I recall reading somewhere, that at certain strategic points a steel bar
was so placed in the conduit as to shatter the brittle parts of the grip if
the rope (the commonly used term for the steel cable) was not relinquished
- grips were relatively easy to repair or replace; the rope was NOT.

.. . . and from the expert himself:

"The Melbourne Cable Trams by A.E. Twentyman"

(Running Journal Volume 5, Number 3; December 1968 – January 1969)

[for an OUT-bound cable tram in Bourke Street, approaching Elizabeth
Street] . . . the dummy [comes] to a halt breasting the white marble bar
let into the road line of Elizabeth Street . . . the signal to proceed is
given . . . and the gripman releasing his brakes, allows the tram to move
down the slope, slowly at first, but it gathers speed with the force of
gravity to cross the Elizabeth Street cable tracks with the familiar
rhythmic tapping as the wheels cross the rails and slot beams.

At this intersection, the Bourke Street cable passes beneath the cable in
Elizabeth Street and is permanently depressed to prevent Elizabeth Street
grips coming in contact. About twenty yards beyond the crossing, two white
bars are seen across the track for at this point the cable is elevated and
brought onto a position where, as the grips come through, the cable
automatically enters the jaws and when the gripman feels the cable enter
the grip, he leans forward and draws the grip lever back into a vertical
position . . . a clang on his bell and a pull on the lever the tram picks
up speed . . . soon we reach the Swanston Street corner . . .

The Bourke Street cable passed above that of Swanston Street so our
gripman after releasing his brake and pulling his grip lever soon has his
tram in motion again

[for an IN-bound cable tram in Bourke Street, approaching Elizabeth
Street] . . . The stop at Elizabeth Street corner is set approximately
fifteen yards before the corner, as this gave the gripman an opportunity to
accelerate then coast across the other lines; the rope is automatically
picked up at about the line of the West footpath in Elizabeth Street where
at this point there is a sharp change of grade in the road. From almost
level it suddenly inclines to a rise of about 1 in 18: the points between
which the rope entered the grip appears to be restricted and the gripman
had to be wide awake to promptly seize the rope. Because of this restricted
pick-up area, it is not unusual to see them miss the rope and if this
occurred, then the gripman has to let the tram roll back a short distance
to the correct spot; the car obstructing North-bound traffic in Elizabeth
Street.

X=X=X

[image: Inline images 1]

[TDU archive image]

[image: Inline images 2]

[TDU archive image]

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