Perth Amboy evening news., 1919-10-28
STILL CUTTING TRAIN SERVICE
trip October 2S."

morning.
Today is October 20. Today this train makes its last trip
The discontinuance of this service is important because
this train ran direct to the Pennsylvania station at Thrty-sec-
ond street, New York. Perth Amboy has few enough trains
running direct to uptown New York at best and when one of
the few trains that do give this accommodation is taken off it
is a direct loss to the city.
Hereafter if one desires to take a train direct to the Thir-
ty-second street station it is necessary to get up early in the
morning and catch the train leaving here at 1928 o'clock or
else wait until 2.18 in the afternoon.
And there is no telling but what these trains will be dis
continued when the winter schedule is put into effect early
next month.
Some accommodation, this, for a city of over $4,000
population.
Red Bank, New Brunswick, Railway, Metuchen-even
South Amboy are given far better service by the Pennsylvania
railroad than Perth Amboy is given. This city is treated like
a jumping off place for accommodation trains.
During the summer months when many trains are put on,
Perth Amboy is passed without stopping on the ground that the
hulk Of travel is to the coast resorts. This city gains nothing
by the summer schedule.
When the summer trains are discontinued because of the
falling off in travel to the shore, Perth Amboy, being on the
New York & Long Branch division, is made to suffer because
Of the curtalment of service on that division on the ground
that the trains are no longer needed.
In short, this city, with oyer $4,000 population, receives
no consideration at all.
A person can live at Red Bank, eighteen or twenty miles
farther from New York than Perth Amboy is, and still make
better time in reaching the city and returning home.
Red Bank is attracting more and more people because of
her excellent train service. The railroad officials offer as one
of their excuses why Perth Amboy is not given better accom-
nodations the fact that there are comparatively fewer people
here who use the trains. But, with train service as it is no en-
is given for increasing the number of people
using the trains; on the contrary people who do depend upon
good train service are forced to move away.
But in spite of all the railroads can do to discourage it,
travel to and from Perth Amboy is increasing rapidly. Unable
to get fast trains, passengers are compelled to take the slower
ones. In spite of this handicap business here goes on increas-
ing.
Business men who have their factories here are discour
aged from living in Perth Amboy and even find it not altogether
convenient to have their plants here because of the time they
waste getting back and forth from the city. Thus is the in
dustrial development of Perth Amboy retarded by the uncon-
sern of the railroads.
OF course, all this has reference only to passenger serv-
Zee. When it comes to the matter of freight, the part of the
railroad business that is the most profitable, Perth Amboy at
once leaps into a place of the utmost Importance.
If the shippers would stand together and put up with a
little inconvenience, if necessary, they could soon show the
railroad officials that Perth Amboy is determined to have prop
er treatment in the way of passenger service to and from New
York and other points. -
But all this has to do with transportation.
The accommodations at the stations here are equally as
Dad as the train service if not worse.
Little, dingy stations of the most primitive sort are main
tanned, so offensive TO the average human Demg II IL IS re-
pulsive to even enter them to buy a ticket, let alone sit inside
the So called waiting rooms until a train finally comes along
that stops at Perth Amboy.
These pest holes are never lighted until it Is pitch dark
and passengers have to grope their way about, being able to
locate the ticket window only by the light shining through
from inside the ticket office.
A new union station is one of the most essential things
for the city. But when such a,thing is mentioned the PROPOSE
ton to abolish the grade crossings is at once advanced. Nat
urally a new station ought to be at the new grade.
Here is where a competent City Plan Commission could
again be of the greatest service to the city. Now, while the
railroad problem is being Strengthened out by the government
the City Plan Commission could be working on the project
and as soon as conditions are settled, the city would be in a
position to put its proposition intelligently before the railroad