Santos v. Pasay Transportation
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: Simplicio de los Santos applied for a certificate of public convenience to operate auto-trucks on the Manila-Hagonoy line. He was issued a special permit for two months, conditioned upon operating ten trucks and submitting reports, but he only operated one truck and failed to submit reports. Procedural History: Pasay Transportation Co. opposed Santos' application, citing its own pending application for a similar route and Santos' violation of the special permit conditions. Pasay Transportation Co. also filed separate applications for certificates of public convenience on related routes (Cases Nos. 14467 and 16076). Cases Nos. 14467 and 16076 were decided in favor of Pasay Transportation Co. and became final. Santos' application in Case No. 14088 was denied. Subsequently, Pasay Transportation Co.'s supplementary application in Case No. 16076 was granted, and Santos' application in Case No. 14088 was again denied after being reopened for additional evidence. Santos appealed to the Supreme Court. The Petition: Simplicio de los Santos appealed the denial of his application, assigning errors regarding the commission's failure to give preference to his prior application, denial of the certificate due to unconstructed bridges, and consideration of his failure to operate the required number of trucks under the special permit.
Issue(s)
Whether the Public Service Commission erred in failing to give preference to the application of Simplicio de los Santos, which was filed prior to that of Pasay Transportation Co. Whether the Public Service Commission erred in denying the certificate of public convenience to Simplicio de los Santos on the ground that the bridges connecting Malabon with Obando and Obando with Taliptip had not been constructed. Whether the Public Service Commission erred in considering the fact that Simplicio de los Santos failed to operate ten auto-trucks under the special permit granted by the commission.
Ruling
The Supreme Court affirmed the orders of the Public Service Commission, denying the appeal of Simplicio de los Santos and ordering the costs against him.
Ratio Decidendi
On the issue of priority of application: The Court held that while priority of application is a factor to be considered, it is not ordinarily of sufficient importance to control the granting of a certificate of public convenience. Citing Chicago Motor Bus Co. vs. Chicago Stage Co. and Sohngen vs. Public Utilities Commission, the Court stated that the mere filing of an application does not grant pre-emption of a route. The determination of which applicant can best meet public convenience and necessity rests on the sound judgment and discretion of the commission, and its orders will be affirmed unless it appears to have acted unreasonably or unlawfully. On the issue of unconstructed bridges: The Court found no error in the commission's practice of generally not issuing a certificate of public convenience until the road on which the applicant desires to operate is constructed. This practice was deemed wholesome and capable of obviating complications and interference with road construction, thus supporting the denial of the certificate in this instance. On the issue of failure to comply with special permit conditions: The Court considered the appellant's failure to meet the conditions of the special permit, specifically operating only one truck instead of ten and failing to submit reports, as indicative of a lack of reliability. Reliability is an element of great importance in public service, and this failure was a valid ground for the commission to deny the certificate of public convenience.
Main Doctrine
Priority of application for a certificate of public convenience is a factor to be considered but does not ordinarily control the granting of such certificate; the commission is authorized to determine which applicant can best meet the requirements of public convenience and necessity. Failure to comply with the conditions of a special permit indicates a lack of reliability, which is an important element in public service.