5. Tariff Filing

Applicant states that shuttle van services under the concession agreement will be provided in accordance with the fares and the terms and conditions of service as set forth in the tariffs that each of the members has on file with the Commission. It therefore requests relief from the tariff filing requirement.

In D.98-12-062 and D.99-04-050, the Commission denied similar requests finding that Section 486 et seq. of the Public Utilities Code requires every common carrier (which includes PSCs) to file with the Commission and keep open for public inspection schedules showing rates, fares, charges and classifications, and to observe such schedules; and that practical considerations support having all of a carrier's operations at LAX subject to a uniform set of fares and operating rules which are set forth in a single tariff, not separate tariffs as proposed. In sum, the Commission found that operating under only one tariff is simpler and more consumer-friendly.

Consistent with D.98-12-062 and D.99-04-050, we will require Xpress to file a tariff as a condition of operating under a PSC certificate. We will approve the filing of fares contained in the existing tariffs of Xpress members that currently hold PSC authority from the Commission. Those fares have already been determined by the Commission to be reasonable. These tariffs might not cover all of the territory Xpress is seeking to serve. To the extent that Xpress' tariff may therefore contain some fares not previously reviewed and approved by the Commission, those initial fares will be subject to review by the Commission staff, and if they are deemed to be unreasonable, suspension by the Commission.

Xpress did not request a Zone of Rate Freedom (ZORF) pursuant to Section 454.2 of the Public Utilities Code. Xpress, however, will be competing with Rideshare, for which we have authorized a ZORF in D.99-04-050, and with Blue Van and other transportation providers, such as taxicabs, limousines, and buses. We will authorize for Xpress the same ZORF approved for Rideshare, a range of $10 above or below its base fare, with a minimum fare of $2. This action is consistent with the Commission's authority under amended Section 454.2³ of the Public Utilities Code to grant ZORFs on its own initiative.