Volume 17 , Issue 40

The Horseless Vehicle of the Future

It was in The Times, out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sunday, 6 December 1896, page 15, that we find this headline: "The Horseless Vehicle of the Future."

Found on Newspapers.com

The rapid development of the motor carriage movement in London leads the illustrated London News to remark that the cab of the future, not only so far as London is concerned, but for every large city throughout the country, was, without doubt, that propelled by electricity.

In appearance the vehicles will not be at all unlike broughams, but more roomy and more comfortable. They are to be strongly and lightly built, of a tasteful and special design, elegantly decorated, upholstered most luxuriously and illuminated with he electric light, while attention had also been devoted to that most important detail, facility of communication with the driver. In a word, every possible want or convenience of the passenger had been anticipated and provided for.

The adaptability of electricity as a motive power had long since been demonstrated. Its advantages were beyond question. It was noiseless, it gave off no unpleasant smell and it was under perfect control. It was superior to petroleum in many ways, particularly for use on quick short journeys such as ordinary cabs were called upon to perform; though in this connection it may be stated that at present (1896) petroleum may be better suited for the heavier urban work, while the advantages of steam for very heavy vehicles and country traveling cannot be gainsaid. The superiority of electric cabs over those drawn by horse-power must at once attract attention. In the first place, there was no horse to bolt or fall, thereby doing away at once with one fertile source of accidents. In the second place, they would be under far ore effective control by the driver than any vehicle now on the streets of London, thus reducing to a minimum the risk of collision, while there was absolutely no possibility of accidents occurring, as they so often do with the present cabs (1896), through the horse moving or shying while the passenger was entering or leaving the vehicle. The new electric cabs were to be fitted with accumulators carried beneath the body of the vehicle, charged to propel it at least forty miles a day, though accumulators could be charged so as to enable the cab to cover twice that distance.

In 1896, an electrical cab company had already been formed. The electrical supply companies had expressed their willingness to cooperate with the new company in the provision of the motive power and special arrangements had been entered into with the London Electric Supply Corporation, limited, to supply the electricity at a very low price. There need be no fear of the cabs breaking down, for depots were to be established in various parts of London, including the immediate suburbs, and when the driver saw that the force of his motor was about to become exhausted, all he would have to do was to got to the nearest depot and get fresh accumulators, the transfer not occupying more than a minute or two at most.
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