Railroad Commission of Texas v. Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc.

392 S.W.2d 186
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 9, 1966
DocketNo. 11309
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 392 S.W.2d 186 (Railroad Commission of Texas v. Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc.) 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
Railroad Commission of Texas v. Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc., 392 S.W.2d 186 (Tex. Ct. App. 1966).

Opinion

HUGHES, Justice.

The parties to this case are the Railroad Commission of Texas, its members, Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. and Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc. All parties have appealed from portions of the judgment rendered below. We will refer to Curry as appellee and the Commission and Merchants as appellants unless otherwise indicated.

Suit in the court below was filed by Curry against the Commission and Merchants in the nature of an appeal from an order of the Commission granting, in part, Merchants’ application to amend its Common Carrier Certificate No. 2024.

After a non-jury trial the court entered judgment from which, because of its informative and comprehensive character, we quote at length;

“on January 2, 1964, the Railroad Commission of Texas issued an amendment to Certificate No. 2024, which amendment granted the following authority :
‘TO OPERATE: over an ALTERNATE ROUTE between Lubbock and Dimmitt as follows:
From Lubbock over U. S. Highway 84 to Littlefield; thence over U.S. Highway 385 to Dimmitt, serving no intermediate points, returning over the same route, and co-ordinating the service with that authorized under other certificates.
Restriction: This Alternate Route may not be transferred or sold except with the primary route’;
(4) that the effect of such order and the amendment so issued to such certificate is to create a new common carrier motor carrier service and to authorize Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to operate a new route in the transportation of freight between Amarillo and Lubbock over U. S. Highway 84 between Lubbock and Littlefield, over U. S. Highway 385 between Little-field and Vega, and over U. S. Highway 66 between Vega and Amarillo by reason of the authority granted to coordinate with other authority;
(5) that the plaintiff, Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc., depends to a substantial degree upon revenue derived from the transportation of freight between Amarillo and Lubbock to support its operations as a common carrier motor carrier and to render service to the public over its system, and the effect of such order and certificate amendment is to create new and intensive competition for plaintiff which will ultimately impair its continuing ability to render effective public service;
(6) that there is no express finding by the Railroad Commission of Texas [188]*188that the public convenience and necessity requires such a new service and that Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. have such a new route between Lubbock and Amarillo;
(7) that there is no substantial evidence to support either an express or implied finding by the Railroad Commission of Texas that the public convenience and necessity requires such a new service and that Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. have such a new route between Lubbock and Amarillo;
(8) that to the extent that such order of October 25, 1963, and the certificate amendment of January 2, 1964, create a new service and authorize Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to operate a new route in the transportation of freight between Amarillo and Lubbock over U. S. Highway 84 between Lubbock and Littlefield, over U. S. Highway 385 between Littlefield and Vega, and over U. S. Highway 66 between Vega and Amarillo, the same are unreasonable and unjust as to the plaintiff, Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc., in the absence of substantial evidence to support the grant of such new service and new route;
(9) that insofar as said order of October 25, 1963, and the certificate amendment of January 2, 1964, authorize Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to transport freight between Lubbock and Hereford and between Lubbock and Dimmitt over a new route, such route being from Lubbock to Little-field over U. S. Highway 84, from Littlefield to Hereford and Dimmitt over U. S. Highway 385 serving no points except Lubbock, Hereford and Dimmitt, the same are supported by substantial evidence and to such extent such order and certificate amendment are not unreasonable and unjust as to the plaintiff, Curry Motor Freight Lines, Inc. Accordingly, it is
ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED by the Court that said order of October 25, 1963,. entered in Docket No. 2024 and the amendment to Certificate No. 2024 issued January 2, 1964, pursuant thereto be and the same are hereby set aside and can-celled insofar as the same may authorize Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to transport freight between Amarillo and Lubbock over the following route:
over U. S. Highway 84 between Lubbock and Littlefield, over U. S. Highway 385 between Littlefield and Vega, and over U. S. Highway 66 between Vega and Amarillo,
and that the Railroad Commission of Texas be, and it is hereby restrained and enjoined from issuing any certificate to Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. pursuant to said order of October 25, 1963, which has the effect of authorizing Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to transport freight between Amarillo and Lubbock over the above described route, but without prejudice, however, to the right of the Railroad Commission of Texas to issue an amended order and an amendment to Certificate No. 2024 authorizing Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc. to transport freight between Lubbock and Hereford and between Lubbock and Dimmitt serving no other points over the following route:
over U. S. Highway 84 between Lubbock and Littlefield, over U. S. Highway 385 between Littlefield and Hereford;
And it is further ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED by the Court that the defendant, Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc., its agents and employees, be, and they are hereby permanently restrained and enjoined from conducting any common carrier motor carrier operations for the transportation of freight between Amaril[189]*189lo, Texas, and Lubbock, Texas, over the following route:
over U. S. Highway 84 between Lubbock and Littlefield and over U. S. Highway 385 between Littlefield and Vega and over U. S. Highway 66 between Vega and Amarillo under the order of October 25, 1963, and the Certificate amendment of January 2, 1964, made and issued by the defendant, Railroad Commission of Texas, in Motor Carrier Docket No. 2024;”

Other Common Carrier Certificates owned by Merchants authorized it to operate between Dimmitt and Amarillo via Hereford and Vega. By coordinating this service with the authority granted by the Amendment to Certificate 2024 to operate between Lubbock and Dimmitt, the order authorized Merchants to operate between Lubbock and Amarillo on a much shorter route.

Prior to the Commission order of January 2, 1964, Merchants’ route between Lubbock and Amarillo was via Guthrie, Padu-cah, Childress and Clarendon, a distance of 266 miles. Following the order of January 2, 1964, Merchants’ route from Lubbock to Amarillo via Dimmitt and Vega was 164 miles, a saving in distance of 102 miles.1 The evidence shows that in round trips between Lubbock and Amarillo Merchants would, by using the shorter route, save in road costs only $67.32.

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Related

Southern Pacific Transport Co. of Texas v. Railroad Commission
493 S.W.2d 502 (Texas Supreme Court, 1973)
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407 S.W.2d 479 (Texas Supreme Court, 1966)

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Bluebook (online)
392 S.W.2d 186, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/railroad-commission-of-texas-v-curry-motor-freight-lines-inc-texapp-1966.