a competing service. In fact the ferry company decided to sell its business to the railway companies, and it did so in 1880. At Ryde, the opening of the LSWR/LBSCR joint railway in 1880 at least meant that passengers could board a through carriage there for Ventnor or Newport. The IoWR claimed compensation for the 'injurious' effects of the railway on its property at St John's Road. A refreshment room at St Johns Road would suffer loss of business, they claimed, The issue went to arbitration and the IoWR was awarded £1,033. The change revolutionised passenger transport to the island and Portsmouth became the principal mainland access point. The pier tramway was converted to electric traction in 1886; the electricity was generated by an Otto gas engine and a Siemens dynamo, an arrangement that continued until 1927. Financial situation improved The IWR's financial performance improved in the 1880s. The company acquired additional locomotives and rolling stock; stations were enhanced and track renewals were carried out. There was opposition from some shareholders who saw the expenditure as money that should be distributed to them as dividends. Shareholder dissatisfaction with the management of the IoWR continued to simmer despite the declaration of the highest-ever dividend on the ordinary stock. At a shareholders' meeting on 21 February 1883, a shareholder complained that running costs were too high, at 53% of gross receipts. In fact shareholders could expect a regular dividend as high as any paid by a railway company in Great Britain, but the differing classes of stock, with preference and debenture issues, which had differing levels of dividend distribution, continued to generate dissatisfaction. In 1889 the company placed a Bill before Parliament to consolidate and rearrange the capital: it received the Royal Assent on 25 July 1890. The authorised capital was £402,312 and borrowings amounted to £196,911. Safety improvements The absence of modern safety devices became an issue for practically all the railways of Great Britain in the 1870s, and in October 1875 a proposal had been put forward for the introduction of block signalling. Preece's Block Instruments were installed between Ryde and Sandown, and a new signal box was commissioned at Brading in 1882. The trains staff and ticket system was still in use, but in April 1891 trials began with the Webb and Thompson Electric Train Staff; by September 1891 the whole line from Ryde to Ventnor was equipped. Continuous