mission in other cases. The return on investment is placed at 6 per cent of the book value of the physical property. The actual return in 1917, as shown in the table, is merely interest paid upon indebtedness, since no dividends were declared upon the stock. As already shown, the engineers of the Commission have been able to discover investment sufficient to cover but $210,000 of the floating indebtedness. The yearly interest upon this sum at the stated rate of 5 per cent, plus 6 per cent upon the outstanding stock, would amount to $28,050 instead of the $32,794 estimated by the company.

With the modifications thus indicated, the yearly revenue requirements at the present time may be stated as follows:

The actual income in 1917 was $195,697, or $47,043 less than the amount shown by this table to be required. Aside from the increase of passenger fares, there are only two other possible sources of additional revenue. One is the freight and express business. This traffic is increasing and the rates have recently been raised about 25 per cent. It is reasonable, therefore, to expect a gain in revenue from this source of at least $5,000, and it seems likely to prove even larger.

The other possible source is the joint traffic with the Attleborough Branch Railroad Company. Much stress was laid upon this matter by certain of the remonstrants. This railroad, popularly known as the "Gee Whiz" line, parallels the Interstate Consolidated between North Attleborough and Attleboro. Passenger service is furnished by both routes, which are under the same management, but the cars which operate over the Attleborough Branch use the Interstate Consolidated tracks in entering both Attleboro and North Attleborough. The running time is shorter by this route, since it has the advantage of private right of way, and it is probably for this reason that it is used for much of the extra service in the morning and evening between the two communities. Out of every fare collected upon it, 3 cents go to the Attleborough Branch Railroad Company and 1 cents to the Interstate Consolidated Street Railway Company.

The remonstrants claimed that this division is unfair to the Interstate Consolidated, since more than one-quarter of the mileage is over its tracks, and that traffic is diverted to the "Gee Whiz" route to the financial detriment of the Interstate Consolidated. The management replied that it is indifferent as to the precise manner in which the division is made, and would accept any change in this respect which the Commission might feel is reasonable. Investigation shows that the distance between Attleboro and North Attleborough via this route is 5.01 miles, and that 3.21 miles of this is over Attleborough Branch railroad tracks and 1.80 over Interstate Consolidated tracks. While the fare is divided on a 25-75 basis, the proportion based on distance covered is 36-64. Each company, furthermore, pays the wages of the crews while they are on its tracks, and the elapsed time is relatively longer on the Interstate Consolidated portion of the route, since it includes the terminals, and operation through the public streets is slower than on private right of way. In view of all the circumstances, we are of the opinion that the fare might reasonably be divided upon a 45-55 basis, 55 per cent going to the Attleborough Branch Railroad Company and 45 per cent to the Interstate Consolidated. The latter's receipts from this source last year were about $7,900. If it had received 45 per cent, instead of 25 per cent, this amount would have been increased by about $6,300.

Summing up this matter of revenue, it is probable that the freight and express receipts may increase at least $5,000 during the year, and that about $6,300 could be added to the passenger revenue if a more equitable division of receipts with the Attleborough Branch Railroad Company were made. If the Interstate Consolidated, besides these increases, could add $46,500 to the operating revenue which it received last year by adopting the proposed new tariff, its total income would be $253,497, which is about $10,000 in excess of the estimate of revenue required.

It remains to determine whether or not the desired increase in rates, in view of the facts above stated, may reasonably be allowed. The remonstrants conceded that some increase was necessary, but felt that the proposed schedule, which would raise the fares in some cases 100 per cent, was excessive. The mayor

of Attleboro offered an alternative plan, which was, in brief, to retain the new zones proposed by the company, but to make the fare, on a ride covering two zones, 2 cents or 3 cents in the second zone instead of 5 cents. Under this plan, for example, the fare between Plainville and Attleboro or between Attleboro and

the State line would be 7 cents or 8 cents instead of 10 cents. As nearly as we can estimate, this plan, if adopted on all lines and if the fare in the second zone were placed at 3 cents, would vield about $25,000 additional revenue. This estimate has been made upon the basis of the same traffic figures as were used by the company in its estimate of $46,500 gain under its own plan, assuming, however, a somewhat smaller traffic loss.

Upon consideration, the Commission is of the opinion that this alternative plan ought not to be adopted, and that the company's tariff, with minor modifications, is just and reasonable under present conditions. The reasons which have led us to this con

clusion are as follows:

(1) The fares proposed by the company, in comparison with those now charged by other companies in the state, are not high. The present zones are very long, so that rides can be obtained in many cases at a rate of about one cent per mile. Under the new tariff, a minimum fare of 5 cents would be retained, although many other companies now have a minimum of 6 cents or 7 cents. Taking the city of Attleboro as a center, it would be possible to ride 4.12 miles in one direction, 3.66 miles in another, and 2.16 miles in still another, for this minimum fare of 5 cents. This is far more favorable than the schedule now in effect on the Bay State system, where the inner zones in the cities, which have in general much larger populations than Attleboro, have a radius of from 1 to 2 miles, and where the minimum cash fare is 6 cents and the tickets sold at a lower rate are good only to or from the traffic center. It is also more favorable than a mileage system at the rate of 22 cents or even 2 cents per mile, with a minimum fare of 6 cents, such as is now in effect on various other lines.

(2) While the new tariff might, if, no modifications were made, if the estimated gain proved correct and if additional revenue is secured from the freight and express business and from a better division of receipts with the Attleborough Branch Railroad Company, yield somewhat more than the estimate of revenue required, it is decidedly improbable that this would be the result. So far as we are aware, no company in this state has yet secured from an increase in fares the gain estimated before the increase became effective, and existing conditions are now more unfavorable than they have been in the past. In the first six months of this year, the passenger revenue on this road was $75,705.56, as compared with $82,004.85 in the corresponding period of 1917, a decrease of $6,299.29.

(3) The modifications in the schedule which are recommended below will reduce the gain estimated by the company.

One defect in the proposed tariff, it seems to us, lies in the fact that the fare zones in no case overlap and that transfer privileges are entirely eliminated. The result would be that 10

cents would be charged for even a very short ride in the thickly settled portion of Attleboro, which passed the traffic center at the railroad station, and the same would be true of North Attleborough and South Attleborough. In the judgment of the Commission the tariff should be modified to correct this defect. We do not now undertake to say exactly what form this modification should take, but leave this matter to be determined in conference with the officials of the company. The change, when agreed upon, may be made by a supplement to the tariff now on file, which will then be permitted to take effect on short notice.

A further and more serious defect, which, however, is beyond the jurisdiction of this Commission, relates to the charge between Orr's Corner in South Attleborough, and adjacent points, and Pawtucket. Under the new tariff this fare would be 10 cents for a ride of about 3 miles, since the traffic center of Pawtucket is less than one mile from the State line. If there were but one company and no State boundary, we have no doubt that a lower fare than this would be deemed reasonable even by the management, and we believe that the Rhode Island Company and the Interstate Consolidated Street Railway Company ought, as matters now stand, to be able to agree upon some joint ticket arrangement which would offer a fare of, say, 7 cents to regular riders. We strongly recommend that the Interstate Consolidated company use its best endeavors to bring about such an arrangement. South Attleborough is closely associated in a business way with Pawtucket, and the proposed 10-cent fare would, in our opinion, be an unreasonable hardship for many workingmen. If no agreement can voluntarily be reached upon this point by the two companies, it is possible that an adjustment can be secured by an appeal to the Interstate Commerce Commission, and this Commission will be ready to lend its aid to such an appeal. We feel confident, however, that this action will not be necessary. If a joint ticket is provided, it should, in our opinion, be available for use in connection with through traffic from points north of South Attleborough.

For the Commission,

ANDREW A. HIGHLANDS,

AUGUST 14, 1918.

[P.S. C. 2162]

Secretary.

BAY STATE RATE CASES.

Notices of Bay State Street Railway Company of proposed changes in the rates of fare for passengers upon its railway and in reduced-rate workingmen's, commutation and excursion tickets, as set forth in schedules numbered M. P. S. C. 62, 75 and 77, with supplements thereto.

SAMUEL H. PILLSBURY for Bay State Street Railway Company. JOHN T. CROWLEY for Town of Abington.

E. C. JEWETT for Brockton Chamber of Commerce.

E. GERRY BROWN for Brockton Chamber of Commerce and cer

tain labor organizations.

WALTER PERHAM for Town of Chelmsford.