Proviso. vided, That just compensation shall be made to the Approved-The 25th day of April, A. D. 1907. Railways, steam or electric. Report to Secretary of Internal Affairs. Name. Termini. Distances. Neglect or refusal to report. Penalty. AN ACT To require corporations owning, leasing, or operating steam or electric railways, and engaged in the business of carrying freight or passengers, within this State, to report to the Secretary of Internal Affairs the number of statute miles of lines so operated; and providing a penalty for failure so to report, and for making an incorrect report. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That it is hereby made the duty of every corporation owning, leasing, or operating a steam or electric railway, and engaged in the business of carrying freight or passengers, within the limits of this State, to make and return, under oath or affirmation of the president or other executive officer of said corporation, to the Secretary of Internal Affairs, on or before August thirty-first, Anno Domini one thousand nine hundred and seven, and every third year thereafter, a report, setting forth in detail the name of each main line and branch line owned, leased, or operated by such corporation, naming the termini of such main line or branch line, and setting forth the exact number of statute miles between each station and every other station on said lines, at which trains stop to receive or discharge freight or passengers, and the total number of statute miles owned, leased, or operated by such corporation within this Commonwealth. Section 2. That every such corporation which shall wilfully refuse or neglect to make such report, as herein provided, at the time specified in the first section of this act, or for making a materially incorrect report, shall be liable to a penalty of five thousand dollars, to the use of the Commonwealth, for every such refusal or neglect, to be sued for and recovered as debts of like amount are, or may be, by law recoverable. Approved-The 1st day of May, A. D. 1907. AN ACT To provide the maximum car service charges, including car storage charges, that railroad companies and corporations, or associations, may charge and collect on each car loading, and not unloaded within the free time for unloading cars, and fixing the free time that shall be allowed for unloading cars. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That it shall be unlaw- Railroads. ful for any railroad company, association, or corpora storage charges. tion to charge and collect more than one dollar per Car Service and day of twenty-four hours, or fraction of a day, for car service charges, including storage charges, on each car loading, and not unloaded within the free time for loading and unloading the same. Free time for loading or unloading all freight shall Free time. be allowed as follows: Computing from seven o'clock ante meridian of the day following placing of the car, and mailing of notice thereof, forty-eight hours. When a car is placed after twelve o'clock meridian of any day, the free time shall be computed from noon of the day following placing. Section 2. All acts or parts of acts inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed. Approved-The 24th day of May, A. D. 1907. Repeal. EDWIN S. STUART. AN ACT Relating to the location, construction, and maintenance of viaducts and bridges in boroughs and adjacent territory; empowering the several boroughs of this Commonwealth to construct or have constructed bridges or viaducts over rivers, creek, streams, railroads, and private land, or over and across railroads and any of them, or over and across railroads, for public highways, and to procure locations therefor by purchase or condemnation proceedings, whether the same be wholly within, or partly within and partly without, the borough limits; authorizing said boroughs to unite and enter into a contract or contracts with the county commissioners of the proper county, and with railroad, street railway and other companies and parties interested, or with any of them, for the erection, construction, and maintenance of said viaducts and bridges, and for the payment of the damage caused by their location and erection; and forbidding any railroad company to pass under or upon any such viaduct or bridge without contributing to the cost of maintenance thereof. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the several bor- Boroughs. oughs of this Commonwealth are hereby authorized to locate and build viaducts or bridges, to be used as public highways, over railroads, rivers, creeks, streams, and private property, or over and across railroads and any of them, or over and across railroads, whether the said viaducts or bridges be wholly within, or partly without and partly within, the borough limits, for the purpose of uniting two or more different streets or highways, or separate portions of the same Building of viaover and across ducts or bridges railroads. Proviso. highway or extension thereof: Provided, That the Public highways. said viaducts or bridges must, in all cases, cross the aforesaid railroads; and that, in all other cases, any viaduct or bridge shall be erected in the manner provided by existing laws for the erection of such viaducts or bridges in the several boroughs of this Commonwealth. Ordinances. Procedure. No petition required. Appropriation of land and property. Viewers. Procedure. Contracts. Across river creek or stream. Section 2. The said boroughs shall have the right to enact ordinances providing for the laying out and opening of the routes or locations for said viaducts and bridges, which shall be public highways; and the proceedings for the said laying out and fixing locations and for the opening thereof shall be the same as is provided by law in the laying out and opening of streets in said boroughs, except that no petition of property owners shall be required therefor. Section 3. In case the said respective borough has not agreed with the owner or owners for the damages done, or likely to be done, by the erection of said viaduct or bridge, it shall be lawful for the said borough to take and appropriate the lands and property necessary, over and across which to erect said bridge or viaduct, and the damages and benefits caused by the said taking and appropriation shall be assessed by three freeholders as viewers, appointed by the court of common pleas, in the same manner and with like proceedings as is now or shall hereafter be provided by law in the opening of public streets. Section 4. The said borough shall also have the power to enter into and unite in a contract or contracts with the county commissioners of the proper county, and also with railroads, street railway, and other companies, and parties interested, or with any or all of them, for the building, construction, and maintenance. of said viaduct or bridges, or for certain parts or portions thereof, and for the payment of any damages caused by the location and the said erection. Section 5. When the said viaduct or bridge crosses a river, creek, or stream, or other place, over which the County contracts. county is authorized by law to build bridges, the said county commissioners may contract, subject to the approval of the court of quarter sessions of the proper county, for that part or portion of the viaduct or bridge which crosses any of the places hereinbefore mentioned, over which the county is authorized by law to build bridges, including the abutments and piers thereof, and such parts shall thereafter be maintained as a county bridge; or, they may contract for such part or portion of the whole structure as is equal to the part or portion of the viaduct or bridge over the respective river, creek, stream, or other place, as afore County bridge. Proviso. court. county commissioners may contract to pay an amount of money greater than that which is hereinabove provided for, toward the construction of the entire structure; but the amount of the said additional moneys, over and above the amount necessary to build the bridge or viaduct across the respective river, creek, stream, or other place, shall be first approved by the court aforesaid. When the said viaduct or bridge Approval by shall not cross a river, creek, stream, or other place aforesaid, but shall cross merely railroads, or railroads and private property, the said county commissioners may contract, subject to the approval of the aforesaid court, to pay an amount of money not exceeding thirty per centum of the entire cost of the proposed viaduct or bridge; and such viaduct or bridge shall thereafter be maintained as a borough structure, by the borough Borough strucwhich shall be authorized to contract with any of the ture. parties interested, except the county aforesaid, for the maintenance of the same. Across railroads and private pro perty. contract as to payments. be made. Section 6. The contracts herein provided for may Stipulations of stipulate that the respective borough, county, railroad company, street railway, or other company, or parties interested, or any of them, shall pay a certain part or portion of the whole contract price or cost of the work, including damages; or may stipulate that each shall construct or pay for the construction of a certain part or portion of the work, and may otherwise provide for the payment of the damages. When any railroad com- Payment how to pany, street railway, or other company, or other parties interested, agree to pay a certain part or portion of the cost of the entire work, they shall pay such part or portion into the proper borough treasury; and upon said payment the borough treasurer shall be liable therefor, and he shall pay the same over to the contractors, as may be provided in the contract; but the amount to be paid by the respective county shall be paid directly to the contractor, as may be provided by the said contract. The said agreements may also provide for the maintenance of the said viaducts and Maintenance. bridges after their erection. All contracts provided for by this act shall be binding upon the parties thereto, their lessees, successors, heirs, and assigns. Section 7. Before any railroad, which has not contributed to the payment of the cost of construction of said viaduct or bridge, shall be permitted to run its line or lines of tracks under or upon said bridge or viaduct, it shall enter into a contract with the said borough to thereafter pay a reasonable amount, part, Railroad shall or portion toward the keeping up and maintaining of aid in maintethe said structure, which amount shall be at the same rate, on the same basis, as is paid by the other railroad companies. nance. fications. Contracts. Section 8. Whenever the borough, county commissioners, and the said railroad, street railway, and other companies, and others interested, or any of them, have entered into a contract or contracts for the construction of said bridge or viaduct, as is hereinbefore provided, it shall be lawful for the said borPlans and speci- ough and the said county commissioners to have prepared plans or specifications of the entire work, and thereafter to advertise for bids, and to award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder. The contract for the said work shall provide that the county shall pay for its certain part of said bridge or viaduct, and the borough shall contract for the other part of the said work; but the said contract as to the borough's part thereof shall be based upon the appropriation made by the borough for the part of the work for which it had agreed to pay, and the remaining part of the contract price shall be based upon the amounts the other parties have agreed to pay; and the contractor shall have the right of action against each party uniting in said contract for the part thereof agreed to be paid by each party, respectively, as set forth in the contract or contracts in which all the parties unite as aforesaid. Contractor's right of action. In case county does not unite in contract. Recording of contract. Section 9. In case the county commissioners do not unite in any such contract as is hereinbefore provided for, it shall be lawful for the said borough to contract for the construction of the viaduct as aforesaid, and to pay for the entire work or to contract manner aforesaid, in which case the aforesaid parties in the for the said work shall be the plans and specifications and advertisement shall be made prepared by the borough at with all or any other of for bids, and the contract let in the manner hereinbefore provided. contract for the work shall be based upon the borough's appropriation, and upon the amounts agreed to be paid by the other parties, as provided in the preceding section. The Section 10. Any of the contracts hereinbefore provided for may be recorded in the recorder's office of the proper county in which the respective borough is situate, and such record shall be notice to all persons who might be affected thereby. Approved-The 25th day of May, A. D. 1907. |
