Jones v. Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway Co.

Citations

• 69 Wash. 12
• 124 P. 142
• 1912 Wash. LEXIS 837

Syllabus

<p>Railroads—Injury to Travelers—Overhead Bridge—Negligence —Construction—Evidence—Sufficiency. In an action against a railroad company for injuries sustained by reason of an alleged defective overhead highway bridge, the fact that the defendant constructed the bridge is prima facie established by its admission of ownership of the track and roadbed and the fact that it accepted a city franchise requiring it to construct and forever maintain a suitable highway bridge over its tracks at that point.</p> <p>Same. A jury is warranted in finding negligent construction of a highway bridge over railroad tracks as a contributing cause of the running away of a team, which became frightened by smoke and steam coming up through the floor of the bridge, where it appears that the bridge had a single floor with cracks one-half to one and one-half inches in width, and a carpenter testified that the usual method of constructing such a bridge is to lay a double floor, the first floor laid diagonally and the second at right angles.</p> <p>Same—Negligent Construction—Excessive Speed—Proximate Causes of Accident—Evidence—Sufficiency. Where a team took fright and ran away on a highway bridge over railroad tracks, when a train passed under at an excessive speed, and smoke and steam came up through wide cracks in the floor of the bridge, the jury is warranted in finding that the excessive speed and the smoke under the team were the proximate causes of the fright, and a verdict thereon is not open to the objection that it was based on speculation or conjecture.</p> <p>Same—-Contributing Causes—Excessive Speed—Evidence—Sufficiency. Where it was not usual or customary to operate a train at excessive speed, under a highway bridge in a thickly inhabited part of the city, and there was evidence that smoke and steam came up through the cracks in the floor and frightened a team, there is sufficient evidence that negligent operation of the train contributed to the fright, where it appears that the