Monongahela Bridge Co. v. Pittsburgh Railways Co.
Monongahela Bridge Co. v. Pittsburgh Railways Co.
Dissenting Opinion
Dissenting Opinion by
For the reasons stated in an opinion this day filed in the case of Point Bridge Co. v. Pittsburgh Railways Co., 240 Pa. 105, I here dissent.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
This case is to be distinguished in a very few particulars from that of Point Bridge Company v. Pittsburgh Railways Company, 240 Pa. 105, in which the opinion has just been handed down. In this case, as in that, the City of Pittsburgh is. the owner, of all the stock in the bridge company, and has made the bridge free. The action was to recover from the railways company compensation for the use of the bridge from 1905 to 1908 at the fate of $15,000 for the years 1904 and 1905, and $25,000 for the one year 1908. The rights of
These inistructions are assigned as error. In the Point Bridge case we held that where a street railway is rightfully upon a bridge controlled by the municipality by and with the consent of the municipality pursuant to an ordinance, and no rent has been made a condition of the consent, the municipality cannot thereafter exact rental; that all that it can do in such case is to require of the railway company a license fee in amount reasonably sufficient to indemnify it for whatever cost and expense by way of repair, maintenance and supervision of the bridge it is called on to bear by reason of the extraordinary use to which the structure is subjected." In this case, as in the one referred to, much evidence was received, against exceptions, as to elements which would properly enter into the case had it been a question of rental value; and the case was submitted to the jury on this evidence to determine what was reasonably due from the defendant company to the city on this account. The error in that case was repeated in this, and the case for like reasons calls for reversal..
The defendant succeeded to the rights of the Syca
The judgment is reversed, and a venire facias de novo awarded.
Reference
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- Syllabus
- Municipalities — Street railways — Bridges—Use of Bridge — Municipal consent — Rental—Set off. 1. Where a municipality has acquired all the stock of a bridge company and a street railway is rightfully upon the bridge by and with the consent of the municipality, pursuant to an ordinance, and no rent has been made a condition of the consent, the municipality cannot thereafter exact rental; all it can do in such case is to require of the railway company a license fee in an amount reasonably sufficient to indemnify it for whatever cost and expense by way of repair, maintenance and supervision of the bridge it is called on to bear by reason of the extraordinary use to which the structure is subjected. 2. Where in such case the railway company had succeeded to the rights of another street railway company by merger, which latter company had obtained the consent of the city to use the bridge, upon condition that it would pay an annual rental of a specified sum, the railway company is not entitled to set off the amount so paid in an action to recover under the police power for the expenses of repairing, maintaining and supervising the bridge. Mr. Justice Moschzisker dissents.