Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1914-08-06
Nebraska
FREIGHT RATES REDUCED
State Railway Commission Orders
Cut of About 19 Per Cent.
AFFECTS THE JOBBING CENTERs
ScheduIe Covers Ten Thousand
Item. and WIN Save shippers
seven Hundred and Fifty
Thousand Annually.
CFrom a STAFF Correspondent


LINCOLN. Aug. 5-The State Railway
commission this morning handed down a
modified order in the freight rate cases
which makes reduction on intrastate
freight traffic OF 10 per cent.
1t is estimated by Rate Expert Powell
hat the reduction win amount to about
islI.coO annually. 1t Is also estimated that
the total reduction on interstate and in
lrastate charges viii amount to about
F75GoO0.
The new schedule is a distance tariff
placing the iobbinR towns OF the state
upon an equalized basis The rates cover
about 1900 items, including all merchRn-
disc, groceries, agricultural implements
and many OF the manufactured products.
The tonnage effect is about Is per cent
OF the total intrastate traffic. and the
earnings from this class amount TO 20
per cent OF the whole. The new rate will
be in effect September g.
Commission Explains.
In its voluminous report covering hun
sreds OF pages the commission issues It's
order In the rate making proposition upon
which they have been working for many
months In shorter article covering the
order lle commission says
After seven years Of Investigation, re-
search, conferences and litigation. the
Etate Railway commission announced is
new class freight rate schedule today
The new schedule reduces the class rates
On Interstate traffic 10 per cent. A care.
tul compilation prepared by Rate Expert
Powell shows that the reduction on intra'
rtatc traffic Will aggregate 6ii,000 an
nualiy. There will also be n substantial
reduction In the interstate rates. the
amount OF which n Is impossible 20 erti-
mate. but u Is prof. liable that the total re-
ductiOn VIII approximate SlaQ0oO annually
The new schedule n a distance tariff
2 he jobbinR towns OF the state are placed
upon an euualzed basis. the purpose o
The commission being TO preserve present
commercial conditions so far as II Is DOS
tible TO do so without continuing present
inequality or abuses The rates apply
10 that part OF the traffic which moves
under the classification end cover about
1000 items, including all merchandise
groceries, agricultural implements and
many manufactured products The ton
Rage affected IL about 10 per cent Of the
otal intrastate traffic, but the earningl
iom this class OF freight amount 10 y
er cent OF the whole.
Method Used by Hoard.
In pointing out the method used IN ar
swing at the construction OF the distance
schedule the commission says:
Three elements are always used in ths
construction of distance tariff'' SEIZED
uies
ID Mileage rate of progression, or sam,
rate zones.
CD Money rate OF progression for ths
Increased distance
90 Percentage relationship OF each clas
10 the first class or base rate.
I. (a) The mileage rate OF progression
carries In different distance tariffs" and
usually there Is n difference IN the mile
age progression in the same tariff; thai
IL. the first one or two hundred MILE
may be divided In five-mile rates OF pro
pression then beyond two hundred miles
the rate OF progression may be state,
for each ten or twenty miles. The idet
Icing 10 10 divide the distance for whicl
TO two stations say five miles apart, VII
be reasonably uniform and without sud
den raises i'm the rates which would tent
e give one OF two neighborinR towns the
advantages over another in the transporta
ton charge on any commodity or ar