Letting Off Steam

U.S. railroadmen, who have long complained about "unfair" competition from trucks, sat back and applauded last week as the truckers got a roundhouse swing from a not-so-neutral corner. Westinghouse Electric Corp.'s Vice President Andrew H. Phelps called the truckers' use of public highways "transportation by taxation," warned that truck lines "can ruin but not replace rail service." From now on, said Phelps, Westinghouse, which spends $40 million a year on transportation, will always ship by rail except when the truckers offer bargains in rates which the rails decline to meet. One probable reason for the announcement: Westinghouse makes locomotive generators, controls and switching equipment, owns the largest single bloc of stock (21%) of the $86.7 million Baldwin Locomotive Works.

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