I just obtained a Frisco September, 1929 public timetable in pretty good condition. This date is one of the very few post 1927 Frisco PTT's I do not have in my PTT collection. Should be an interesting read - this is the timetable that was in effect at the time of the October, 1929 crash that led to the depression. These timetables represent the Frisco close to its passenger train peak prior to the woes of the depression, which hit the railroads, including the Frisco, very hard (actual peak was in 1928). Ken
Actually the peak was in 1928. Between 1921 and 1926 the passenger count on Frisco trains fell by 54.4%.During the same period train miles, defined as one passenger riding one mile, declined only 1.6 %. The result was many trains carrying fewer riders. In 1921 the average Frisco train carried 62.6 passengers compared to 47.4 in 1926. Since these are system numbers one can speculate that the ridership on branch line trains was similarly affected. The large number of passenger trains and passenger train miles may have reflected management’s desire to retain lucrative mail and express business that normally moved on passenger trains. Between 1924 and 1930 the Frisco Man employee magazine carried tabulations of passenger train on-time performance and train numbers for both the Frisco system and the various operating divisions. In July 1928 the railroad implemented a substantial cut in passenger train service. Based on the month of June between 1924 and 1928, the Frisco system, including the Texas subsidiaries, operated between 5,300 and 5,600 passenger trains monthly. The varying numbers probably reflected special passenger trains for the circus, conventions, fairs, and miscellaneous special events. In July 1928 the entire Frisco system operated 4,470 trains, a drop of 20.2 % compared to the prior month.
