Hi,
My 97 year old stepfather worked for the Southern Pacific Railroad for many, many years. His last job was Regional Manager, Western Weighing & Inspection Bureau, Trans-Continental Region. His office was in San Francisco. He retired in the (late?) 1970s. My stepfather asked me to "use my computer" find out what ever happened to that old bureau, and how railroad freight weighing and inspecting are conducted now.
Any leads for me?
Thanks in advance for your help!
Following should be a good source of information
https://books.google.com/books/about/Functions_of_the_Western_Weighing_and_In.html?id=IuNeHQAACAAJ
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Thank you!
WWIB had an outlet in Wichita that closed when Amtrak abolished the Lone Star route in 1979. Office was in Union Station 701 E Douglass Ave
WW&IB in its later years was part of the Western Railroad Association (my first RR employer) headquartered in Chicago. At one time, WRA was an important organization and handled a number of functions for its members, including tariff publication, and rate making (WRA was the umbrella organization for the various western RR rate bureaus). There were similar organizations for the eastern and southern railroads (Traffic Executive Association - Eastern Railroads and Southern Freight Association).
I'm not sure exactly when WW&IB was completely shut down, but I think it was around 1995. By that time, with the various railroad mergers, a separate organization to handle WW&IB's functions was no longer necessary, since they could be handled by the individual roads.
WRA's other functions also gradually became unnecessary. The "rate bureau" activities, in particular, became untenable under Staggers Act ratemaking restrictions and other Staggers Act reforms (particularly the ability to make contracts for rail transportation) created incentives for railroads to price their own traffic.
WRA itself was eventually merged with its counterpart organizations in the east and south to become Railroad Publication Services (RPS) headquartered in Atlanta. By then, it's main function had become tariff publication. This diminished in importance as railroads came to prefer their own pricing documents to regional tariffs. RPS was eventually dissolved. I was working for an individual RR at the time, but I was on the dissolution committee (which was sort of fitting). I don't remember the exact date (advancing years have taken their toll), but I think it was in the late 1990's, after enactment of the ICC Termination Act (which eliminated the "filed tariff" requirements).
Ah, I think this is the level of information my step-father seeks. Thank you! I'm sure he'll have follow-up questions.
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