Rail line would be of little or no benefit to county residents

I'd like to respond to recent letters to the editor in some newspapers advocating the proposed Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex (MOM) rail line through Middlesex County.

Middlesex County Freeholder Director David Crabiel's opposing stance is a good one and stands for the residents' best interests.

Yes, we in Middlesex County are loudly crying out, "Not in my back yard," and this is for good reason. The light-freight rail line that the MOM advocates are proposing to convert to a passenger line is not positioned for or made to handle this type of passenger traffic. In many locations, these tracks run very close to homes and through high-traffic areas.

Has anyone tried to navigate Jamesburg's "five corners" at rush hour? Could you imagine adding a passenger train to the mix at that intersection? Not to mention the fact that higher-speed and frequent passenger trains passing through these areas would create quality-of-life issues for people who have purchased and built homes and businesses near these tracks. They did so with the knowledge that the tracks only carried slow-moving freight trains that travel the line occasionally. How about the recent death of a young girl in the Avenel section of Woodbridge? Do we want that here?

No, we do not want this kind of thing running through our back yards because, for one thing, we don't live far from the Northeast Corridor with train or bus service to New York and points north (or south, for that matter). This proposed line is of little or no benefit to us, so why should we have to carry the burden of a rail line that will support others who refuse to live near their places of employment or at least near existing transportation hubs?

I guess the MOM advocates figure that since it would be convenient for them, no one is allowed to take a stand against this line. I think it's time for them to choose from the following options: move closer to their job; find a home closer to their job; or find a new job closer to their home. Just leave us and our back yards alone.

Joe Krypel

Helmetta