Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-01-26
MOTORISTS SCORE
YORK ROAD BLOCK
Now Forced to Make Detour at
Chelten Avenue to Avoid OBJ
struction to Traffic
CALL IT UNNECESSARY

Motorists living in tho neigbborhood
of Old York road and Chelten avenue.
where the road into the city is blocked
for the construction of an extension OF
the Rock Run sewer. are complaining
against what they claim is an unnec-
essary obstruction Of traffic.
The traffic on this part of York road
was extremely heavy, and now auto
mobiles are forced to make dptour i'll
order to get into the city. The road
has been blocked between Chelten ave
nue and Spencer street for about a
month and a half.
Motorists who arc forced to make the
detour in order to get into the city
contend that York road even where
the excavation is going on. could be
used for one way travel If the proper
steps were taken. They suggest that
the excavation could be boarded over
in order to give additional room for
traffic.
1T was terribly short sighted thing
TO do, to close York road before BROAD
street was put in condition for traffic. y
said Harrison Morris, who lives on
York road near Chelteu avenue.
''As things are now, there is no good
road connecting this section of the coun
try. with its immense amount of travel.
with the heart of the city. York road
is blocked aud Broad street is vir-
tually impossible out this way.
Appropriation Has Been Made
1T is understood that an appropria-
tion for surfacing the bad section Of
Broad street bad been made hut what
has become of the project no one seems
to know. One stretch of Broad street
that. would have to be traversrd in
getting into the city from out here is
nothing but a mud road II would not
have been great undertaking to sur
face this before York road was cut off
to traffic.
Even now it seems to me that the
| blocked of part of York road could
be made accessible for one way traffic
by boarding over the excavation
The sewer construction specifications
Of the Bureau of Surveys contain this
ruling:
Travel of all kinds shall be main
tanned IN every instance. except where
Special permission is granted to divert
it."
George Webster, chief of the Bureau
Of Surveys, states that he has authorized
the closing of York road because traffic
would result in danger to motorists and
hiudrance to the contractor.
Blasting i'm Progress
"Thc space between the trolley tracks
and the excavation is too narrow for
safe traffic. There is n great deal Of
blasting going on and the heavy traffic
that ordinarily covers this stretch of
road could not possibly be handled under
present working conditions" commented
Mr.. Webster.
Charles II. Won Tagen, councilman for
the district in which the improvement
is taking place stated that by the LIST of
March he expected Broad street to be
in condition to handle all the traffic
affected by the York road tie-up.
Il have the assurance of +. c. Dun
lap, chief of the Bureau of Highways.
that the work of surfacing the bad
stretch of Broad street adjoining York
road will be started by the 1st of Feb
ruary 1t should be completed in about
three weeks if conditions arc favorable
This seems to me a much better way
out of the difficulty than trying TO get
| York road opened mp. The contractor
| TELLS me that to allow any traffic along
where be is working would greatly in
terfere with the project. The opening
of Broad street would solve the prob
| lem to the satisfaction of all concerned,
| it seems to me.
! Mr.. Dunlap said today. however,
that it would be March before his men
got started on the surfacing of Broad
! street
THE work will take about three
months" he added.