standards without regard for the 160,000 passengers who use this train. Southern Pacific discontinued dining car and Pullman service for the first 1200 miles of the Sunset in 1966 in actions which led to the request for this investigation. On April 22, 1968, the examiner's recommended report and order was issued. He found the reinstatement of sleeping and dining services should be required by the Commission. The same day, the carrier moved to eliminate Pullman service over the remaining 800-mile route of the Sunset. A month later the carrier sought to discontinue the train. As described in the examiner's report, the choice of food on the automat is very limited, its quality is vastly inferior to that normally served on railroad diners. Formerly called a vending car, the automat is largely a self-service operation equipped with food vending machines and microwave ovens which frequently malfunction. Many of the public witnesses complained about the removal of the diner-lounge car and the poor quality of the food and eating facilities now provided on the Sunset. Passengers were, at times, forced to go without food or to subsist on cold snacks or sandwiches. At best the present dining facilties on the Sunset are rudimentary and do not adequately provide for the reasonable needs of the traveling public. While Southern Pacific does not have to provide gourmet menus and elaborate eating facilties, the passengers on this 2,000 mile, 45-hour run, regardless of whether the passenger is first class or coach, should be accorded an opportunity to purchase hot meals in a regular diner or combination diner-lounge at moderate prices. The record here reflects that the carrier removed the dinerlounge service without making any attempt to ascertain the needs of the Sunset passengers for such service. In fact, it seems apparent that Southern Pacific's removal of the diner-lounge car just a short time prior to the partial discontinuance of Pullman service was part of a pattern of conduct designed to downgrade passenger service on the Sunset and to discourage the use thereof by present and potential patronage. See Southern Pac. Co. Discontinuance; supra, at 800. Southern Pacific argues that the elimination of sleeping accommodations and the removal of the diner-lounge car were economy measures that constituted a reasonable exercise of its managerial discretion. The record regarding the cost of operating Pullman service and the diner-lounge car is not convincing, because of the piecemeal discontinuance of Pullman service, the substitution of other eating facilities for the diner-lounge car and for the further reason that Southern Pacific's figures respecting the use of the diner-lounge cover only that portion of the run between New Orleans and El Paso. Under these circumstances, it is not possible to ascertain the extent of Southern Pacific's loss on either the Pullman service or the diner-lounge. Little consideration can be accorded to whatever losses may have been incurred in circumstances where, as here, the losses were at least in part self-imposed. It is estimated that more than 160,000 passengers patronized the Sunset during 1968, and generally the same number in 1969. Broken down, this averages out to about 220 passengers a day per train or 440 a day for both trains. This number provides a potentially good market for diner-lounge type service. SP discontinued Pullman service between New Orleans and El Paso in 1966 at a time when there was a substantial demand for sleeping accommodations. It seems obvious that the elimination of Pullman service between New Orleans and El Paso had a significantly adverse effect upon the use of such service between El Paso and Los Angeles, for a prospective Pullman passenger faced with two full nights of travel would normally be dissuaded from boarding the train in New Orleans, knowing that sleeping accommodations were available for only a portion of the trip. The elimination of Pullman service on a portion of the run was instrumental in causing a decrease in Pullman patronage on the remainder of the run. If fully occupied, each Pullman car can accommodate a total of 22 patrons. On many occasions in recent years, depending upon the time of the year and demand for service, Southern Pacific used two Pullman cars. For the most part, however, Pullman service was limited to one car. While exact data respecting Pullman usage are not available, it appears that the number of Pullman passengers ranged from a low of about 12 to a high of about 35 in summer peak periods. During the period when but one car was used, the daily average number of Pullman passengers was about 16 which represents a load factor of approximately 70 perThe need for Pullman service is demonstrated by the fact that it was necessary on a number of occasions for the carrier to use two Pullman cars, and by the further consideration that out of 160,000 total passengers a year, or 220 a day in each direction, there is a sufficient potential to justify at least one Pullman car. I do not believe that it is asking too much of a cent. carrier to require it to furnish appropriate sleeping accomodations on a two-night trip for a significant number of passengers. Certain employees of Southern Pacific are provided sleeping accommodations en route. Fare paying passengers should be afforded, at least, the opportunity to avail themselves of such accommodations should they desire to pay an additional fare-until it can be demonstrated that the public will not support this service or that such facilities are an inordinate burden on the carrier. There is no contention that returning adequate sleeping and dining cars to the Sunset would require Southern Pacific to purchase additional equipment. The carrier's annual reports to this Commission show that it owned 70 dining tavern and grill cars on January 1, 1967, about the same number it still owned a year later. While ownership of sleeping cars declined somewhat in 1967, the Southern Pacific owned 75 at the beginning of 1968, and only retired 6 in the next 12 months, despite the fact that only two sets of its trains still offer Pullman facilities. The Sunset case contained instances where sleeping and dining services were blatantly eliminated without regard to public use or costs to the carrier. However, in the long run the real impact of service standards should relate to other service defects; poor ontime records, inadequate seating, inadequate condition of equipment and facility services, and failure to provide any semblance of information relating to train schedules and seating. These are the real problems that face most rail patrons, not the lack of sleeping cars. In Southern Pacific Discontinuance, supra, the eight members of the Commission who participated in that case set forth their evaluation of the overall service offered on the Sunset based on a more recent record than that compiled in this proceeding. At page 800 they stated: The record is convincing that the Southern Pacific has deliberately set out to discourage existing, as well as new, patronage of the Sunsets by reducing what was once a convenient and comfortable railroad passenger service to a slow, unreliable, uncomfortable train without sleeping facilities, with only rudimentary dining facilities; a train on which a seat cannot be reserved, arrival and departure times cannot be easily ascertained by telephone, or by printed schedules because they are often unobtainable, and a train for which adequate station waiting room is frequently lacking. The evidence in this case in no way justifies a different conclusion. 35-377 0-69 -6 CONCLUSION Each day that the quality of rail passenger service is allowed to deteriorate, the demise of intercity service becomes less doubtful. The railroads cannot control or reverse all of the conditions which have caused the decline in its passenger service. They can control the adequacy of existing service. Yet it is painfully clear that some trains are being operated so as to force the public to desert rail travel. The majority contends this Commission cannot prevent the railroads from abandoning their fundamental duties as common carriers. It is inconceivable to me that it was Congress' intention that this agency should be impotent to enforce such duties. Substantial changes and public assistance are required to solve this Nation's rail passenger dilemma. This Commission has urged such help. But the railroad industry can hardly expect its pleas for assistance or those issued by others, no matter how well justified, to be openly and generally accepted while such conditions as are present here continue. A remedy for the poor quality of existing rail service has been sought from this Commission. Now by the action of the majority, the public must look elsewhere for help-either to the Congress or to the courts. It is to be hoped that an effective and expeditious solution will be forthcoming from one of those sources. COMMISSIONER JACKSON did not participate. ORDER At a General Session of the INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION, held at its office in Washington, D. C., on the 10th day of September 1969. No. 34733 ADEQUACIES-PASSENGER SERVICE-SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY BETWEEN CALIFORNIA AND LOUSIANA Investigation of the matters involved in this proceeding having been made pursuant to the order of the Commission dated June 21, 1966, a hearing having been held, and said Commission on the date hereof having made and filed a report containing its findings of fact and conclusions thereon, which report and the report of the hearing examiner are referred to and made a part hereof: It is ordered, That the Southern Pacific Company be, and it is hereby, directed to implement our said report by eliminating the special services charge with respect to passenger trains Nos. 1 and 2 operating between Los Angeles, Calif., and New Orleans, La., unless the special services for which the charge was initially imposed are immediately restored; It is further ordered, That this investigation be, and it is hereby, discontinued; and It is further ordered, That this order shall become effective 35 days from the date of service of this order. By the Commission. (SEAL) H. NEIL GARSON, Secretary. |