B-121703, AUG. 9, 1955

B-121703, AUG. 9, 1955

TO MISSOURI PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JULY 14, 1955, FILE 1-GE 22076, REQUESTING REVIEW OF THE DECISION OF JUNE 8, 1955, B-121703, WHICH SUSTAINED THE SETTLEMENTS DISALLOWING SIX OF YOUR CLAIMS FOR ADDITIONAL CHARGES ALLEGEDLY DUE FOR THE TRANSPORTATION OF FREIGHT AUTOMOBILES, IN CARLOADS, FROM DETROIT, MICHIGAN, TO CAMP LIVINGSTON, SIMMS, LOUISIANA, WHICH MOVED ON GOVERNMENT BILLS OF LADING DURING 1943.

CONSIDERING THE SPECIFIC POINTS RAISED IN YOUR REQUEST FOR REVIEW, IT IS NOTED THAT YOU FIRST QUESTIONED OUR CONCLUSION THAT THE JOINT THROUGH RATE FROM DETROIT, MICHIGAN, TO SIMMS, LOUISIANA, WAS APPLICABLE VIA A ROUTE THROUGH ARLINGTON DOWNS, TEXAS, ON THE DATES THESE SHIPMENTS MOVED. THE TIME OF SHIPMENT THE JOINT THROUGH RATE FROM DETROIT TO SIMMS WAS PUBLISHED IN SOUTHWESTERN LINES' TARIFF NO. 252-B, I.C.C. NO. 3592, AND THE RATE APPLIED SOUTH OR WEST OF THE VARIOUS ,GATEWAYS" (ST. LOUIS, EAST ST. LOUIS, CAIRO, MEMPHIS, ETC.) ONLY VIA THE ROUTES PROVIDED IN SOUTHWESTERN LINES' TARIFF (GATEWAY ROUTING GUIDE) NO. 222-C, AGENT PEEL'S I.C.C. NO. 3507. TARIFF NO. 222 C, UNDER ROUTE M-310, SHOWED THAT THE RATE FROM DETROIT TO SIMMS APPLIED BEYOND ST. LOUIS OR EAST ST. LOUIS VIA THE MISSOURI PACIFIC RAILROAD TO TEXARKANA, ARKANSAS, THE TEXAS AND PACIFIC RAILWAY FROM TEXARKANA TO ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA, AND THE MISSOURI PACIFIC RAILROAD FROM ALEXANDRIA TO SIMMS, LOUISIANA. THUS, THE TEXAS AND PACIFIC RAILWAY WAS NAMED AS THE CARRIER OVER WHICH THE RATE APPLIED FOR THE PORTION OF THE MOVEMENT BETWEEN TEXARKANA AND ALEXANDRIA. HOWEVER, THAT CARRIER HAD TWO LINES BETWEEN THESE POINTS AND THE TARIFF CONTAINED NO PROVISION LIMITING THE APPLICATION OF THE RATE TO ONE OR THE OTHER OF THE CARRIER'S LINES. THEREFORE, SINCE THE CARRIER'S LINE FROM TEXARKANA TO ALEXANDRIA, VIA FORT WORTH, TEXAS, PASSED THROUGH ARLINGTON DOWNS, TEXAS, THE JOINT THROUGH RATE APPEARED TO BE APPLICABLE VIA THE LATTER POINT. THE MERE FACT THAT THE CARRIER HAD A MORE DIRECT ROUTE FROM TEXARKANA TO ALEXANDRIA DID NOT SEEM TO RENDER INAPPLICABLE THE LESS DIRECT ROUTE THROUGH FORTH WORTH AND ARLINGTON DOWNS. SEE H. J. MARCH V. CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE, ST. PAUL AND PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY, 269 I.C.C. 753, 755. IN THAT CASE, THE CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE, ST. PAUL AND PACIFIC RAILROAD HAD DIFFERENT LINES OVER WHICH SHIPMENTS COULD BE TRANSPORTED BETWEEN WAUKESHA AND CHICAGO. THE TARIFF MERELY SPECIFIED THAT THE RATE FROM WAUKESHA APPLIED OVER THE MILWAUKEE TO CHICAGO. THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION HELD THAT THIS WAS, IN EFFECT, AUTHORITY TO APPLY THE RATE ALL LINES OF THE MILWAUKEE TO CHICAGO. FOR THE REASONS GIVEN ABOVE, OUR OFFICE CONCLUDED THAT THE JOINT THROUGH RATE FROM DETROIT, MICHIGAN, TO SIMMS, LOUISIANA, APPLIED VIA ARLINGTON DOWNS, TEXAS.

THE OTHER POINT RAISED BY YOU CONCERNS THE APPLICATION OF SIMMS, LOUISIANA, AS INTERMEDIATE TO ALEXANDRIA. THE JOINT THROUGH RATE FROM DETROIT TO SIMMS WAS PUBLISHED IN SOUTHWESTERN LINES' TARIFF NO. 252-B, AND ITEM 2010 OF THAT TARIFF PROVIDED, IN SUBSTANCE, THAT IF AN AGGREGATE OF INTERMEDIATE INTERSTATE RATES, VIA ANY ALL-RAIL ROUTE LAWFULLY ON FILE WITH THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION, WAS LOWER OR MADE A LOWER CHARGE THAN THE THROUGH RATE PUBLISHED IN THAT TARIFF, SUCH LOWER AGGREGATE WOULD APPLY VIA ALL ALL-RAIL ROUTES OVER WHICH THE RATE NAMED IN THAT TARIFF APPLIED. OUR OFFICE DISCOVERED THAT A COMBINATION OF RATES APPLYING TO AND BEYOND EVANSVILLE, INDIANA, PRODUCED A LOWER RATE THAN THE JOINT THROUGH RATE, WHICH AGGREGATE OF INTERMEDIATE INTERSTATE RATES WAS MADE VIA AN ALL-RAIL ROUTE LAWFULLY ON FILE WITH THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION. THE RATE SOUTH OF EVANSVILLE, USED IN CONSTRUCTING THE COMBINATION OF RATES OVER THAT POINT, WAS PUBLISHED TO APPLY OVER A ROUTE THAT PASSED DIRECTLY THROUGH SIMMS TO ALEXANDRIA. UNDER THE INTERMEDIATE APPLICATION PUBLISHED IN THE TARIFF NAMING THE RATE FROM EVANSVILLE TO ALEXANDRIA, THE RATE TO ALEXANDRIA APPLIED TO SIMMS JUST AS DEFINITELY AND CERTAINLY AS THOUGH IT HAD BEEN SPECIFICALLY PUBLISHED TO SIMMS. BUTLER BROS. V. BALTIMORE AND OHIO RAILROAD CO., 231 I.C.C. 618; SCHENLEY INDUSTRIES, INC. V. AKRON, C. AND Y R.R. CO., 277 I.C.C. 699; STANDARD OIL COMPANY V. PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD CO., 40 F.2D 52. THUS, IT WILL BE NOTED THAT SIMMS WAS SAID TO BE INTERMEDIATE TO ALEXANDRIA ONLY FOR THE PURPOSE OF SHOWING THAT--- UNDER THE INTERMEDIATE APPLICATION--- THE RATE PUBLISHED FROM EVANSVILLE TO ALEXANDRIA BECAME THE EVANSVILLE TO SIMMS RATE, AND THE LATTER WAS ONE OF THE INTERMEDIATE RATES USED IN DETERMINING THE AGGREGATE OF INTERMEDIATE RATES REFERRED TO ABOVE. IT WAS NOT CONTENDED THAT SIMMS WAS INTERMEDIATE TO ALEXANDRIA VIA THE ACTUAL ROUTE VIA WHICH THE SHIPMENTS MOVED.

UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF ITEM 2010 OF TARIFF NO. 252-B, THE AGGREGATE OF INTERMEDIATE INTERSTATE RATES CONSTRUCTED OVER EVANSVILLE, INDIANA, SUPERSEDED THE PUBLISHED JOINT THROUGH RATE FOR APPLICATION ON THESE SHIPMENTS AND APPLIED VIA ALL OF THE ROUTES OVER WHICH THE JOINT THROUGH RATE APPLIED. THEREFORE, UNDER THE TERMS OF THE LANDGRANT EQUALIZATION AGREEMENTS OF THE CARRIERS IN THE ACTUAL ROUTE OF MOVEMENT, THE CHARGES COMPUTED ON THE BASIS OF THE AGGREGATE OF-INTERMEDIATES RATE ARE SUBJECT TO DEDUCTIONS FOR LAND GRANT COMPUTED VIA THE BEST AVAILABLE LAND-GRANT ROUTE.