B-158621, OCT. 19, 1966

B-158621, OCT. 19, 1966

TO GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY:

WE REFER TO YOUR LETTER OF SEPTEMBER 16, 1966, AND TO PRIOR CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING YOUR CLAIMS AGAINST THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT FOR RAILWAY MAIL CAR DOORWAY ALLOWANCES. THESE CLAIMS, FOR $2,232.54 AND $3,387.82, ARE FOR THE MONTHS OF JULY AND AUGUST 1959.

THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT HAS FURNISHED US A BREAKDOWN SHOWING THE TRAIN NUMBERS, THE DATES OF MOVEMENT, THE STATUS OF THE MAIL CARS, AND THE INDIVIDUAL AMOUNTS CLAIMED ON EACH. WE CONCLUDE, AFTER CAREFUL STUDY OF THIS MATTER, THAT YOU ARE ENTITLED TO RECOVER $765.24 IN UNPAID DOORWAY ALLOWANCES FOR JULY 1959 AND $1,232.63 FOR AUGUST 1959.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE AMOUNTS YOU CLAIMED AND THE AMOUNTS FOUND DUE RESULTS FROM THE USE OF AN INCORRECT RATE IN PRICING THE DOORWAY ALLOWANCES, FROM CLAIMING DOORWAY ALLOWANCES WHERE NONE WERE REQUIRED TO BE MADE, AND FROM CLAIMING DOORWAY ALLOWANCES WHICH THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT HAS ALREADY PAID.

THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION, IN RAILWAY MAIL PAY, 302 I.C.C. 609, 619-620 (1957), PRESCRIBED RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR ASCERTAINING MAIL COMPENSATION UNDER THE SPACE-USED BASIS SYSTEM. RULE 5/F) PROVIDES THAT WHEN THE TOTAL VOLUME OF MAIL TRANSPORTED IN A TRAIN IN STORAGE SERVICE DOES NOT EXCEED 30 FEET, PAYMENT IS TO BE BASED UPON "THE APPROPRIATE LESSER UNIT OF STORAGE SPACE" NEEDED TO ACCOMMODATE THE MAIL. RULE 5/G) PROVIDES THAT WHERE THE TOTAL VOLUME OF MAIL CARRIED IN A TRAIN EXCEEDS 30 FEET BUT NOT 60 FEET, PAYMENT IS TO BE BASED UPON "A FOOTAGE PRORATE OF THE 60-FOOT STORAGE CAR LINE-HAUL RATE.'

POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT REGULATIONS IN EFFECT AT THE TIME THESE CLAIMS ACCRUED, PREDICATED UPON THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION (ICC) RULES, PROVIDED FOR A 3-FOOT ALLOWANCE FOR EACH DOORWAY NECESSARY IN A WORKING STORAGE CAR WHEN THE VOLUME OF MAIL EXCEEDS 30 FEET. 39 CFR 92.8 (C) (1) (II). APPARENTLY BECAUSE A DOORWAY ALLOWANCE IS 3 FEET, YOUR CLAIMS WERE COMPUTED AT THE RATE FOR THE 3-FOOT LESSER STORAGE UNIT RATHER THAN AT THE PRORATED 60-FOOT CAR RATE. LESSER UNIT RATES, HOWEVER, MAY BE USED ONLY WHEN THE VOLUME OF MAIL IS LESS THAN 30 FEET AND, UNDER THE REGULATIONS, DOORWAY ALLOWANCES ARE MADE ONLY WHEN THE MAIL VOLUME EXCEEDS 30 FEET. SINCE THE ICC RULES PROVIDE THAT WHERE THE MAIL VOLUME EXCEEDS 30 FEET BUT NOT 60 FEET, PAYMENT IS TO BE BASED UPON A PRORATE OF THE RATE FOR A 60- FOOT CAR, CHARGES FOR THE DOORWAY ALLOWANCES MUST BE BASED UPON THE PRORATED 60-FOOT CAR RATE. YOUR CLAIMS INCLUDE $857.41 FOR JULY AND $1,383.86 FOR AUGUST WHICH EXCEED DOORWAY ALLOWANCES COMPUTED AT THE PRORATED 60 FOOT CAR RATE; THESE AMOUNTS ARE THEREFORE EXCLUDED FROM THE AMOUNTS FOUND ALLOWABLE.

AS WE UNDERSTAND IT, DOORWAY ALLOWANCES WERE MADE ONLY WHERE A POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT REPRESENTATIVE HAD PLACED THE MAIL CAR IN MEASURED STATUS BY INDICATING THAT IT CONTAINED MORE THAN 30 LINEAR FEET OF MAIL. IN ADDITION TO THIS, THE TRANSFER CLERK AT ORIGIN HAD TO INDICATE THAT A 3 -FOOT DOORWAY ALLOWANCE WAS NECESSARY, WHICH WAS DONE WHEN THE CAR WAS TO BE WORKED EN ROUTE. YOUR CLAIMS INCLUDE AMOUNTS FOR DOORWAY ALLOWANCES ON CARS WHICH WERE NOT IN MEASURED STATUS BECAUSE THE CONTENTS (LESS THAN 30 FEET) WERE LISTED IN PIECES AT ORIGIN; THERE WERE SUBSEQUENT LOADINGS AND UNLOADINGS AND THE ONLOADINGS INCREASED THE PIECE COUNT TO AN AMOUNT GREATER THAN THE 30 FOOT EQUIVALENT. YOU CONVERTED THE PIECE COUNT TO FEET AND CLAIM DOORWAY ALLOWANCES.

WHILE THE RULES PERMIT CONVERTING THE PIECE COUNT TO FEET FOR THE COMPUTATION OF CHARGES, THEY DO NOT PERMIT CONVERSION IN ORDER TO CLAIM A DOORWAY ALLOWANCE WHICH IS MADE ONLY IF NECESSARY AND WHICH, UNDER POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT PRACTICE, MUST BE SHOWN TO BE NECESSARY BY ITS REPRESENTATIVE AT ORIGIN. THE JULY CLAIM INCLUDED $133.68 AND THE AUGUST CLAIM $29.79 WHICH MAY NOT BE ALLOWED BECAUSE THE CARS ON WHICH THESE CLAIMS ARE BASED WERE NOT IN MEASURED STATUS. YOUR CLAIMS ALSO INCLUDE $476.21 FOR JULY AND $371.51 FOR AUGUST WHICH REPRESENT DOORWAY ALLOWANCES CLAIMED ON CARS ON WHICH THE TRANSFER CLERK MADE NO INDICATION THAT DOORWAYS WOULD BE NECESSARY, APPARENTLY SINCE THE CARS WERE NOT TO BE WORKED EN ROUTE.

THE AUGUST CLAIM INCLUDES $208.84 FOR DOORWAY ALLOWANCES WHICH WERE PAID TO YOU IN YOUR ORIGINAL MAIL PAY CLAIM FOR THAT MONTH. IT ALSO INCLUDES $161.19 FOR DOORWAY ALLOWANCES ON DESTINATION STORAGE CARS. THE ICC RULES (RULE 3/A) ( DEFINE A DESTINATION STORAGE CAR AS ONE USED EXCLUSIVELY FOR MAIL WHICH MOVES INTACT FROM ORIGIN TO DESTINATION. SINCE NO WORK IS PERFORMED IN SUCH CARS EN ROUTE AND SINCE THE MAIL THEREIN IS NOT DISTURBED UNTIL ARRIVAL AT DESTINATION, THERE IS NO NEED FOR THE ALLOWANCE OF DOORWAY SPACE. IN FACT, THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT REGULATIONS PROVIDE THAT DESTINATION STORAGE CARS SHOULD BE LOADED SOLID, CONSISTENT WITH SAFETY REGULATIONS. 39 CFR 92.8 (C) (1). ACCORDINGLY, THIS PORTION OF YOUR CLAIM MAY NOT BE ALLOWED.

WE ARE INSTRUCTING OUR CLAIMS DIVISION TO ISSUE A SETTLEMENT ALLOWING YOU $1,997.87 (JULY 1959--- $765.24, PLUS AUGUST 1959--- $1,232.63). NOTICE OF THE SETTLEMENT SHOULD REACH YOU IN DUE COURSE.