Kerrville Bus Co. v. Continental Bus System

208 S.W.2d 586, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 1067, 1947 WL 55606
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedOctober 29, 1947
DocketNo. 9682
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 208 S.W.2d 586 (Kerrville Bus Co. v. Continental Bus System) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kerrville Bus Co. v. Continental Bus System, 208 S.W.2d 586, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 1067, 1947 WL 55606 (Tex. Ct. App. 1947).

Opinion

HUGHES, Justice.

The Railroad Commission of Texas, on December 18, 1945, granted a certificate of convenience and necessity to Bowen Motor Coaches, now known as Continental Bus System, authorizing the operation of an intrastate motor bus service from Victoria to Bastrop via Yoakum, Shiner, Moulton, Flatonia and Smithville, over State Highway 295 from Victoria to its junction with State Highway 111, thence over State Highway 111 to Yoakum, thence over State Highway 95 to Smithville, and thence over State Highway 71 to Bastrop, with an alternate route over a paved county road from its junction with State Highway 295, near the DeWitt County line to Yoakum and from Cuero to Yoakum over State Highway 29 and U. S. Highway 77. The certificate authorized service to all intermediate points along the route, except between Smithville and Bastrop, and directed a coordination of such services with services authorized by existing permits held by Continental.

When Continental’s original application for such permit was filed the Kerrville Bus Company, appellant, held permits authorizing, and it was actually rendering, bus service from Victoria to Yoakum via Cuero, the route from Cuero to Yoakum and from Bastrop to Smithville being identical with the Continental route. Subsequent to the Continental’s application appellant applied for and was granted permits to render bus service between Gonzales and Yoakum via Shiner, and between Smithville and Shiner, over Highway 95.

Being dissatisfied with the order of the Railroad Commission granting the Continental permit, appellant filed suit in the court below for its cancellation. Trial was without a jury and judgment was rendered that appellant take nothing by its suit. Findings of fact and conclusions of law were made and filed by the trial judge.

[588]*588The record is quite voluminous, and we will only refer to so much of the record as is necessary to pass upon the questions raised.by appellant in its brief.

The judgment is assailed on the ground that Continental’s permit authorizes motor bus service over a non-existent highway.

i , The trial court found, that: “At the time of consideration of the subject application by the Commission there was a short gap in-, construction of State Highway 295, such gap being the portion of State Highway 295 between the end of the pavement near the Victoria County-DeWitt County line and State Highway 111, a distance of approximately 6 or 8 miles, which was a highway designated by the State Highway Department as a portion of State Highway 295, for which portion the right of way had been secured but on which the highway had not yet been constructed and the only connection between the end of the pavement on State Highway 295 and State Highway 111 at this place at that time was a winding dirt road not wholly over the right of way and not under maintenance of the State Highway Department.”

Appellant cites Railroad Commission et al. v. Southwestern Greyhound Lines, 138 Tex. 124, 157 S.W.2d 354; Id., Tex.Civ. App., 147 S.W.2d 318, as supporting its view. The permit cancelled in that case was based upon a situation entirely dissimilar from.that here presented. A brief quotation from the opinion of the Supreme Court will..demonstrate this: “It is undisputed that at the time the certificate was granted there was no highway in existence, and none under construction, over at least a. substantial part of the route over which the bus line was to be operated under the certificate issued by the Railroad Commission. In fact, in November, 1936, at the time .the application for the certificate was filed, the route of a part of the proposed road had not been designated, and its whereabouts was' so uncertain that the applicant could not state what towns it would pass through. As late as October, 1938, at the time the certificate' was granted, the right of way for'the highway over a part of the route, particularly in Harris County between Port Arthur and' Houston, had not been acquired, and it was not then known through what points the highway would pass in said county. This same condition seemed to exist at the time of the trial of this case in March, 1940. No plans had been drawn for the construction of the road, and it was entirely problematical as to when, if ever, the road would be constructed. It was equally uncertain as to the kind of material and type of construction that would be employed in building the road,-if one should ever be built.”

In this case a substantial portion of the proposed route was over paved highways. The total mileage involved, exclusive of an alternate route between Yoakum and the DeWitt County line, was 123 miles. Only 8 miles was unpaved, and for this the State had procured the right of way. Along this unpaved portion there were no towns or communities. The glaring uncertainties which called for the ruling in the Greyhound case are not here at all. The route involved is about 94% complete and in use. This small per cent of unfinished road should not be good cause for striking down an order of the Railroad Commission, purportedly made in the public interest, at the behest of a competitive adversary.

Appellant questions the judgment on the ground that Continental’s permit covered a road not described in the application nor in the notice of hearing. This relates to the alternate route over a paved county road from Yoakum to its intersection with State Highway 295 at or near the DeWitt County line, a distance of about 12 miles. This alternate route was not specifically described in the original application nor in the notice of hearing. Upon the hearing before the examiner for the Railroad Commission Continental requested and was granted leave to amend its application so as to include this alternate route. Appellant did not object to this amendment until it filed a motion for rehearing with the Commission.

Appellant appeared and actively participated in all of the proceedings before the Commission.

We are referred to such cases as State v. Blue Diamond Oil Corporation, Tex. [589]*589Civ.App., 76 S.W.2d 852; Rabbit Creek Oil Co. v. Shell Petroleum Corporation, Tex.Civ.App., 66 S.W.2d 737; Smith v. Wald Transfer & Storage Co., Tex.Civ.App., 97 S.W.2d 991; Greer v. Railroad Commission, Tex.Civ.App., 117 S.W.2d 142 (Writ Dis.), and Railroad Commission v. Red Arrow Freight Lines, Tex.Civ. 167 S.W.2d 249 (Writ Ref.W.M.) all by this court, holding that where a statute, as here, requires notice and hearing, such prerequisite is jurisdictional, and its omission renders the order void. We reaffirm such holdings, but differ with appellant as to their present application. There was both notice of and hearing on Continental’s application. The notice issued by the Commission and to which appellant responded named the towns between which authority to render bus service was sought.

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208 S.W.2d 586, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 1067, 1947 WL 55606, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kerrville-bus-co-v-continental-bus-system-texapp-1947.