Sutliff v. Pennsylvania Railroad

Citations

• 206 Pa. 267
• 55 A. 973
• 1903 Pa. LEXIS 695

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Railroad—Bridge—Province of court and jury,</p> <p>A railroad company owned a covered bridge 800 feet long. At the side of the track was a wagon road used by the public on the payment of tolls, but so close to the track that a train and a wagon could not safely pass at the same time. On the approach to the covered portion of the bridge the space between the side of the cars and the wheels of wagons was only three or four feet. A safety gate was placed at the land end of the approach. The gate was lowered when the bridge was in use for the passage of trains, and raised when the gate was opened to the public. The driver of a wagon who knew the rules as to the gate, having paid toll and finding the gate raised drove on the approach. After a time he was stopped by a line of wagons which had been halted near the end of the bridge. This was caused by the derailment of some ears on a train that was being pushed across the bridge in the direction in which the driver was going. At the time the driver stopped, this train had been cut in two and a locomotive with tender in front was drawing a portion of the train back towards the driver at the rate of eight to nine miles an hour. The driver testified that when he stopped, he got off the wagon and stood on the tracks, and then for the first time saw the train. He was not able to extricate himself, and he was injured in the attempt to hold his horses. Held in an action against the railroad company to recover damages for the injuries, that the case was for the jury.</p>