Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-02
Expected to Be Submitted
Soon After Regular Con-
greSs Session Opens.
MITIGATION OF EASTERN
TRUNK LINES NOW UP
Plans Studied for Years Involve
10000 Miles of Track and
Ten Billions Investment.
Py Tire Associated Press.

Py Tire Associated Press
Plans for unification of railroads that
would virtually make over the trans
portation map of the Nation are under
consideration by the Interstate Com
merce Commission.
After years of delay, the first step
in the proposal to increase railroad eff
cheney through merging various lines
is expected to be taken shortly after
Congress convenes in regular session
with the submission by the commission
of its own proposal for consultations.
Commissioner Claude r. Porter ex-
poets this to be ready before the first
of the year, and soon thereafter it is
believed the commission will act upon
the drafts submitted by the roads them
selves for unification through stock
control and leases of more than $4,000
miles of trackage, involving over :l0,-
600, 100000 in property investment and
other billions in annual revenues.
Division Of the Eastern section OF
the country into a system of major
trunk lines is to the fore now, with
four proposals for unifying these lines
indefinitely before the commission. At
the same time the proposed disposition
by the commission of the Eastern lines
is being watched carefully in railroad
circles. Consolidation has not reached
so intensely into the West as yet, al
though the greatest unif1cation of all
is pending there-that involving the ap-
plication of the Great Northern, oper-
ating more than 5000 miles of track,
for permission to buy control of the
Northern Pacif1c's 6682 miles and
create the longest system in the coun-
try.
Believes Task Impossible. y
Rail consolidation has been actively
before the commission since 1920 when
Congress directed 1t to prepare a ten
tative draft for mergers. This was is
sued, providing for 19 systems hear
ings were held upon 1t and the COM
mission began drafting its final pro-
posal-one that would be sufficiently
inducive for the railroads to carry out
its general provisions as the plan is not
to be compulsory. Since 1925 the COM
mission has repeatedly advised Con-
gress that the drafting of such a plan
was impossible and asked TO be re-
lieved, but without success.
Bills were introduced, however, at the
last session of Congress intended to IA
cilitate rail mergers by modifying the
unions must be consistent with the gen.
eral scheme outlined by the commits
sion.
In the meantime the commission has
gone ahead with its draft, which Com
missioner Porter expects to be ready
next month. In addition to being m
viting to the lines, the commissioners
must at the same time safeguard the
public interest. preserve competition and
akatvN ito fn a
the channels of trade and make pos
sible the employment of rates pro-
ducing equal rates Of return on COM
petitive traffic.
10 to 80 Systems Proposed.
From 10 to 80 systems have been pro-
posed for the country. In the East, for
the present the most vital sector, sug-
gestions have ranged from to 6 major
trunk lines.
The four separate applications for
control of various lines already before
the commission were presented by the
Baltimore & Ohio, the Chesapeake &
Ohio, the Wabash and the Delaware &
Hudson. The Pennsylvania and the
New York Central, both dominant fac
tors in the Eastern transportation
world, also are believed in railroad cir
cles to have plans in the making. while
the LackaWanna also has been suggest
ed as the key line in another group.
The Baltimore e. Ohio seeks control
of l4,14l miles of track. The systems
property investment would total approx
imately S2,192,036.0 900 and 1t would have
gross revenue, based upon 1928 figures,
of $556,949,116.
Asks Control Of 10 Lines.
1t has asked complete control Of the
Reading system, the Central OF New
Jersey the Lehigh & Hudson River, the
Western Maryland, the Buffalo, Roch-
ester e Pittsburgh, the Buffalo & Sus-
quehanna, the Detroit, Toledo & IRON
ton, the Chicago, indianapolis & Louis
Vile, the Wabash and the Ann Arbor.
From the Van SWeringens' Chesa-
peake SI Ohio came an application for
control Of 1906 miles. with property
investment of $1,8O6. 1872 906 and gross
revenues of 1894 064. Control is
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