FOR TRAMWAY JUNCTIONS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXX, Issue 3, 4 July 1910, Page 2

FOR TRAMWAY JUNCTIONS.

AUTOMATIC POINT CONTROLLER, Tramway junctions in the Wellington system are worked either by the conductor turning the points with a spike and pulling over the* switch on the overhead system or at corners, where there is much traffic, by special pointsmen, as, for instance, at the Ouba-&tTeet crossing. Another awkward branch with the increased, tratfflc to Kilbjrnie and the further suburbs is the corner of Elizabeth street and Kent-terrace. This was described by the Electrical Engineer (Mr. Stuart Richardson) to the Ctty Council at thje Thursday meeting as dangerous. On his recommendation, therefore, the council authorised' the purchase of an Automatjo Point Controller, which would do away with the necessity for a special pointsman and tie evolutions of the conductor, hopping on and off tie car .to work the points in the slack hours. The Turner Automatio Point Controller is an extremely .ingenious contrivance adopted in every main large tramway system at Home and on, the Continent. The apparatus, which is concealed in a cast-iron street box similar to those seen at different stations on the main routes in Wellington, is eleotrical, A large magnet does the work of the arai of the conductor. The working is simple. Suppose a car is approaching the junction and the motorrnar wishes to keep right onward ; j he switches his motor controller off, and no current passes to the wire round the magnet, which is in consequence inoperative. The points are not moved and the car passes on. Should he, however, wish to take the branch route, he would -on approaching the junction keep his-controller on. The trolley-head would strike an insulated contact-plate on the overhead wire. Current would then flow from the live trolley-wire to the magnet coil, which being energised would draw down the core, and, by a system of levers, shift the points holding them while the car passes on to "the branch rail. Further up the branch line is a releasing contact plate which effeots the release of the points absolutely automatically and independently .of the motorman. The overhead points are operated at the same time in the same way. There j& also provision for working by hand in case of emergency. The points controller has been tested by long service in other systems, and should supply a real need on the Wellington tramways.