State ex rel. Jenkins v. Brown, Public Service Commission

• Decision Date: 30 July 1929
• Docket Number: 29499
• Parties: STATE ex rel. JENKINS v. BROWN et al., Public Service Commission
• Court: Missouri Supreme Court

19 S.W.2d 483

323 Mo. 382

STATE ex rel. JENKINS v. BROWN et al., Public Service Commission

No. 29499

Supreme Court of Missouri, First Division

July 30, 1929

D. W Peters, of Jefferson City, for appellant.

D. D McDonald, Gen. Counsel, and H. O. Harrawood, Asst. Counsel both of Jefferson City, for respondents.

OPINION

GANTT

GANTT J. Relator appealed from a judgment of the circuit court of Cole county affirming an order of the Public Service Commission authorizing the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company to construct a service track, with less than standard clearances, from a railroad track into its warehouse.

The application of the glass company asking for permission to construct the track merely states that it desires to do so and that the construction of the warehouse is such that it will be necessary to construct said track with less than standard clearances.

The uniform clearance statute (Laws 1925, p. 323) follows:

'Section 1. Clearance Twenty-Two Feet -- Exception. -- Except in cases in which the public service commission finds that such construction is impracticable, bridges, viaducts, tunnels, overhead roadways, footbridges, wire or other structure hereafter built over the track or tracks of a railroad or railroads by a county, municipality, township, railroad company, or other corporation, firm or person, shall be not less than twenty-two feet in the clear from the top of the rails of such track or tracks, to such wire or other structure or to the bottom of the lowest sill, girder or crossbeam, and the lowest downward projection on the bridges, viaduct, tunnel, overhead roadway or foot-bridge.

'Section 2. Public Service Commission -- Permission, When Granted. -- No railway or railroad corporation, county, municipality township, or other corporation, firm or person shall hereafter erect or cause to be erected any passenger or freight station platforms, or any permanent structure over or contiguous to any railroad track or tracks, switch or siding, such as shop buildings, coal-bins, manufacturing and industrial buildings or any other structure whatsoever, without first having secured permission so to do from the public service commission, and it shall be the duty of the public service commission to promulgate uniform rules governing clearances in the construction of such structures as soon after the passage of this act as the same may be reasonably done: Provided, that after the promulgation of uniform rules as aforesaid by said public service commission, it shall not be necessary to procure permission from said public service commission to erect any structure aforesaid that is erected in conformity to such rule, and provided, further, that the provisions of this section shall not apply to...