Arizona republican., 1921-07-04
ALLECE RAILROADS ARE GETTING MORE
 THAN FAIR RETURN

Charges that the Arizona Eastern Railroad company. the Phoenix & Eastern Railroad company, and the Southern Pacific company are call ing upon patrons of the lines to pay s535, ,S20.S2 annually in excess of a 6 per cent return on their actual value, as fixed by the interstate com merce commission. representatives of the Graham and Gila Counties Traf- fife association filed protests in the form of petitions with the Arizona corporation commission and the in terstate commerce commission Sat urday.
 T. H. OBrien, president of the traffic association and F. A. Jones, traffic manager for the association. signed the petitions, which allege the following points:
 That the Arizona Eastern Rail- road company and the Phoenix X Eastern Railroad company are each owned and are under the control of the Southern Pacific company, and that the Arizona Eastern Railroad company is the lessee of the property of the Phoenix & Eastern Railroad company, a portion of which is par allel and was when leased competing with the Arizona Eastern Railroad company.
 That the Arizona Eastern Railroad company reports to the corporation commission non-existent or unused and useless property and alleged track of a stated value of approxi- mately $2,157, ,93s.22. embracing 43.26a miles of alleged railroad not used in the service of transportation.
 That the interstate commerce com mission bureau of valuation, has re- ported to the state of Arizona the value of the combined properties oi the Arizona Eastern and Phoenix & Eastern railroads to be S11, 49S, 739. .53 which is $8.432. .100.35 less thar claimed and reported book value oi these companies; that deducting from the interstate commerce commission value the sum of $49S,246.8S, which sum represents the duplicate, paralle and unnecessary 16.2 miles of tracl between Phoenix and Mesa at ths par value per mile found and reported by the interstate commerce commits sion, it appears that the capitaliza tion or claimed book value of tn, said companies exceeds the interstate commerce commission value the sun of $S,930,347.23 23.
 "That the transportation act O congress of 1920 granting the rail roads of the country a stated return upon the value of their property. th' return of per cent (fixed by the in l terstate cofnmerce commission) upoi l the unwarranted excess value afore said amounts to $535. .s20.S2 annually which last named sum your petition CTS and others served by the Arizon;
 Eastern and Phoenix & Eastern Rail
 road companies are and will be re quired to pay annually for transpor | tation in excess of reasonable am l just rates based upon the fair actua value of the property used and neces sary in the service of transporta | tion.''
 Allegations were also made by tn
 petitioners that since the year 1Sl l the Arizona Eastern Railroad com
 pany has paid increasing amount | for the rental of the Phoenix x East
 ern railroad, and that the leased rail
 road parallels the railroad of the les
 see for Is miles between Phoeni, | Tempe and Mesa
 These conditions, the petitioner | state, cause an excessive operatin
 and overhead expense which puts a
 unjustified burden upon those serve | by the Arizona Eastern Railroa
 company.
 | The petition asks for an investiga l tion of the matter that may be essen tial to a determination of propert.
 leases, valuation and interlocking re
 lations of the railroad companies in
 voived and that an equitable adjust
 ment be made.