Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1915-04-13
CONF PROMISE COULD
. FIX "HOLE IN WALL"
Penn. r R. Co. Seems to Have
upper Hand" in the "HoIe-
in-the- Wall" Situation.
COULD TAKE OVER ROAD
South Amboy Thinks Expense
of Repairing Penn. Right of
Way Would be Too Great.
COULD TAKE OVER ROAD

With the Pennsylvania Railroad
Company holding what appears to be
the upper hand" there is little like
lihood of any immediate improve
ment in the deplorable road condi-
tions at the south approaches to the
Raritan river bridge, and there are
no prospects of relief unless COM
promise is effected between the rail-
road company the city of South Am
boy, which now has jurisdiction over
Ridgeway aven9e-the thoroughfare
now the butt of statewide criticism
and ridicule because of it's notorious
Wall" The Pennsylya-
MIA private right of way, once design
ed by the railroad company to re-
lieve the condition at the "Hole-in-
the-Walp' has reached a condition
that now even makes the "Hole-in-
the-Wall' route preferable to auto
lists in spite of It's menace to both
pedestrian and Vehicular traffic.
After years of litigation, brought
about by the county and the city of
South Amboy in an effort to elimi-
nate the "Hole-in-the-W WALL" the
tained decree in the Court of Err
rors and Appeals during 1911, re-
yersing the action of the court of
chancery and other courts to which
the case had previously been appeal
ed by the railroad company Had
the result then aimed at by the free
holders and the city officials of South
Amboy been attained, the Pennsyl-
vania company would have been COM
PEELED to raise the tracks at the
Hole-in-the- WALL" thus involving
an expense of over half a million
dollars in regarding the entire rail-
road yard at South Amboy. This
would have been neoessitated in or
der to eliminate the hump caused
by raising the "Hole-in-the-WalI
BY the state statute of 1912, the
city- nf- se1tl - = sp1 .+sclz Al
roads within its limits that had for
merly been maintained by the Board
of Freeholders, and Ridgeway ave-
nue. was included in these thorough
fares. Thus the county has no juris-
diction over the road.
To start another suit to bring
about the elimination of the deplora-
BILE condition at the "Hole-in-the-
Wall'' would mean an enormous out
lay of money by the city, state and
the railroad company, for it would
have to start with jury trial and
probably continue through several
years of hopeless litigation in the
higher courts.
While there seems to be an exist
ing impression that the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company cut through pri-
vate right of way with the under
standing that no further steps were
to be taken to compel the company
to raise or widen the "Hole-in-the-
WALL" no agreement of this kind
was ever entered into by the county
of Middlesex or the city of South
Amboy, so from the status of the
matter it appears as if a compromise
will have to be effected in order to
bring about an improvement of exist
ing conditions.
Several solutions of the problem
have been presented by men who are
familiar with the matter. Free
holder Alfred t. Kerr, of South Am
boy, in discussing the situation re-
Gently, said:
1t seems to me that the most
practical solution of the problem
would be an agreement between the
city, the state and the railroad COM
pany to utilize the money that would
be used in another long drawn out
lawsuit to widen the 'Hole-in-the-
Wall and reduce Ridgway avenue to
its original grade. This would, in
my opinion, bring about an improve
ment that would be satisfactory to
everyone"
Mayor William S. Dey, of South
Amboy, said: ''The Pennsylvania
railroad would probably widen the
'Hole-in-the-Walp and run a double
roadway through if the city of South
Amboy would agree to take over the
now known as the
right of way"
1t has even been suggested that
the Board of Health of South Am
boy, with the cooperation of the
state Board of Health, might declare
the "Hole-in-the- WALL" with its dark
and damp passageway for pedestri-
ans and it's general unsanitary condi-
ton to be a menace to the public
health and take the proper steps to
bring about its improvement.