Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-04-08
KEARNY|TES MAKE
COMPLAINTS TO
R. R.. COMMISSION
and Residents Take
Turns in Criticising Erie
Company.

Railroad Commissioners Frank III.
| Sonimer and Thomas j. Hillery sat III
the Kearny Town Hall for Two hours
this morning and listened to the state
ments made by Kearny officials ana
residents of the town regarding certain
railroad conditions. Mayor Louis NJ.
| Brock was the first to address the
commission. 1t was through his epoits
that the State body visited kearny.
He. pointed out the need of a station on
the Erie Railroad at the Fourth street
end of the Erie Railroad bridge. which
| serves as a connecting link between
Harrison and Kearny.
Mayor Brock told the commission
that the present facilities were made
quate. Councilman James j. McAteer,
the next to be heard, based his COM
plaint upon the fact that The stations
now serving the West Hudson COM
muters of the Erie Railroad We're In
conveniently situated. He declared that
It is a walk of a half mile from the
town hall to the Davis avenue sta
ton. and a quarter of a mile to the
stopping place at Grant Avenue. where
a small shed serves as a waiting-room.
Mr.. McAteer produced records made
by two policemen regarding the traffic
at Grant avenue. They showed that
about IS persons used the trains per
day.
Former Councilman-at-Large William
Bardsley, who has committed on the
Erie railroad for thirty-seven years.
was the next to be heard. He agreed
with Mr.. McAteer as to the distance
to the station at Davis avenue. He
said that very few people used the
Grant avenue station because of the
few trains hat stop there. He eS-
planned that 1t takes him ten minutes
to walk to the Davis avenu station.
and that he walks along the tracks to
get there.
Mr.. Sommer advised him to keep off
the tracks in the future. He stated
that a large number of people were
killed on the tracks last year, and the
commission was trying to have a stop
put to the practise.
The half hundred citizens present
laughed loudly when Mr.. Bardsley told
of the troubles experienced in starting
westbound trains at the Davis avenue
station after they had once stopped.
There is a slight grade there, and the
engines, on account of losing considera-
BILE. steam due to leaky pipes, could
not start up. He said. that he has often
been able to walk to his home before a
train had started again. Another mat
ter brought out by MIR. Bardsley was
the fact that twelve years ago the
company drew plans of a proposed sta
ton and promised to build at Fourth
street, but nothing ever came of the
promise, he declared.
DIR. John w. Reid, of Kearny, the
next witness, told the commission that
very few people used. h Erie railroad
because of the Inconvenience in reach
ing stations. Town Surveyor Henry p.
Kreiner was next called upon. He told
the commission that the distance from
the Town Hall to the Davis avenue
station was about a half mile and to
the Grant avenue station a quarter of a
mile. He contended that in the matter
of stations the Newark branch of the
Erie "skirted'' every town or city 1t
operates init always tries to avoid the
centre of congestion, he concluded.