Evening star., 1925-12-04
CUT IN LIGHT RATE
DIVISION IS BEGUN
HousehoIders Expected to Be
Chief Beneficiaries Un-
der New Plan.

The Public Utilities Commission
hopes to apply a substantial part of
the reduction in electric rates to those
schedules which affect small con-
sumers. such as householders. Maj. w.
| r. Covell stated today, as accountants
began making the necessary calcula-
tions on which to base the new rates,
| effective January /.
| The commission at its meeting yes
tsrday afternoon accepted the offer of
| ~ Potomac Electric Power Co. to
Work out the reductions Immediately
| by estimating the company'S earnings
for November and December instea d
of waiting for complete returns for
the year.
A. G.. Neal, auditor of the company.
will transmit to the commission some
time today estimates of the companys
income for November and December.
Profit to Be Estimated.
Byers NICK. Bachman, chief ac-
countant for the commission, will be-
gin at once to figure out from these
estimates how much the company
earned during 1925 In excess of 7ia
per cent return on its physical valu
alton of about S33.000.o00.
Under the agreement existing be-
tween the company and the commits
sion, half of these excess earnings
are 10 be devoted to rate reduction
and the balance kept by the company
1t has been unofflcially estimated
that about $360,000 will be available
for the cut in rates. When this figure
has been determined the second phase
of the job will be to decide how the
cut should be distributed among the
several classes of users.
Maj. Covell said public hearing
"a laTI t-
officials OF the company and Of the
commission are looking into the pos
sibility Of simplifying the schedule Of
rates by reducing the number Of clas-
sifications.
Approves New Bus Lines.
The Public Utilities Commission
Yesterday afternoon approved several
pending applications for motor bus
lines and announced that a public
hearing will be held next month OF
the application of the people of
Benning and kenilworth for an ex-
tension of gas mains into their neigh
borhoods.
Following the meeting of the com
mission, Maj. W. +. r. Covell an
nounCed that the commission took no
further action today in It's effort to
bring about voluntary merger of
the street railway lines. II is under
stood the question was discussed, but
no conclusions were reached.
The petition Of the WASHINGTON
Railway and Electric Co. to estab ablish
new bus line starting at Fourth
street and Central avenue northeast
and running via Rhode Island avenue
and Vermont avenue to Eighteenth
and II streets northwest was granted,
with a provision for pay transfers be-
tween intersectinS car lines of both
companies.
Tenleytown Extension @. KID.
The petition 81 the Capital Traction
Co. for an extension of its Chevy
Chase Wop bus line to Tenleytoun
also was granted with a provision for
the sale Of inter-company transfers
between the busses and Wisconsin
avenue cars OF the Washington Rail
way and Electric Co.
The application for an extension Of
the Woodley road Jointly operated bus
line was denied.
The application of the WASHINGTON
Railway and Electric Co. to extend its
massachusetts, avenue bus line during
rush hours down Twentieth street to
X street was granted.
The commission postponed action on
the pending application Of the Wash
ington Rapid Transit Co. to run its
Sixteenth street busses farther north
TO the District line, and of the Capital
Traction Co. to extend it's Sixteenth
street busses south from Kennedy
street to II street and thence to Po-
tomac Park and the downtown section
The commission decided to adopt the
regulation requiring all operators of
taAicabS and individual hackers to
show financial responsibility for the
protection of the public, and also make
the use Of taximeters mandatory. The
exact language OF the new taxi regu-
lation will be announced later.