Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-01-13
DENIES VIGOROUSLY
COMMISSION CHARGES
Herdic Company Replies Separately
to Eight Complaints Of
Service.

Charges made by the public utilities
commission that the Metropolitan Coach
Company is managed in haphazard and
Indifferent manner and without regard to
the interests of the people whom it is
intended to serve are denied in COM
munication just sent to the commission
by the herdic concern.
Although admitting inadequacies of
service. the company asserts that it is
maintaining a service in excess of the
schedule filed.
Eight complaints as to the service pro-
vided by the company are contained in a
communication addressed to it January 2
by the utilities board The charges are
answered separately in the company
reply.
To the first of the commissions charges,
that sufficient number of coaches are
not operated to make the schedules, the
company's reply is that the schedule on
file in the Office of the commission calls
for the operation of four coaches over the
shorter route, while the company operates
five coaches
Interruptions Beyond Control.
In reply to the charge that coaches do
not maintain their regular Roadway, the
company states that Interruptions of traf-
fic over which the company has no con-
troll are responsible for this cause of COM
plant. The commissions third complaint,
to the effect that windows of coaches are
not kept clean. the company asserts that
the windows of its coaches are regularly
washed The complaint alleging that
coaches are not maintained in good re-
pair is denied by the company, which as
serts in its reply that its vehicles are
maintained in good operating condition.
The company also denies fatty the allie
CATION that defective and noisy tires are
used.
Correctness of the contention that
coaches are not satisfactorily lighted
is admitted. The company in its reply
says its vehicles are lighted by means Of
storage batteries, which are recharged
at frequent intervals. 1t maintains. how
ever, that coaches operating as separate
units cannot have a supply of electricity
available for brilliant lighting.
The charge that drivers of the coach
es are careless in operating the vehicles
Is denied on behalf of the company,
which holds that isolated cases of acct
dent do not seem to afford sufficient
basis for the allegation
Service in Experimental Stage.
In reply to the charge that the COM
pany is managed "in haphazard and
quite regardless of the interests of the
the company admits inadequacies of
service, but vigorously denies that it's
management is either haphazard or in
different. Attention is called in the re-
ply to the fact that the herdic service
is in the experimental stage, but, the
company says in it's reply, 1.-The design
of vehicle required has now been
clearly demonstrated by experience,
and If it the company is permitted to
issue securities for the purchase of ad-
ditional vehicles. and ii funds can be
raised for such purpose, the company
will, as the commission has been in
formed. greatly improve it's service"
The reply of the company strongly
protests against the statement of the
commission that it is managed in an
Indifferent manner or regardless of the
interests of its patrons, asserting that
Limitations of capital and the necessity
of passing through the experimental
stage are more exact as well as faircr
explanations of such inadeauacies of
service as have existed