The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) was the first railroad to electrify part of its tracks, in 1895 (Class Notes , 02/19/14). The electric locomotive was faster and cheaper than the steam locomotive and produced no smoke (Class Notes, 02/19/14). This paved the way for electric locomotives to replace steam engines on their own tracks. Yet only a few American railroads electrified their lines between 1900 and 1950. Many American railroads failed to electrify their railroads due to high initial cost and economic conditions, lack of electrical systems standardized used for railways and resistance companies (Bezilla, 42-47). Electric traction had many advantages over steam railways. A major advantage was the ability of electric locomotives to pull heavier loads than steam locomotives (Bezilla, 30-31). A statement from power manufacturers indicated that an electric locomotive could pull five times its own weight on a 2% grade, while a steam locomotive on the same grade could only pull twice its own weight (Bezilla, 31). In addition to this, electric motors could handle higher currents for a short period of time in order to significantly increase power; steam engines did not have an analogous characteristic (Bezilla, 31). These factors combined allowed electric locomotives to accelerate faster, even while pulling more weight, than steam locomotives (Bezilla, 31). The electric motor also had fewer moving parts and therefore required less maintenance than complex steam engines (Bezilla, 31). For example, electric locomotives on the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1940 typically ran 90% of the time, but steam locomotives replaced by electrics only ran 69% of the time (Bezilla, 32). The...... middle of paper...... as "cheap electrification" because it had many of the advantages of traditional electrification, but the initial cost was considerably cheaper (Lecture Notes, 19 /02/14). The history of rail electrification has shown that just because a particular technology is better than an existing technology does not mean it will ultimately prevail. The success of the "better" technology depends largely on what people want at that time, the magnitude of change required to adopt the "better" technology, and the willingness of people to accept that degree of change. change. Works Cited Bezilla, Michael. “Electrification of Steam Railways in America, 1920-1950: The Unrealized Potential.” »Perry, John. “Railroads”. 02/19/14. Stradling, David and Tarr, Joel. “Environmental Activism, Locomotive Smoke, and Corporate Response: The Case of the Pennsylvania Railroad and Chicago Smoke Control..”