Evening star., 1955-09-04
PUG. Majority Opinion
In Transit Fare Case

F0Lt0tDtng Is q pdfttdt Le1t
OF the opinion NTH ighich the
District Public Utilities Com
mission Friday dismissed Capt.
tai Transit's June s request
for a fare increase. concurred
in By Chairman George E. c.
Hayes and Brig. Gen. Thomas
A. Lane:
The authorization under Pub
lie Law 389 granted by the Board
Of Commissioners to Capital
Transit Company for the fur
nishing Of public transportation
service until August II, 1856,
sets rates for such service, as
recommended by this commits
sion. and renders the present
proceeding moot. An order dis
missing the pending proceeding
will therefore be entered.
In view of the interest Of the
public In an understanding Of
the factors involved in the recent
transit strike and the misin-
formation and misconceptions
which have been disseminated
concerning it. particularly as
they concerned the issues in the
proceeding before this Commis-
sion and the time factors with
respect to it, a brief considera-
ton Of these factors would ap-
pear to be in the public interest.
Various statements have been
made purporting to fasten re-
sponSibilities Of the Commission
for the difficulties which arose.
Because Of the quasi-judicial re-
sponsibilities Of the commission
so long as proceedings were
pending before it, it would have
been improper for it heretofore
to advert to these statements.
Now that the proceedings are
terminated. it is not only proper
but essential that the record be
set straight.
It has been alleged that this
Commission should have acted
summarily in June. 1855. to
grant a fare increase to the Cap
ital Transit Company in this
case. A summary disposition Of
rate proceedings involving COM
plex issues would have involved
. violation of the statutory re-
sponsibilities of this Commission
and . denial Of due process. It
would be interesting to speculate
in this regard as to the position
which would have been taken by
Capital Transit on these issues if
the Commission had disposed Of
them summarily on a basis
which the company considered
unfavorable to it. The respon-
sibilities Of this Commission to
the consuming public were GER
tainly no less than its RESPONSE
bilities to the company.
July Statement Cited
In order that no misunder-
standing Of the powers of this
Commission might unduly delay
the resolution Of the labor man
agement dispute then pending,
this Commission did on July Z,
1855, issue a public statement of
its authority to act expeditiously
to grant q fare increase as a
simple Offset to increased labor
costs. The parties did not avail
themselves Of this course of ac-
ton.
An understanding Of the po-
sition Of this Commission in this
rate case requires consideration
Of the issues which were pre-
sented by the proceedings.
In these proceedings Capital
Transit proposed a 20-cent cash
fare and q 19-cent token fare
but proposed to abolish the per-
NIT completely. This proposal
for q fare increase was made
without reference to any in
creases in labor costs which it
was contemplated might result
from the negotiations for a new
contract with the union. The
company expressly reserved the
right to seek a further increase
in fares to cover such increased
labor costs when they were de-
termined. Capital Transit's posi-
ton and the theme of its series
Of public statements was that
Its rate base was set by its book
figures representing the histor-
ical cost Of its property and that
II was entitled to a 1919 return
on that rate base after all ex-
penses shown in its account: al
though in recognition Of the un-
reasonable fare structure which
would result from the strict ap-
plication Of the formula it would
accept something less. AS the
recent opinion Of the Court of
Appeals decided July 8, 1850
dealing with the previous rate
order Of this Commission made
clear, however, such a limitation
Of the issues would be improper
and its apparent simplicity is
spurious and deceptive.
All-Bus Operation Indicated
The company position with re-
spect to its investment may be
highlighted by a reference to a
tentative memorandum received
by this Commission from the
transit expert 1t had retained to
aid it in making an adequate
record. The memorandum was
tentative because the expert did
not have available to him a
study which this Commission
had requested from Capital
Transit and which 1t had agreed
to furnish, but which was over
due when Capital Transit Com
pany applied for fare increases.
Treating the conclusions as
tentative. however, the memo
randum sets in bold relief both a
major problem in the rate pro-
ceedings and the true reason for
the crisis with which the COM
munity was confronted. For, on
the basis of the data available
to him our expert calculated that
q system in which all new buses