Finance Docket No. 6598
ABANDONMENT OF OPERATION BY ST. LOUIS-SAN FRANCISCO RAILWAY

Submitted August 16, 1928. Decided August 30, 1928.

Certificate issued permitting the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company and its trustees to abandon operation of the line of part of a line of railroad in Cass and Jackson Counties, Mo., and Johnson County, Kans.

?. T. Miller and M. G. Roberts for applicants.
?. J. Healy for Public Service Commission of State of Kansas
Charles C. Hoge for Olathe Chamber of Commerce and othjers, protestants.

REPORT OF COMMISSION
DIVISION 4, COMMISSIONERS MEYER, AITCHISON, AND PORTER

BY DIVISION 4:
No exceptions were filed to the report proposed by the examiner.

The Kansas City, Clinton & Springfield Railway Company, hereinafter called the Clinton, a corporation organized for the purpose of engaging in interstate commerce by railroad, and the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company, leassee, hereinafter called the Frisco, a carrier by railroad subject to the interstate commerce act, on November 14, 1927, filed a joint application under paragraph (18) of section 1 of the act for a certificate that the present and future public convenience and necessity permit the abandonment of operation of that part of the Clinton's line of railroad between Belton, Mo., and Stanley, Kans., a distance of 8.98 miles, of which 5.53 miles are in Cass and Jackson Counties, Mo., and 3.45 miles are in Johnson County, Kans. A hearing was held for us in Kansas City, Mo., by the Public Service Commission of Kansas. Protests against the applicants' proposals were filed by the Olathe Chamber of Commerce, residents of Cass and Jackson Counties, and of Walnut Grove, Mo., and commercial organizations of Aldrich and Fairplay, Mo., and several residents of the affected territory appeared at the hearing and testified in opposition to the application. The State commission is of opinion that the application is supported by the evidence offered, and that should we grant the application we would be proper in so doing. No representations have been made herein by ?? of the State of Missouri.

The Clinton is a corporation of the States of Missouri and Kansas. It formerly operated, and now owns 141.15 miles of, a through line extending southeastward from Olathe, through Morse, Stanley, and Mastin, Kans., and West Belton, Blue Spur, Belton,Raymore, Harrisonville, Creighton, Urich, Clinton, Deepwater, Lowry City, Harlan Junction, Fairplay, Aldrich, and Phenix, Mo. to Ash Grove, Mo, a total distance of 155.3 miles. This line is the outgrowth of a railroad originally projected from Cedar Junction, Kans. through Olathe, Belton, and Raymore, to Pleasant Hill, Mo. At least a part of this railroad was built in the latter sixties by a corporate predecessor of the Clinton, and the project received public aid in the form of a bond issue of Johnson County. The parts of the line between Cedar Junction and Olathe and between Raymore and Pleasant Hill have long since been abandoned. The Clinton is controlled, through stock ownership, by the Kansas City, Fort Scott & Memphis Railway Company, a subsidiary of the Frisco, and since December 1, 1924, they properties of the Clinton have been operated by the Frisco under lease. See Control of the K. C. C. & S. Ry., 94 I. C. C. 5. Prior to the date mentioned, the properties were separately operated. Under operation as a part of the Frisco system, the Clinton's railroad, hereinafter called the Clinton line, has the status of a branch line.

The Frisco's main line southward from Kansas City extends through Rosedale, Olathe, Paola, Pleasanton, and Fort Scott, Kansas, to Edward, Kans, whence other system lines diverge southwest to Columbus, Kans, and beyond, and southward through Arcadia to Pittsburg, Kans, and Carl Junction, Mo. A third line extends southeastward from Arcadia, through Ash Grove, Mo., to Springfield, Mo, and beyond. The main line has two tracks between Kansas City and Paola. The Frisco system also includes a line extending southeastward from Kansas City, through Leeds, Dodson, Grandview, Belton, Peculiar, Harrisonville, Latour, Blairstown, Clinton, Lowry City, Osceola, Harlan Junction, and Walnut Grove, Mo. to Springfield. This railroad is referred to in the record as the high line. Between Belton and Ash Grove the high line and the Clinton line are generally parallel and, as appears from the common points above indicated, connect at several places. South of Belton, the maximum distance between the two lines is 8 miles and the average distance is 3.8 miles. Springfield is 19 miles southeast of Ash Grove.

In addition to the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company's Osawatomie line and the Kansas City Southern Railway Company's main line, hereinafter more especially mentioned, others railroads in or touching the territory traversed by the main line, the high line, and the Clinton line are the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company's main line from Chicago through Kansas City and Olathe to the West, the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Company's Kansas City line through Paola and Harrisonville, and St. Louis line through Fort Scott and Clinton, and a second line of the Missouri Pacific passing through Harrisonville and Pleasanton. The Katy's line from Paola to Harrisonville appears to be the nearest line, south of Olathe, extending east and west across the territory between the Frisco's main line, on the west, and the high line and the Clinton line on the east. The line of the Santa Fe has a switch connection with the Clinton line and the main line at Olathe. The Frisco can interchange freight with the Santa Fe as well at Kansas City or Argentine as at Olathe.

The Frisco has three routes, with substantial equality of mileage, from Springfield, a representative point in southwestern Missouri, to Kansas City, as follows: Ash Grove-Arcadia-Fort Scott, 202 miles, Ash Grove-Belton-Stanley-Olathe, 202.1 miles, and Clinton-Belton-Grandview, 191.2 miles. These routes are also available for traffic moving to Memphis, Tenn., and the Southeast, and to points in northeastern Arkansas and southeastern Missouri. From Kansas City, through Columbus or Carl Junction, points in the vicinity of Joplin, Mo., to points in the Southwest generally, the Frisco has two routes available, either through Olathe and Fort Scott, or through Belton, Clinton, and Ash Grove or Springfield. There are three Frisco-system routes from the Pittsburg, Kans., coal fields to the territory contiguous to Belton, namely, via Olathe and Belton, via Ash Grove and Osceola, and via Kansas City and Dodson. The distance necessary for coal traffic to move to points on the Clinton line and the high line as far south as Blairstown are, from north to south, from 94.6 miles to 13.2 miles less via Olathe, Stanley, and Belton than via Ash Grove and Osceola, but to Urich and points south the latter route is more advantageous in point of distance. To points below Grandview, as far south as Osceola, the route via Olathe, Stanley, and Belton is about 30 miles shorter than the route via Kansas City and Dodson. A common rate applies via all three routes.

In the choice of routes, from the standpoint of operate, the savings in distance are offset by physical and topographic conditions obtaining on the respective lines. The high line, also operated as a branch, is used for local business. The practice at Belton is to forward freight by the first train able to handle it, whether on the high line or the Clinton line; and if their is more business on the high line than one engine can handle, the excess is forwarded via Olathe. It is admitted that since the Frisco leased the Clinton line much of the traffic that might have moved over that line has been diverted to the high line. This policy has been adopted in the interests of economy and efficiency in operation. The volume of traffic moving over the main line is 10 times as much as the combined traffic of the high line and Clinton line.

With the exception of about 0.75 miles, the Clinton line has 56-pound rail, laid about 1885, and has light steel bridges. The high line has heavier rails and heavier bridges, permitting operation of locomotives capable of handling from 350 to 400 tons more than can be safely moved in single trains over the line of the Clinton. So long as there is traffic sufficient only for one train, the high line is the best route to Kansas City because it has the lower-grade line, permits heavier tractive effort, and is approximately 10 miles shorter than the route via Olathe. The high line is preferred by certain shippers, owing to the avoidance of delays at Olathe incident to connection with main-line trains into Kansas City. The service over the high line is more frequently than over the line from Belton to Olathe.

The applicants state that the Stanley - Belton segment has not for many years earned operating charges and taxes, and content that neither public convenience nor necessity require the operation of passenger or freight trains thereover. Actual severance of rails at Mastin is proposed, but all the track is not to be taken up.

In their return to our questionaire, which was not offered in evidence but was referred to, without objection, in the record, the applicants furnished for the years 1922 to 1926, inclusive, statistics of tonnage originating at and destined to points on the line from Belton to Stanley and passenger traffic, income accounts, and a statement of revenues and income allocable to the Stanley-Belton segment on a mileage prorate basis. The freight and passenger statistics do not reflect the actual experience, being also computed on a mileage basis. Ommission of actual figures for periods prior to 1927 is excused on the ground of the amount of labor entailed in segregation of the information

The territory between Olathe and Belton lies general south of the Kansas City gateway, and is described as a rolling agricultural section. The distance via Frisco lines from Kansas City to Olathe is 20.5 miles, and to belton 27.5 miles. Via Olathe,m the distance of Belton is 38.4 miles. Distances in miles, between points on the Olathe - Belton segment of the Clinton line are as follows:

	Morse	Stanley	Mastin	Belton
	Miles	Miles	Miles	Miles
Olathe	5.7	8.9	12.0	17.9
Morse		3.2	6.3	12.2
Stanley			3.1	9.0
Mastin				5.9

Blue Spur is said to be less than 2 miles from Belton. West Belton is about 2.5 miles west of Belton.

The points on the part of the Clinton line proposed no longer to be operated are Mastin, Blue Spur, and West Belton. Mastin is the only town with any settlement. The population of this community is not shown, but it appears that the town has two stores and 12 residences. It was testified that Mastin is served by the Missouri Pacific's Osawatomie line between Paola, Kans. and Leeds, Mo, a short distance southeast of Kansas City. On the line of the Missouri Pacific the town of Mastin is known as Kenneth. Mastin, or Kenneth, is 32.5 miles from Kansas City, by the route via Olathe, and 27.7 miles via the Missouri Pacific's line. The record contains a statement to the effect that there is no station agent at Kenneth, but it seems probable that, through confusion of the names, the statement has reference to the fact that Mastin is a nonagency station on the Clinton line. The railroad crossing at Mastin is protected by an interlocking plant. There are no facilities at Mastin for the interchange of traffic between the Frisco and the Missouri Pacific.

Blue Spur is merely a name given to a point, at or near the top of a hill, where the Clinton has a spur track used by trains in doubling the hill. There are no passenger or freight-loading facilities at Blue Spur. At West Belton the Clinton line passes under the Kansas City Southern's main line from Kansas City, through Arcadia, to Port Arthur, Tex. The latter carrier has a small depot and a blind siding at West Belton, but there are no interchange facilities at that point.

In 1920, Olathe had 3,268 people and the population of other communities along the line from Olathe to Belton were as follows: Morse 68, Stanley 219, and Belton, 899. Morse, a prepay station, has four business concerns and 14 residences. Stanley has two churches, schools, post office, 66 residences, and 14 commercial and industrial establishments. There are improved highways to Kansas City from Stanley and from Belton. The distance from Stanley to Kansas City. The distance from Stanley to Kansas City via highway is 24 miles. There are established motor bus and truck lines in operation from Kansas City southward through Stanley and from Kansas City to Belton., Between Stanley and Kansas City, the single trip fare by bus is 60 cents, as compared with $1.05 by railroad. It is estimated that the busses haul 90 percent of the passengers, and that 85 or 90 per cent of the less-than=carload freight moves by truck between the points mentioned. Trucks handle about four-fifths of such traffic between Kansas City and Belton. The railroad has lost a great deal of the livestock movement from Stanley.

Operation of the line from Belton to Olathe was suspended during the month of January, 1927, but was resumed the following month. During the 11 months of operation the freight movement over this part of the Clinton line was as follows:

Points between which traffic moved	Eastbound		Westbound		Total
	Load cars	Net tons	Loaded cars	Net tons	Loaded cars	Net tons
Stanley-Belton segment:
Olathe and Belton	621	11,840	856	17,552	1,477	29,392
Olathe and Mastin	1	5	3	120	4	125
Morse and Mastin
Morse and Belton			5	139	5	139
Stanley and Mastin	1	21	3	61	4	82
Stanley and Belton	2	60	10	246	12	306
Mastin and Belton	1	10	4	151	5	161
Total	626	11,935	881	18,269	1,507	30,205
Olathe-Stanley segment:
Olathe and Morse	45	1,841	61	1,707	106	3,548
Olathe and Stanley	215	8,339	59	1,439	274	9,778
Morse and Stanley	4	81	5	168	9	249
Total	264	10,261	125	3,314	389	13,575
Entire Olathe-Belton line:
Any and all points	890	22,197	1,006	21,583	1,896	43,780
Average per calendar day					5.7	131

If the link between Stanley and Belton should cease to be available, people of Olathe desiring to ship to Belton and points south would have to ship via Kansas City or Fort Scott and thereby suffer the disadvantages of longer time of movement and additional expense, except where group rates obtain. Apparently the fuel movement has been light, a statement in the record showing that only 36 cars of coal were handled in crossover service between Olathe and Belton during 11 months of 1927. The principal crossover movement is eastbound.

The applicants consider the traffic to and from Stanley sufficient to justify continued operation, in the manner proposed, of the part of the Clinton line between Olathe and Stanley. Statistics of the traffic handled at that point during the past three years follow.

	Freight, tons	Freight revenue 1	Passenger train revenue
Year 1925	8,383	$16,111.65	$499.18
Year 1926	26,828	$44,425.97	$506.07
Year 1927 (11 months)	10,993	$21,808.4	$28.06

¹ Including both system and foreign line proportions.

The substantial increase in 1926 over 1925 is accounted for an an unusual inbound movement of road-building materials for highway development. This movement continued, to a considerably lessened extent, in 1927. About 95 per cent of the freight handled at Stanley moves to and from Olathe. The volume of freight originating at and destined to Mastin appears to be negligible.

There appears to be little passenger traffic eastward from points east of Olathe. During the 12 months ended February 29, 1928, 337 tickets were sold at such points for travel to or via Olathe.

The present passenger service over the line from Olathe to Belton is performed by a motor car, with baggage trailer, operating daily in both directions between Olathe and Ash Grove. Freight service is performed by a train operating from Olathe to Clinton, and return, on alternate week days. Prior to the beginning of Frisco operations there was daily freight service between Olathe and Belton. The Frisco has daily freight service between Kansas City and Clinton and triweekly service between Clinton and Springfield on the high line, and triweekly local service between Kansas City and Paola on the main line.

With abandonment of operation of the Stanley - Belton segment, it is proposed that a mixed train be operated daily except Sunday from Kansas City, via Olathe, to Stanley, and return, instead of the present local service between Kansas City and Paola, and the present freight service and passenger service between Olathe and Belton. Service otherwise performed at Belton would not be disturbed. The contemplated change in train operations would reduce the small service at Stanley from seven days to six days per week.

During the 12 months ended November 30, 1927, the Frisco's share of the cost of maintaining and operating the interlocker plant at Mastin was $2,621,23. It is stated that this amount is representative of the yearly expense to the Frisco for this item. The annual expense for maintenance of way and structures on the Stanley-Belton segment is estimated at $5,999.82, on the basis of the average cost per mile of maintaining the Clinton line during the last year of independent operation. The applicants estimate that the proposed abandonment of operation would effect a net saving in expenses amounting to $10,089 a year through elimination of the interlocking plant and maintenance of the line between Stanley and Belton, and reduction in the mileage operated by the motor car. This estimate takes into account increased expenses incident to trains tying up at Grandview instead of Olathe. It was testified that the additional expense of operating the main line train to Stanley would be negligible, involving only possible small differences between local and mixed train wage scales. The testimony shows that the item of transportation expense is of minor consequence as compared with the interlocker expense and the cost of maintaining the Stanley-Belton segment.

Since March 1, 1920, at least, operation of the Clinton line has always been unprofitable. Diversion of freight from the line has not affected the situation except to increase the amounts of deficits. Economies expected to result from the proposed abandonment would not increase revenues but would have the effect of reducing deficits suffered by the Frisco from operation of the Clinton line.

The Stanley-Belton segment is used in the movement to a creamery at Olathe of a considerable quantity of raw materials originating at Belton and points south as far as Deepwater, and additional expense and other detriment would be suffered by this industry from transfers and delay at Kansas City if the segment were abandoned. The creamery receives shipments from Peculiar and Latour, on the high line, via Kansas City. Inconvenience and expense of roundabout travel from the vicinity of Olathe, via Kansas City, to communities south of Belton is illustrated by the case of a clergyman who resides on a farm near Olathe and goes frequently to creighton and Urich to minister to congregations at those points. The witness testified to the effect that conditions incident to travel via Kansas City would be such as possibly to necessitate abandonment of this work. A livestock shipper residing at Stanley appears to prefer the present service, limit for his purposes to one day per week, to more frequent service proposed to be substituted, because the contemplated hour of departure would be less conducive of advantageous marking. Objections to the applicant's proposal of a witness operating an elevator at Stanley seems to be satisfied by testimony that the rates on grain moving to Clinton would not be in any way affected by the longer haul via Kansas City.

The protestants apprehend that the proposed abandonment of operation is a step toward piecemeal abandonment of the Clinton line. Such an intention on the part of the applicants is disclaimed. It is contended on behalf of the protestants that the testimony adduced by the applicants is directly mainly to the section between Belton and Stanley without comparisons with data for other sections of the Clinton line or with data for periods prior to 1925, and that the proposal herein is inconsistent with the Frisco's proposal, then pending in another proceeding, to acquire the properties of the Clinton. Authorization for that proposal has since bee granted by our certificate dated July 10, 1928, in Acquisition by St.L-S.F. Ry., 145 I.C.C. 110.

Upon the facts presented we find that the present and future public convenience and necessity permit the abandonment by the Frisco of operation of the part of a line of railroad in Cass and Jackson Counties, Mo., and Johnson County, Kans., described in the application. An appropriate certificate will be issued. Such certificate will provide that it shall take effect and be in force from and after 30 days from its date. Suitable provisions will be made therein for the cancellation of tariffs.

A hearing and investigation of the matters and things involved in this proceeding having been had, and said division having, on the date hereof, made and filed a report containing its findings of fact and conclusions thereon, which report is hereby referred to and made a part hereof:

It is hereby certified, That the present and future public convenience and necessity permit the abandonment by the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company of operation of that part of a line of railroad in Cass and Jackson Counties, Mo., and Johnson County, Kans., described in the application and the aforesaid report.

It is ordered, That this certificate shall take effect and be in force from and after 30 days from its date. Tariffs applicable to the portion of the line herein authorized to be abandoned, may be cancelled upon notice to this commission and to the general public, by not less than 10 days' filing and posting in the manner prescribed in section 6 of the interstate commerce act.

It is further ordered, That, when filing schedules cancelling tariffs on said part of line, the operation of which is herein authorized to be abandoned, the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company in such schedules refer to this certificate by title, date, and docket number.

And is is further ordered, That the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company shall report to this commission as required by valuation order No. 24, effective May 15, 1928.

145 I.C.C. 379-387