Opinion ID: 370390
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Comparable Rates

Text: 60 The parties in each proceeding adduced conflicting evidence as to the rates, measured in mills per ton/mile, prevailing on comparable traffic. The Commission, in the main, credited the railroads' evidence and rejected the comparable rates offered by the utilities as outdated, and as not reflecting the impact of inflation and the increased value of service of coal traffic in light of the current energy situation. HL&P, in essence, takes issue with the Commission's conclusion as contrary to the weight of the evidence. AEPC argues, in addition, that the Commission's determination in its case is plainly wrong because the allegedly comparable rates offered by the carriers applied to single car, and not unit-train service. Railroad counsel at oral argument responded to this contention by asserting that the movements relied upon by the Commission were in fact volume movements of coal, with costs that are perhaps not as low, but within the same range, as unit train movements. 61 This latter dispute illustrates that this court is hardly equipped to exercise its judgment in assessing the evidence in place of the expertise of the Commission. We therefore find no basis on which to overturn the Commission's determinations. We do note that in any event, the Commission was careful to limit the significance of its comparable rate determinations, denominating such evidence only one indicium (and not a conclusive one) of the reasonableness of rates. See HL&P J.A. at 54; AEPC J.A. at 61-63.