Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-07-08

An argument for development of
this city's waterway facilities so that
large vessels could lock here and
for the proposed belt line railroad
feature of the Port of New York
Authority project is shown by an in
vestigation into the costs of local
industries in getting raw materials
here for manufacture and also the
tremendous expenses incurred in
shipping away the finished products.
One large industry in this city. it
is reported. spends between 5000, 900
and 100000 a year in hauling raw
and finished products by auto trucks,
railroads and steam lighters to and
from vessels that draw too much wa
ter to allow them to enter the local
waters to be loaded and unloaded.
If this n single industry eXpends
that amount each year for transport
tation costs over and above that
incurred in shipping oil the deep
seas, what A tremendous total sum
is spent by the industries in this
vicinity in a like way This large
business item is charged as operating
and production cost n tends to
show what the companies here have
to contend with in manufacturing
and selling the products of this
city'a plants.
As some of the local plants have
no railroad sidings another great ex-
pense is incurred in that raw and
manufactured products have to be
hauled to and from the railroads.
Once on railroad cars the costs
of operation also Increase in tina
the goods have to be transported to
-. al - T@rr., c;@xy rrLnr.o thnxT
are placed on the large vessels. AS
the materials used in manufa curing
here come from distant points. in
some cases from over seas, n as
the products of the plants in this
vicinity find their way to foreign
markets, the transportation costs
incur a yearly bill of great proper
lions.
If the local waterways were fully
developed, vessels carrying raw ma
terials could be brought right up to
the plant company docks and UNI
loaded without the cost, trouble and
delay of having the materials light
cred. The same can be said Oh
transporting the finished products.
Much of the raw material shipped
by water to this city is bulky and
requires heavy ships to transport
it. BY this it will be seen, a deep
channel to Sandy Hook would pc of
great advantage to the local indus
tries.
The proposed belt line railroad
plan of the Port Authority would
also tend to boom Perth Amboy IN
that rail service encircling this in
dustrial community would provide
shipping facilities for the plants
here in that practically all the light
ering now don would be eliminat-
ed and auto hauling also done away
with. But there is n 10 indication that
the belt line railroad will help to
solve the industrial shipping prob
lem in the next few years.
Perhaps it is not entirely the
fault of the city that the industries
have not deep waterway shipping
facilities. The municipal officials
could have shown the federal au-
thorities the demand for waterway
development by erecting municipal
warehouses and docks. Action in
this direction could have forced
federal improvements. The belt line
railroad is in the hands of the Port
Authority and outside of endorsing
the project and urging the improve
ment, no other municipal action can
be taken to bring a speedy solution
to the transportation problem.
But the city can aid the shipping ]