Evening star., 1928-12-05
Committee to Take Up Two
VoIuminous Reports at
1890 Session.
$50,000,000 VALUATION
TENTATIVELY ACCEPTED
Capper Indicates Accord With Part
of Bureau of Eficiency's
Findings in Case.

WIN TWO VOlumlnouS reports before
it from experts, who have been study
ing the street railway merger problem
for several months, the special SUBJ
committee of the Senate District COM
mittee will hold its first meeting at 10 80
o'clock tomorrow morning to take up
the question of consolidating the local
transportation system. which is expect
ed to be Ole of the outstanding prob
lens of this session.
The subcommittee has before it the
lengthy report submitted late yesterday
by the Bureau of Efficiency, recon-
mending tentative acceptance of the
$50,000,U00 valuation for the merged
company for limited number of years.
and expressing the belief of the bureau
that there appears to be no justification
Tor an increase in fare on the basis of
the terms of merger as outlined in the
report.
Maltbie Report Considered.
The subcommittee also will have at
its disposal at tomorrow'S meeting the
separate survey made by DR.. Milo r.
Maltbie, public utilities expert en-
ployed by the committee, whose recon-
mendationS will not be made public
until they have been submitted to the
subcommittee.
Senator Capper, chairman of both
District committee and special SUBJ
committee, indicated today that he is
in accord with that part of the Eff
cheney Bureaus report in which the
belief was expressed that no increase
far 10 kHa
the proposed plan of merger. The
merger agreement as it was presented
to Congress definitely provided that
there should be no increase in rates
for one year.
Further study today of the mass OF
data submitted by the Efficiency Bureau
brought out additional details relating
to various phases of the local trans
portation problem.
Special Rates for Pupils.
It showed that the bureau favored
the House amendment to the merger
resolution authorizing the Utilities Com
mission to establish reduced rates for
school children. Heretofore 1t has been
held that the commission is prevented
from establishing such rates on the
ground the same would be discrimina-
tory.
The report further showed that its
expert visited 18 cities for the purpose
of comparison and found that IN II OF
them the cash fare is 8 cents or over,
and in Z cities visited it is z cents
or under The present fare in WASH
ington is 8 cents cash, or six tokens
for 40 cents. The Efficiency Bureau
found that outside of Washington the
usual motor bus fare is 10 cents with
free transfers between buses and cars,
although in several cities a charge Is
made for the transfer
The bureau also states in its report
that in the opinion of its experts there
is no merit in objections that have
been made to the clause in the uni
fication agreement that would give the
against competition.
Management Considered.
GAS to the continuation of local man.
agement of the power and transit COM
panies under control of the North
American Co." reads another section
of the report, 1--WE have been unable to
secure any definite assurances, but there
IS every indication that local manage
ment will be continued
The bureau points out in this con-
nectlon that the merger agreement re-
QuireS that majority of the Is per-
sons to be appointed directors of the
new company shall be from the District.
The Efficiency Bureau states in the
report that the North American Co.
does not maintain a central manage
ment and engineering organization In
connection with operation of its prop
erty, but that its subsidiaries are in
charge Of officers directly responsible
for the construction of their property.
Seeks to Expedite Plan.
While the Efficiency Bureaus report
on the merger to Senator Capper
recommends acceptance of the $5O,00O,-
600 valuation for the time being in
order to expedite consolidation, the bu-
reau sees no justification for an increase
in fare, and approves a limitation of
10 years, or such shorter period as Con-
gress may determine, on the duration
Of the $50,000,000 figure.
Other high lights in the bureaus re-
port are:
That there should be three modifica-
tlons in the agreement, one relating to
the setting up Of the depreciation ac-
count by the new company, one to
clarity the contract under which the
new company would obtain its electric
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A.