing serious economic problems. Shrinking revenues, due largely to the competition of the private automobile, and increased operating expenses have together so decreased the margin between income and expenses that many systems are now in financial straits. The best solution for these problems, so far advanced, is to modernize the equipment and rehabilitate the service. Some lines have already been modernized; most of the remainder badly need modernization. Present equipment is old and expensive to operate; the service is slow, infrequent, and generally unattractive to the riding public. Through substituting new, fast, comfortable vehicles, run on frequent headways, for the present obsolete equipment and through aggressive management, most transit systems, if not all, may regain a considerable portion of their lost traffic and thus get back to a more satisfactory financial condition.