Schuyler Larrabee wrote:

Big deal? WWI. This is probably some of the shenanigans that were
going on that led to the formation of the USRA.

I don't think so. The magazine quoted was published in September
1917, likely meaning that the events described occurred in prior
months. The USRA was formed on December 28, 1917 and little advance
warning was given, according to several historians. But as Ben Hom
said, the traffic problems due to the wartime economy (which predated
US entry into the war) were already endemic.

Tony Thompson

Tony, you misread what I wrote. The "shenanigans" were happening BEFORE the USRA was formed, and
the USRA was a response to them. I didn't say that the article was in any way part of or because of
the USRA. So, with your timeline,

Shenanigans - sometime between 1915 and 1917; in fact, the T&OC sale must have been fairly recently
before the published story, since the repairs were still on-going when it was written.

Story published about the sales, September 1917

USRA formed, December 1917

Seems a logical sequence to me . . .

I'd be more interested in the answer to the condition question I raised a few minutes later.

SGL