Evening star., 1933-02-12
"Cost of Reproduction New"
Is Placed at Less Than
$4,000, 900.
W. R. & (. INVESTIGATION
TO FINISH IN TWO WEEKS
Department of Highways Submits
Tentative Repaving Schedule.
to Commission.

The Public Utilities Commission yes
terday completed valuation of the
Capital Traction Co. Although no ng-
ures have been announced, 1t Is un-
derstood the commission engineers
found the value Of that company was
less than $20,000.000 as cost of re-
production new" without taking into
account any depreciation.
The significance of this figure Is that
the Court Of Appeals found that as Of
January /. 1925, the value of the prop
critics of that company was s25, $50.
without taking depreciation into ac-
count. Thus 1t appears that the
present proceeding has tentatively
Topped at least s5.o0o.ooo or of the
court valuation. The current valua-
ton Of that company, based on the
Court Of Appeals valuation plus net
additions and betterments to date, II
approximately s26,0oo,0o0.
Began Valuation I'm 1880.
The commission launched into valu-
alton Of the properties of the Capital
Traction and Washington Railway q
Electric Companies In August, 1880.
The valuation of the Washington
Railway g. Electric Co. viii take about
two weeks to complete, 1t was learned.
That company in April. 1929, claimed
value Of approximately $4,000, 900.
This was based on the commissions
1914 valuation of $14,530, 600, plus net
additions and betterments to date.
The valuation proceeding was
started q month after the District Su-
preme Court, Justice Jennings Bailey
sitting, had decided that neither COM
pany was earning q fair return upon
its valuation, and had raised the
street car fares from cents. or six
tokens for 40 cents. to 10 cents. or four
tokens for 80 cents.
What effect the Capital Traction val
uation, or the forthcoming valuation Of
the washington Railway q Electric
Company, win have upon the present
street railway situation Is still sub
ject Of speculation. Chairman Mason
M. Patrick Of the commission said
yesterday that owing to the pendency
Of merger negotiations between the two
companies, the commission had not yet
made up its mind whether to proceed
with the valuations separately or joint
ly. He said that II the two companies
should merge under the authority of
the merger act Of January 10, It would
OF the joint property Of the two conn
panies, and that the Joint value would
probably be less than the sum Of the
values Of the two independent corpora
tions. He indicated that this ques-
ton would be discussed and settled at
future meetings Of the commission.
Draws Repaving Schedule.
Meanwhile, . more practical problem
has arisen. The Department Of High
ways has submitted to the commission
q tentative schedule Of repaving, with
request for information from the
commission as to whether the pro-
spective merger would render more ad-
visable the postponement of any Of the
projects on the. departments program.
1t Is contemplated that when the mer-
ger between the two companies is con-
slmmated there viii be many changes
in the trackage now In existence, and
the Highway Department Is loath to
pave any street where there Is q pros
pect that q rearrangement of track
facilities viii necessitate tearing up
Of newly laid pavement.
The commission has so far only re-
quested delay In paving Of the foot
Of Seventh street near the wharves,
where there are now two sets Of tracks
-four tracks In all. Both companies
now serve this territory, and it is ex-
pected that after the merger the service
win be consolidated and the territory
win be served by but q single set Of
tracks, operated by the Capital Transit
Company, as the new merged company
Is to be called.
Other debatable territory, such as
New York avenue, between Fourteenth
and Fifteenth streets, now served by
four tracks. Is not on the paving sched-
ule.