Chapter 318. To authorize the Washington Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company to extend its line of road into and within the District of Columbia, and for other purposes
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CHAP. 318.— An Act To authorize the Washington Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company to extend its line of road into and within the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.August 23, 1894. *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled*,Washington, Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company may lay tracks, etc., D. C. That the Washington, Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company, a body incorporated under the laws of the State of Virginia, be, and is hereby, authorized to construct and lay down a double-track street railway, except as hereinafter provided, with the necessary switches, turn outs, and other mechanical devices, the number and location of which shall he approved by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, said street railway to be constructed and laid down through and along the following routes:
Commencing on B street, between Seventh and Eighth streets northwest,Location. at a point to be designated by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, thence westward along B street to Thirteen-and-a-half street, thence northward on Thirteen-and-a-half street to E street by single track, thence westward on E street to Fourteenth street on a single track, thence southward on Fourteenth street using the tracks of the Belt Line Street Railway, to the Potomac River, thence across the Potomac River by a suitable ferry or transfer barge to the Virginia shore, with the privilege of a double track on B street, from Thirteen-and-a-half street, connecting with the Belt Line Street Railway tracks at Fourteenth street.
And said company is authorized to construct its road across theCrossing tracks. tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad at or near the long bridge, under such regulations as may be prescribed by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia. And the said Washington, Alexandria and Mount Vernon ElectricFerry slip. Railway Company is hereby authorized and empowered to construct and maintain, after acquiring title to the same, at the loot of Fourteenth street, a necessary landing and slip for the operation of a ferryboat or transfer steamer, said landing and slip to be constructed on plans approved by the Secretary of War, and tor the purpose of connection Overhead, wire.to use an overhead wire for a distance of not exceeding four hundred feet, commencing at the extreme southern end of the slip.
And said company is also authorized and empowered to construct,Steam Transfer boat. maintain, and operate, subject to the supervision of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, a double-end steamboat or transfer barge for the transfer of its cars, with all the modern improvements for the *Proviso*. Condemnation of land.safety and protection of its passengers: *Provided*, That the said company be authorized to condemn for its use for said landing and slip, as 495 provided for In this Act, a space not exceeding one hundred and fifty by two hundred feet.
Sec. 2. That whenever the roadway of any street occupied by theExpense of widening street roadways. said railway company is Widened, one half of the cost of widening and improvement of such widened part shall be charged to the said railway company, and collected from said company in the same manner as the cost of laying or repairing pavements lying between the exterior rails of the tracks of street railways, and for a distance of two feet from and exterior to such track or tracks on each side thereof, is collectible under the provisions of section five of the Act entitled “AnVol. 20, p. 105.
Act providing a permanent form of government for the District of Columbia, approved June eleventh, eighteen hundred and seventy-eight.” Sec. 3. That when the route described coincides with that of aCountry roads. country road of less width than sixty-six feet, the railway shall be constructed entirely outside the road. Sec. 4. That the said railway shall be constructed in a substantialConstruction. and durable manner; and all rails, electrical and mechanical appliances, conduits, stations, and so forth, shall be of approved pattern, and subject to the approval of the District Commissioners.
Sec. 5. That the said corporation shall at all times keep the spaceKeeping street, etc., in repair. between its tracks and rails and two feet exterior thereto in such condition as the Commissioners of the District of Columbia or their successors may direct, and whenever any street occupied by said railway is paved or repaired or otherwise improved the said corporation shall bear all the expense of improving the spaces above described. Should the said corporation fail to comply with the orders of the Commissioners the work shall be done by the proper officials of the District of Columbia and the amounts due from said corporation shall be collected as provided by section live of the Act entitled “AnVol. 20, p. 105.
Act providing a permanent form of government for the District of Columbia, approved June eleventh, eighteen hundred and seventy-eight.” But no overheadOverhead wires. wires shall be used or constructed except as hereinbefore provided nor shall steam power be used within the limits of the city of Washington: *Provided*, That the tracks of said road shall not be used*Proviso*. Use of tracks. for the transportation of any ears other than those used for the transportation of passengers on street railways.
Sec. 6. That nothing in this Act shall prevent the District ofAltering grades.etc. Columbia at any time, at its option, from altering the grade of any avenue, street, or highway occupied by said railway, or from altering and improving streets, avenues, and highways, and the sewerage thereof; in such event it shall be the duty of said company at once to change its said railway and the pavement so as to conform to such grades and improvements as may have been established. Sec. 7.
That it shall be lawful for said railway company, its successorsConstruction. or assigns, having first obtained the permission of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, to make all needful and convenient trenches and excavations in any of said streets or places where said company may have the right to construct and operate its road, and place in such trenches and excavations all needful and convenient devices and machinery for operating said railroad in the same manner and by the means herein provided, but shall forthwith restore the streets to a like good condition as they were before.
But whenever such trenches or excavations shall interfere with any sewer, gas, or water pipes, or any subways or conduits, or any public work of the kind which has been ordered by the Commissioners, then the expense necessary to change such underground construction shall be borne by the said railroad company. Sec. 8. That the said company shall, before commencing work onDeposit for expenses of inspection, etc. said railroad on such street, deposit with the Treasurer of the United States to the credit of the Washington Aqueduct such sum as the Secretary of War may consider necessary to defray all the expenses that 496 may be incurred by the United States in connection with the inspection of the work of construction of said railroad on such street, and in making good any damages done by said company, or its works, or by any of its contracting agents, to any of said mains, fixtures, or apparatus, and in completing, as the Secretary of War may consider necessary, any of the work that the said company may neglect or refuse to complete, and that the Secretary of War may consider necessary for the safety of said mains, fixtures, or apparatus, and the said company shall also deposit as aforesaid such further sums tor said purposes at such times *Proviso*.
Disbursement.as the Secretary of War may consider necessary: *Provided*, That the said sum shall be disbursed like other moneys appropriated for the Washington Aqueduct, and that whatever shall remain of said deposits at the end of one year after the completion of said railroad in such street Return of balanceshall be returned to said company on the order of the Secretary of War, with an account of its disbursement in detail: *And provided*, That disbursements of said deposits shall, except in cases of emergency, be Neglect, etc., to terminate rights.made only on the order of the Secretary of War.
The exercise of the rights by this Act granted are to terminate at the pleasure of the Secretary of War in case of persistent neglect by said company, or by its successors, to make the deposits, or to comply with any of the conditions, requirements, and regulations aforesaid. Sec. 9. That it shall also be lawful for said corporation, its successorsEngine, etc. houses. or assigns, to erect and maintain, upon private grounds, at such convenient and suitable points along its lines as may seem most desirable to the board of directors of the said corporation and subject to the approval of the said Commissioners, an engine house or houses, boiler house, and all other buildings necessary for the successful operation of a street rail way.
Sec. 10. That the said railroad shall be commenced within one yearCommencement and completion. and completed within two years from the passage of this Act. Sec. 11. That the said company shall run street railway cars propelledUnderground power. *Provisos*. Crossings. by underground cable or underground electric power: *Provided*, That for the purpose of making a continuous connection over the route hereinbefore described and designated the said company shall have the right to cross all streets, avenues, and highways that may be along the Use of coinciding tracks.designated route: *Provided*, That whenever the foregoing route or routes may coincide with the route or routes of any duly incorporated street-railway company in the District of Columbia the tracks shall be used by both companies, which are hereby authorized and empowered Terms.to use such tracks in common, upon such fair and equitable terms as may be agreed upon by said companies; and in the event the said companies fail to agree upon equitable terms, either of said companies may apply by petition to the supreme court of the District of Columbia, which shall immediately provide for proper notice to and hearing of all parties interested, and shall have power to determine the terms and conditions upon which and the regulations under which the company hereby incorporated shall be entitled so to use and enjoy the track of such other street railway company, and the amount and manner of No general stopping places on coinciding tracks.compensation to be paid therefor: *And provided further*, That neither of the companies using such track in common shall be permitted to make the track so used in common the depot or general stopping place to await passengers, but shall only be entitled to use the same for ordinary passage of its cars, with the ordinary halts for taking up and dropping Stations existing.off passengers: *Provided*, That this shall not apply to or interfere with any station already established on any existing lines; that said corporation is authorized and empowered to propel its cars over the line of any other road or roads which may be in the alignment with and upon such streets as may be covered by the route or routes as prescribed in this Act, in accordance with the conditions hereinbefore contained; and Repairs, etc.that this corporation shall construct and repair such portions of its road as may be upon the line or routes of any other road thus used; and in case of any disagreement with any company whose hue of road is thus 497 used, such disagreement may be summarily determined upon the application of either road to any court in said District having competent jurisdiction.
Sec. 12. That the said company shall furnish and maintain passengerPassenger stations. houses and transfer stations as required by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia but no such passenger house or transfer station shall he built upon the public streets or sidewalks or upon public property and shall place first-class cars on said railway with all the modern improvements for the convenience, comfort, and safety of passengers, and shall run ears as often as the public convenience may require in accordance with a timetable approved by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia.
Every failure to comply with the conditions of this section shall render the said corporation liable to a fine of fifty dollars for each day said failure occurs, to be recovered in any court of competent jurisdiction at the suit of the Commissioners of said District. Sec. 13. That the Commissioners of the District of Columbia maySpeed, etc., regulations. make such regulations as to rate of speed, mode of use of tracks, and removal of ice and snow as in their judgment the interest and convenience of the public may require.
Should the servants or agents of said company willfully or negligently violate such an ordinance or regulation as aforesaid shall be liable to the District of Columbia for a penalty not exceeding five hundred dollars. Sec. 14. That all articles of value that may be inadvertently left inLost articles. any of the cars or other vehicles of the said company shall be taken to its principal depot and entered in a book of record of unclaimed goods, which book shall be open to the inspection of the public at all reasonable hours of business.
Sec. 15. That said company shall, on or before the fifteenth of FebruaryAnnual report. of each year, make a. report to Congress, through the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, of the names of all the stockholdersContents. therein and the amount of stock held by each, together with a detailed statement of the receipts and expenditures within the District of Columbia, from whatever source and on whatever account, for the preceding year ending December thirty-first, and such other facts as may be required by any general law of the District of Columbia, which report shall be verified by the affidavit of the president and secretary of said company, and, if said report is not made within ten days thereafter, such failure shall of itself operate as a forfeiture of the privileges and rights hereby granted to said company, and it shall be the duty of the Commissioners to cause to be instituted proper judicial proceedings therefor: and said company shall pay to the District of Columbia, inTaxes. lieu of personal taxes upon personal property, including ears and motive power, each year, four per centum of its gross earnings in the District of Columbia, which amount shall be payable to the collector of taxes at the times and in the manner that other taxes are now due and payable, and subject to the same penalties on arrears; and the franchise andSale for non payment. property of said company, both real and personal, to a sufficient amount may be seized and sold in satisfaction thereof, as now provided by law for the sale of other property for taxes; and said per centum of its gross earnings shall be in lieu of all other assessments of personal taxes upon its property used solely and exclusively in the operation and management of said railway.
Its real estate shall be taxed as other real estate in the District of Columbia: *Provided*, That its tracks shall*Proviso*. Tracks not real estate. Fare. not be taxed as real estate. Sec. 16. That said company shall receive a rate of fare not exceeding five cents per passenger, including transportation to the Virginia shore; and the said company may make arrangements with all existing railway companies in the District of Columbia for the interchange of tickets in payment of fare on its road: *Provided*, That within the*Proviso*.
Tickets. limits of the District of Columbia six tickets shall be sold for twenty-five cents. 498 Sec. 17. That the said company shall have at all times the tree andPenalty for obstructing passage of cars, etc. uninterrupted use of the roadway, subject to the rights of the public, and if any person or persons shall willfully, mischievously, and unlawfully obstruct or impede the passage of cars of said railway company with a vehicle or vehicles, or other wise, or in any manner molest or interfere with passengers or operatives while in transit, or destroy or injure the cars of said railway, or depots, stations, or other property belonging to the said railway company, the person or persons so offending shall forfeit and pay for each such offense not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, to be recovered as other lines and penalties in said District,, and shall remain liable, in addition to said penalty, for any loss or damage occasioned by his or her or their act as aforesaid; but no suit shall be brought unless commenced within sixty days after such offense shall have been committed.
Sec. 18. That the said company shall have the right of way acrossCrossing other roads. such other railways as are now in operation within the limits of the lines granted by this Act, and is hereby authorized to construct, at its own cost, its said road across such other railways, under the supervision and control of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia: *Proviso*. Not to hinder travel.*Provided*, That it shall not interrupt the travel of such other railways in such construction.
Sec. 19. That no person shall be prohibited the right to travel on anyEjection of passengers, etc. part of said road or ejected from the cars by the company’s employees for any other cause than that, of being drunk, disorderly,or contagiously diseased, or refusing to pay the legal fare exacted, or to comply with the lawful general regulations of the company. Sec. 20, That in the event the company should not be able to comeCondemnation of lands for use. to an agreement with the owner or owners of any land through which the said road may be located or pass, proceedings for the condemnation for the use of the company of so much of said land as may be required, not exceeding fifty feet in width, may be instituted under the provisions R.
S. D. C. chap. 11. p. 28. *Proviso*. Owners’ rights.of chapter eleven, Revised Statutes, relating to the District of Columbia: *Provided*, That any property owner shall have the right of trial by jury in any such issue. Sec. 21 That all plans relating to the location and construction ofApproval of plans, etc. said railway shall be subject to the approval of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, or their successors, and all work shall at all Inspection, etc.times be subject to their supervision.
The said corporation shall from time to time deposit with the collector of taxes, District of Columbia, such amounts as may be deemed necessary by said Commissioners to cover the cost of inspection, supervision, pavement, and repairs. Sec. 22. That the tracks and ferry of said company within the DistrictTracks and ferry a highway. of Columbia shall be deemed and taken to be a public highway, to Use by other company.the extent that they may be freely used for the passage of cars by the Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company from such point as said company may connect with the Washington, Alexandria and .Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company, and may run its cars to the eastern Use of same motive power.terminus of said latter-named company’s road.
And the cars of said Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company shall be propelled over the said line, from said junction to said eastern terminus, by the motive power of said Washington, Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company, and the said Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company shall have the right to collect fares on its said cars as fully as Compensation for tracks, etc.if operating that portion of the line in its own right. But said Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company shall make just compensation for the use of said track, ferry, and motive power; and in ease any dispute should arise concerning such compensation or manner of use any party in interest may apply to the supreme court of the District of Columbia, which court is hereby empowered to fix the amount to be paid for such use and motive power and the mode in which such use *Proviso*.
Restrictions etc.may be enjoyed: *Provided*, That the limitations, requirements, and restrictions imposed by this Act upon the Washington, Alexandria 499 and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company shall apply to the Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company; and the said Falls Church and Potomac Railway Company shall be subject, in ease of any violation of the limitations, requirements, and restrictions aforesaid, to the same lines, penalties, and forfeiture of the privileges and rights herein granted as the Washington.
Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company is subject to. Sec. 23. That should the Washington, Alexandria and Mount VernonRights forfeited on failure to extend tracks to Arlington. *Post*, p. 593. Electric Railway Company fail or refuse to construct a double-track street, railway on the Virginia side of the Potomac River to the Arlington Reservation and provide accommodations for the necessary travel from the-city of Washington to Arlington within one year from the approval of this Act, then all the rights, powers, privileges, and franchises conferred upon said company by this Act within the jurisdiction of the District of Columbia shall be, and the same are hereby, forfeited.
Sec. 24. That all the conditions, requirements, and obligationsConditions, etc., binding on assigns. imposed by the terms of this Act upon the Washington, Alexandria and Mount Vernon Electric Railway Company shall be complied with by any and all the successors to and assigns of said company. Sec. 25. That this Act may at any time be altered, amended, orAmendment, etc. repealed by the Congress of the United States. Approved, August 23, 1894.