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No. 950.

NEW YORK TEAM OWNERS' ASSOCIATION

v.

SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY.

Submitted May 15, 1907. Decided June 17, 1907.

The defendant carrier employs a particular trucking firm to transport through shipments via its line from railroad depots in and about New York City to its pier No. 25, in New York, and gives preference at such pier to the through traffic transferred by such trucking firm over traffic originating in New York and vicinity brought to the pier by other trucking firms. The pier is inadequate for the business of defendant, and congestion and delay result. The pier is not closed at night until all waiting trucks are unloaded, and it is soon to be considerably enlarged. No instance of injury resulting to shippers or their traffic and no discrimination amounting to exclusion from the pier were shown. The Commission holds that such preference does not operate unduly or unreasonably against other truck owners members of the complaining association.

Henry C. Hunter and William L. Snyder for complainant.
Maxwell Evarts for defendant.

KNAPP, Chairman:

REPORT OF THE COMMISSION.

Complainant is an incorporated association, comprising in its membership about 300 persons, firms and companies engaged in the business of trucking in and about the city of New York, including business coming from points on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. The complainant, acting on behalf of its members, alleges that they are subjected to undue and unreasonable prejudice and disadvantage in respect of the facilities afforded by defendant for the reception of property brought to its pier No. 25, North River, New York City, for transportation over its steamship line and connecting railroads to points in the States of Louisiana, Texas, Nevada, California and the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona. The complainant also alleges that such undue and unreasonable prejudice and disadvantage extends to the owners of goods, wares and merchan

dise brought by the trucks of its members to this pier; and it is further claimed that the defendant gives undue and unreasonable preference and advantage to the trucking firm of Kelly & Buck and the owners of goods, wares and merchandise carried by that firm to the pier in question for transportation to points in the States and Territories above mentioned.

Kelly & Buck are employed by the defendant to transport goods from railroad depots in and about the city of New York, including Jersey City, to its pier 25, in New York, all such goods being consigned through over its lines from the point of origin to the point of destination. This trucking firm is employed exclusively by defendant, and with one exception is engaged in the transfer of no other kind of traffic. This exception relates to traffic from certain points within the New York lighterage limits which it is not convenient for defendant to receive by lighter, examples of which are points in Brooklyn and Staten Island. Upon order received by the company from a shipper in Brooklyn or Staten Island the Kelly & Buck trucks are sent to the warehouse of such shipper to there receive the goods as agents of the defendant. The Kelly & Buck trucks are marked "Sunset Route, Pier 25," and this trucking by Kelly & Buck is really a service performed by the defendant itself. Much of the through traffic originating on railroads in the interior is brought to the docks of defendant by lighter, but a large part of such traffic is transferred by its trucks, as above described. These trucks are not used for incoming freight, and this case relates solely to outgoing traffic over pier 25.

During the past five years the business at this pier has increased fully 100 per cent. About five steamships leave the pier every week. The pier is inadequate for the business of defendant, and large additions to the pier and delivery facilities are to be made. The congestion at this pier frequently results in extending the line of waiting trucks for a considerable distance, not only across the street along the river front but along North Moore street, and sometimes a distance of several blocks, as far as and into Hudson street.

The defendant gives the preference to through traffic transferred by its Kelly & Buck trucks over traffic originating in New York and vicinity brought to the pier by members of the complainant association or others. With a waiting line of trucks at pier 25 a Kelly & Buck truck is not required to take its position in line, but is driven to the head of the line and allowed to enter the pier in advance of the others. Sometimes as many as eight or nine of these Kelly & Buck trucks are taken into the pier before the first truck in the waiting line is allowed to pass through. This through traffic transferred by the defendant through the agency of Kelly & Buck amounts to nearly

No. 950.

NEW YORK TEAM OWNERS' ASSOCIATION

v.

SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY.

Submitted May 15, 1907. Decided June 17, 1907.

The defendant carrier employs a particular trucking firm to transport through shipments via its line from railroad depots in and about New York City to its pier No. 25, in New York, and gives preference at such pier to the through traffic transferred by such trucking firm over traffic originating in New York and vicinity brought to the pier by other trucking firms. The pier is inadequate for the business of defendant, and congestion and delay result. The pier is not closed at night until all waiting trucks are unloaded, and it is soon to be considerably enlarged. No instance of injury resulting to shippers or their traffic and no discrimination amounting to exclusion from the pier were shown. The Commission holds that such preference does not operate unduly or unreasonably against other truck owners members of the complaining association.

Henry C. Hunter and William L. Snyder for complainant.
Maxwell Evarts for defendant.

KNAPP, Chairman:

REPORT OF THE COMMISSION.

Complainant is an incorporated association, comprising in its membership about 300 persons, firms and companies engaged in the business of trucking in and about the city of New York, including business coming from points on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. The complainant, acting on behalf of its members, alleges that they are subjected to undue and unreasonable prejudice and disadvantage in respect of the facilities afforded by defendant for the reception of property brought to its pier No. 25, North River, New York City, for transportation over its steamship line and connecting railroads to points in the States of Louisiana, Texas, Nevada, California and the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona. The complainant also alleges that such undue and unreasonable prejudice and disadvantage extends to the owners of goods, wares and mercha

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one-sixth of the total traffic trucked into the pier. The number of these Kelly & Buck trucks unloaded on the pier averages from 60 to 80 loads per day; the number frequently comes close to 100 truck loads in a single day.

Kelly & Buck operate 22 trucks under a contract price which is accepted by the trucking firm with reference to the preference in entering the pier, thereby enabling the firm to utilize its trucks to the fullest extent in promptly transferring the through freight.

Much complaint has arisen on the part of complainant's members because of the frequent long delays in unloading at this pier and of this preference given by the company to its Kelly & Buck trucks used in the transfer of through traffic. This delay frequently extends over a period of several hours.

An application was made shortly before this complaint was filed to the police department of New York City, with a view to having this preference abolished, but the application was dismissed on the ground that the department had no jurisdiction over the subjectmatter. A similar application is now pending before the mayor of the city.

At the hearing complainant's counsel contended that as complainant's members act in the delivery of this freight as agents for the shippers this case is really brought on behalf of the shippers, as well as the members of the complainant association, but no testimony was offered indicating any complaint on the part of any shipper in New York City of prejudice resulting from the preference to the Kelly & Buck trucks, nor did any shipper appear and testify in support of the complaint.

The testimony elicited from the defendant's general freight agent in New York City shows that shippers have quite frequently complained to him of the delays resulting from congestion at the pier, but the witness denied that any such complaint related specifically to the precedence given the Kelly & Buck trucks.

After the trucks are admitted into the pier no claim is made that the New York shippers are discriminated against in unloading facilities or in the issuance of receipts for the goods. Some testimony was given by a witness for complainant to the effect that the price of trucking shipments to the Southern Pacific pier for New York shippers had been increased on account of this congestion, and that this price is higher than the cost to shippers for trucking to other piers, but the only other witness engaged in trucking as a member of the complainant association disclaimed any knowledge of an increase in price.

The Mallory Line Steamship Company handles its through traffic in precisely the same way that the Southern Pacific does with the

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