Ervay v. Waverly, Sayre & Athens Traction Co.
Ervay v. Waverly, Sayre & Athens Traction Co.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
The plaintiff was injured in a collision between along sled in which he was riding and a car of the defendant at a street crossing in a borough. When he reached the house line of the street on which the defendant had a single track road he saw a car three hundred or four hundred feet from the intersection and approaching very rapidly. When his horses’ front feet were on the footway crossing fifteen feet from the tracks, he again looked at the car and saw it two hundred or two hundred and fifty feet from the intersection and then saw that it was approaching very rapidly, at more than twice its usual speed and at the rate of twenty-five or thirty miles an hour. He did not look again but acted on the assumption that he had time to cross in advance of the car and drove on at a walk of three or four miles an hour. The back part of his sled was struck by the car. When he last looked at the car, his horses’ heads were fifteen feet from the track and because of the length of his sled and team, the width of the track and the overhang of the car he had to drive forty-five feet to cross in advance of the car, which according to his highest estimate of distance was within two hundred and fifty feet of him and was moving more than six times as fast as he was. A collision was inevitable unless he or the motorman took measures to avoid it. With full knowledge of the situation he went on when he had ample time in which to stop and ample room in which to turn to either side, and left the whole responsibility of avoiding a collision with the motorman.
The assignment of error to the refusal of the court to enter judgment non obstante veredicto is sustained and judgment is now entered for the defendant.
Reference
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- Ervay v. Waverly, Sayre & Athens Traction Company
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- Negligence — Contributory negligence — Street car companies — Stop, look and listen — Judgment n. o. v. 1. The duty of a pedestrian or driver to look, and, if necessary, because of obstructions to vision, to listen before crossing the track of a city passenger railway, is as fixed as the duty, of which it is a part, to stop, look and listen before crossing the track of a steam railroad. The rule in relation to the observance of this duty is unbending and to be observed at all times and under all circumstances and a failure to observe it is negligence per se. The proper place to look is when close to the track or as stated in some of our cases at the edge of the track. 2. The lower court should have entered- judgment for defendant n. o. v. in an action to recover damages for injuries sustained by plaintiff in a collision between a long sled, in which he was riding, and the car of the defendant company, at a street crossing of a borough, where it appeared that plaintiff when he reached the house line of the street which he was about to cross, saw a car three or four hundred feet from the intersection and approaching very rapidly; that he looked again when his horses’ front feet were on the footway crossing fifteen feet from the tracks, and saw the car two hundred or two hundred and fifty feet distant, still approaching very rapidly; that he did not look again, but, upon the assumption that he had time to cross in advance of the car, drove upon the tracks at a walk, with the consequence that his sled was struck by the car, and he was injured. In such case the plaintiff was not relieved from his duty to observe care by the assumption, however reasonable, that the mot'orman would check the speed of the car in time to enable him to cross in safety.