26 POWER DISTRIBUIION FOR ELECTRIC RAILROADS. 
materially improved, rising in fact to about three-fourths 
on this supposition. But in small plants the day mimi- 
mum is relatively smaller than in Fig. 16, so that the load 
factor is worse. Indeed it only too frequently falls to one- 
quarter or one-third in roads operating five to ten cars. 
Any value of load factor over one-half may be considered 
good in any but the largest plants. 
In long roads operating a few large cars or trains at 
20,000 
15,000 
10,000 
Current amperes 
5,000 
  
12 6 Time 12 6 12 
Mid, A.M. Noon P.M. Mid. 
Street Railway Journal 
FIG. 16, 
high speed, the load is subject to smaller casual variations, 
but the load factor is apt to be low by reason of the great 
change made by the stopping or starting of a single load unit. 
The load during the period of acceleration is likely to be 
about double the running load even with carefully handled 
motors, and as this period is often several minutes, there is 
an excellent chance for the superposition of several such 
loads. 
More serious than any others are the variations in the 
location of load, since these may cause a heavy call for