Atlantic Coast Line R. Co. v. Farmer

• Decision Date: 18 April 1918
• Docket Number: 4 Div. 776
• Parties: ATLANTIC COAST LINE R. CO. v. FARMER.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

79 So. 35

201 Ala. 603

ATLANTIC COAST LINE R. CO. v. FARMER.

4 Div. 776

Supreme Court of Alabama

April 18, 1918

Appeal from Circuit Court, Houston County; H.A. Pearce, Judge.

Action by Jennie Farmer against the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company, for damages for injury while a passenger. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Transferred from Court of Appeals under section 6, p. 449, Acts 1911. Reversed and remanded.

John R Tyson, of Montgomery, for appellant.

H.K Martin, of Dothan, for appellee.

SOMERVILLE J.

A carrier must exercise care in providing reasonably safe and convenient means for the assistance and protection of passengers in getting on and off its cars. Central of Ga Ry. Co. v. Carlisle, 2 Ala.App. 514, 56 So. 737; 10 C.J. 933, § 1354. "In the absence of circumstances rendering such assistance necessary, a carrier is not required to furnish a boarding or an alighting passenger with a portable box or footstool. But where the car step is unreasonably high, the carrier should furnish a box or footstool to facilitate the boarding or alighting of a passenger, and should exercise due care to see that such box or stool is in a safe condition, and is placed or used by its employés in a safe manner." 10 C.J. 934, § 1354.

Where the lowest car step is not higher above the ground than is usual for other vehicles from which people safely alight without such assistance, it has been held that a footstool need not be provided. Young v. Mo. Pac. R.R. Co., 93 Mo.App. 267; Tex. Mid. R.R. Co. v. Frey, 25 Tex.Civ.App. 386, 61 S.W. 442.

But where the distance from the step to the ground is three feet or thereabouts, it is the carrier's duty to provide a footstool or some other convenient means to aid the passenger in getting on or off the car. I.C.R.R. Co. v. Cheek, 152 Ind. 663, 53 N.E. 641; Cincinnati, etc., R.R. Co. v. Bell, 74 S.W. 700, 25 Ky.Law Rep. 10.

If the proper physical facilities are provided for this purpose, no duty rests upon the carrier in ordinary cases to render manual assistance to its passengers, even though requested to do so. 10 C.J. 931, § 1352, 5. The general rule, and some of the exceptional cases, are stated and discussed in Central of Ga. Ry. Co. v. Carlisle, supra; 10 C.J. 932, § 1353b.

The complaint is certainly subject to the criticism that it is loosely and inartificially drawn.

In the first and third counts, based on the failure or refusal of the conductor to assist her in alighting, which we interpret as meaning personal and manual assistance, plaintiff invokes the duty of such assistance upon the premise solely that:

"On account of conditions existing at said Grimes she could not get off of said coach without peril to herself (specifying); that it was raining, and the steps of said coach were wet and slippery."

This is manifestly not sufficient to show a duty of assistance by the conductor, for there is no averment showing any want of facilities for leaving the car in some other way than by attempting to step immediately across from the car to the depot platform; nor...