1918

Snidow v. Bd. of Supervisors

Supreme Court of Virginia

123 Va. 578, 96 S.E. 810

Landowners had been granted a franchise by court order in 1892 to operate a public ferry across the New River. Board resolved to build a bridge close to the ferry and landowners were awarded $25 for land taken, with trial court affirming result. Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the ferry franchise was a private property right protected by the Constitution of Virginia, which could not be damaged for public use without just compensatioSn. The general rule was that a later ferry or bridge created near the existing ferry would be liable in damages for the traffic it drew away from the first franchised ferry. However, this was only true if the legislature had not authorized the second ferry or bridge. As specific enabling statutes from the General Assembly authorized the Board and Road Commission to erect the bridge, as long as the bridge did not physically block access to the ferry, the bridge did not infringe on the protected property rights of the ferry owners.

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