Erb v. Morasch

Background

A Kansas City ordinance set a six-mile-per-hour speed limit for trains in the city but expressly exempted the Interstate Rapid Transit Railway except for funeral processions. The dispute arose after an accident; a federal court-appointed railroad receiver challenged the exemption as an arbitrary classification that denied equal protection of the laws. The Kansas courts had decided against the receiver, and the case reached this Court for review.

Reasoning

The central question was whether exempting the street railway created an irrational or unlawful classification. The Court explained that cities may lawfully regulate train speed and that different rail lines can face materially different conditions — crowded streets, fencing, or remote routes — which justify different rules. Testimony showed the Interstate Rapid Transit Railway was a street railroad connecting the two Kansas Cities and was operated by steam dummies and later by electricity. Given those differences and the presumption in favor of local laws, the Court found the exemption reasonable and not a violation of equal protection. The opinion also reiterated that a federal receiver must operate the railroad under state law and can be sued in other courts for official failures that cause injury.

Real world impact

The decision lets cities apply separate speed limits to different rail lines when local conditions differ. Railroad receivers remain bound to follow state and municipal rules and may face lawsuits in state courts for harms caused by failing to do so. The Kansas Supreme Court’s judgment was affirmed.