Perth Amboy evening news., 1916-11-04

Nothing has been heard by the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company of
anything in connection with the "hole
In the WALL since it made it's first
offer to build an overhead bridge and
turn its road, known as the private
right of way, over as a public high
way. The company still stands by its
original offer and is waiting to hear
what the South Amboy or county
authorities propose to do. These
facts were definitely stated to a rep
resentative of the EVENING NEWS,
who called upon General Superin-
tendent Charles s. Krick, of the
PENNSYLVANIA Railroad Company, in
his office in the Thirty-second Street
Station, New York, yesterday.
1t has been so long since any action
was taken either by the city council
Of South Amboy or by the Board of
Freeholders and SO many different
kinds of reports and understandings
have been in circulation regarding
the position of the Pennsylvania
ING NEWS sought an interview with
the highest railroad official having
the matter in charge to ascertain ex-
actly how the matter stood as far as
the railroad was concerned.
When Mr.. Krick was told by the
NEWS representative that it was
common report in the Amboys that,
the freeholders having agreed to take
over the road across the private right
| of way, the city council has notified
the railroad company that It was
willing to accept the road, he de-
clared that the railroad company had
not received any such statement from
the South Amboy council. Mr.. Krick
said that no official communication
had been received from either the
city of South Amboy or the county
of Middlesex since the railroad first
made its offer, and while the railroad
company had learned indirectly that
the county had agreed to relieve the
city of South Amboy of all expense
and take over the road at once, and
that the city council had agreed to
accept the county's offer, no effort
had been made, as far as the rail-
| road company was concerned, to
have the transfer made.
The whole situation relative to the
hole in the wall" said Mr.. Krick, "the
new road and the Improvements con-
| temp1ated by the railroad company at
South Amboy, has been explained in
| detail to the Board of FreehoIders of
Middlesex county and to the Common
| Council Of the city of South Amboy.
The railroad company contem-
plates improvements at South Amboy
| involving an expenditure of $780,
600. Had the negotiations with the
county and city reached conclusions,
100000 of this would have been ex-
pended during the present year.
The improvements involve cross
| ing Ridgeway avenue with such a
| number of tracks as to make imprac-
ticable an undergrade passage at what
| is known as the hole in the wall. The
Board of Freeholders had their en-
| gineers study this matter and they re-
| ported that to construct an under
! grade passageway would involve an
| expenditure of some $500, 900. AT this
conference, at which the railroad
company representatives were present
| a proposition was made by the rail-
road company to construct an over
head bridge on the line of Alpine
street in lieu of the hole IN the wall
and also agreed to pave the private
| right of way and turn it over to the
| city or county. The Board of Free
| holders appeared 70 think it up to the
| city to take the initiative. Therefore
the railroad company prepared, in
concrete form, their proposition and
presented it to the city council at a
regular meeting of that body, repre-
sentatives of the railroad company
being present at the meeting to ex-
plain personally various details and
answer any questions which might be
| raised. Tie city council failed to ac-
cept the proposition. However, they
passed a motion that the solicitors of
the Board of Freeholders, the city and
the railroad company confer and
darft a proposition that you'd be sat
isfactory. So far as the railroad COM
pany knows, no action has been taken
on this by the city council.
mo offer has been made by the city
to the railroad company to take over
the private right of way.
Our offer holds good to construct
the overhead bridge and pave the pri-
vate right of way and turn it over to
the city or county, in lieu of the pres
ent hole in the wall which 1t is i'm
practicable to continue and carry out
the contemplated improvements.
"It is absolutely necessary that a
decision be reached in the Immediate
future. We stand ready at any time
to meet the Board of Freeholders and
the city of South Amboy to discuss the
matter. We hear that objection is
made to twenty foot bridge, claiming
that 1t is not wide enough. The re-
port has reached us that a sidewalk
is desired on the bridge in addition to
the twenty foot roadway. All right
we will not stand on thing like that
Well give them a sidewalk on the
side of the road across the bridge If
they want 1t. But neither the city or
county officials have yet said that
they wanted 1t. They have not made
any proposition to us since we made
-4rrf, 1n1 Nff