Will Concord Take on Street Car Line? It Remains to be Seen, Aug. 8, 1925

Fate of Street Car Line Creates Interest. . . Many Persons Unable to See Why City Would Want to Operate the Line

“If the public service company can’t make money out of the thing, how does the city hope to?”

That seems to be the general opinion here relative to the city of Concord taking over the street car system. The North Carolina Public Service Company is willing to lease the system to the city for $1 a year, the aldermen have been advised.

“But why waste the dollar?” say those persons who see nothing but a liability in the property of the street railway. “The public service company knows something about running a street car and it lost money; how could we expect to do otherwise?”

The public service company want to discontinue the schedule here, this being one of the proposals made to the aldermen. It is costing the company about $19.50 a day to operate the line and revenues average about $12 a day. The company has stood the loss about as long as it cares to, therefore the generous offer to let the city have the property for $1 a year.

Of course, the aldermen have not taken over the property yet; in fact they have just started an investigation to see what is the best thing to do. However, to hear some of the talk on the street one would thin the matter was settled and that the city had a white elephant on its hands for life. Mayor C.H. Barrier has appointed a committee to study the problems, and its report probably will determine the city’s action; certainly nothing will be done in this matter until the committee makes its report.

From page 2 of The Concord Daily Tribune, Aug. 8, 1925

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