50 Ga. App. 468 | Ga. Ct. App. | 1935
This was a suit for damages, against a street-railway company. The judge sustained a general demurrer to the petition, and the plaintiff excepted.
The plaintiff was proceeding eastwardly towards an intersecting street in the City of Savannah, on which there was a street-railway line with a street-car approaching from the south. He was driving his automobile about seven miles an hour at the time, and observed the approaching street-car about two thirds of a block away, which was then running about six miles an hour and was on his right. He “realized” that he had ample time to cross the intersection ahead of the street-car, and would have done so, had not the street-car suddenly, without warning or signal of any kind, increased its speed to a reckless and rapid rate, between 25 and 30 miles an hour, and therefore, before plaintiff could cross the tracks, defendant’s street-car ran into his automobile, inflicting the injuries and damage sued for. He further charged that the defendant was negligent in that the operator of its street-car failed to keep a lookout ahead and failed to stop, and, by speeding up after discovering plaintiff in the exercise of the right of
In 46 A. L. R. 998, it is said: “It is difficult to find a word in this flexible and sometimes nebulous language of ours with a more
Cases like Brown v. Savannah Electric & Power Co., 46 Ga. App. 393 (167 S. E. 777), and cit., are not at all similar to the case sub judice. Plaintiff set up no duty or custom on the part of the defendant railway company on which he relied. This seems to be a case of erroneous judgment, where the collision and resulting injuries to the plaintiff were brought about by the plaintiff’s mistaken •judgment that he had “ample” time to get across ahead of the approaching street-car. In these circumstances, despite the alleged negligence of the defendant, the injuries were not the result of such negligence, and the plaintiff does not allege a case showing a right to recover of the defendant. Civil Code (1910), §§ 2781, 4426; Southern Ry. Co. v. Blake, 101 Ga. 217 (29 S. E. 288); Atlanta Ry. &c. Co. v. Owens, 119 Ga. 833 (47 S. E. 213); Thomas v. Central of Ga. Ry. Co., 121 Ga. 38 (48 S. E. 683); Rome Ry. El. Co. v. Barna, 16 Ga. App. 1 (84 S. E. 209); Columbus Ry. Co. v. Holcombe, 22 Ga. App. 676 (97 S. E. 194); Haddon v. Savannah Electric & Power Co., 36 Ga. App. 183 (136 S. E. 285); Pickard
Judgment affirmed.