The San Francisco call., 1896-06-12
OAKLAND MAY Be FIRST.
Director Watt Makes a State
ment Regarding the Valley
Road.
Will Build This Way Soon if the
Present Opposition Is
Continued.
OAKLAND OFFICE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, |
OnQ Rrnndmau Inna II

| OAKLAND OFFICE DAN RANClSCO OADDl
908 Broadway, June IL. !
The difficulty experienced by the Valley
Railroad in procuring rights of way be-
tween Fresno and Bakersfield may result
in the road being brought from Stockton
to point near Oakland.
Director Robert Watt discussed the mat
ter very freely last night. He said:
''It is quito certain that the road will
come into Oakland, or, at least, very near
to Oakland, but as yet nothing has been
definitely decided as to the route to take.
The directors have not yet had any &C.
curate surveys made of the country be-
tween here and Stockton. 1t is going to
be pretty hard to get into Oakland, for the
reason that the most accessible routes are
now held by the Southern Pacific. We
cannot follow the bay shore by way of
Martinez, nor can we come through
Niles Canyon, as the Southern Pacific
is already in possession of both these
passes.
Probably of the remaining routes that
through the Dublin Pass would be the
| most desirable. However. after we have
the road over the divide, we yet have a
very serious obstacle to overcome and that
is Oakland itself. The people may be with
us and the City Council, too, but when it
| comes to running the road through city
there are always people who will oppose it
on personal grounds. This has been our
experience at Stockton. We were invited
to build into that city and there was great
rejoicing over having q competing line.
! Now, however, that the road has been
built, we are receiving many complaints
and threats of damage suits. Some CON-
| plain that they have been injured by the
| road being graded up a few feet, as was
| necessary on account of overfows in the
winter. Others object to smoke and others
| to noise.
fIn building into Oakland these things
will have to be considered. 1t would be
more desirable for the Valley road to
come into Oakland from the SOUTH as
| there would be a more thickly settled ter
! ritory to draw business from. We might
want to build branch to San Jose and
other localities in that direction. How.
ever 1T would probably be more difficult to
get into Oakland from the south on ac-
count of the Southern Pacific being al
ready there and on account of that por
| tion of the city being pretty well built up.
1.-THE road could without doubt be built
! to the north of Oakland with less opposi-
| ton than along it's southerly boundary.
| AS to the Valley road taking the Califor-
MIA and Nevada route which ends at
Emeryville, If this should be done the
| present grades could not be used atall.
| They are too steep and sharp as at present
constructed. They might be improved by
| tunneling but this would involve con-
siderable amount of work"
AS regards the objection of the land
owners between Fresno and Bakersfield 10
granting a right of way for the company
Mr.. Watt said that they had considerable
reason for raising protest, as, owing to
the contour OF the valley the route which
| the railroad had to take was almost diago-
nal to the section lines. This would result
/ I.@l<4
| being cut into two triangular pieces, max
| ing it very inconvenient for the owners.
| Mr.. Watt said that the company was de-
sirous of building on to Bakersfield first,
as that would afford relief to the greatest
built much more cheaply that way. How
ever, if this could not be done, the road
material which had been contracted for
would be ample to build this way into Oak
land.