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Harsh treatment from BNSF police.

  •  coborn35 wrote:
    Someonee pissed off the rent a cops........


    And if you had any clue as to who and what railroad police are, you wouldnt refer to them as "rent a cops". Like it or not, they are police officers with law enforcement abilities extending to whereever their railroad goes.

    "Rent a cops" are another term for security guards. Railroad Police or Railroad Special Agents are far from this.

    Like it or not, police are humans, they make mistakes, they have bad days. Its always amusing how the holier than thou railfans always blast railroad police when they make a mistake, or an error in judgement. [sarcasm]After all, railfans are better than everyone else, and know how to do others jobs, better than the people already doing them.[/sarcasm]
  • Most Special Agents have to have prior police experience before the railroad will even hire them.  My experience with Special Agents has generally been favorable, even when I've been in the wrong.  I was stopped for trespassing once at Barr Yard, and the Special Agent was good enough to give me some guidelines as to where the property lines were when I asked about it.  I shoot pictures from the street at Blue Island Crossing, and I've often exchanged pleasantries with the Special Agents making their rounds when I see them.

    The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
  • I used to be the type that sat along side the road beside the tracks, until an old man threated to call the cops on us. What a paranoid society we live in..........................................
    "It's a great day to be alive" "Of all the words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, It might have been......"
  • I don't think they have the right to take anything from you unless you are on their property. BNSF employees on the west suburbs of Chicago seem to be nicer then they in Chicago itself. I have never had any problems with BNSF before. Any station on the racetrack from LaVergne westward is nice to be at as well as West Eola. The only one that isn't real nice to go to is Aurora Transportation as you don't get really good views of freight or Amtrak. Joliet Union Station is a nice place for the old ATSF. Don't let rumors of downtown Joliet being dangerous scare you away from the station. They have cleaned up downtown Joliet considerably in the last 15 years. There are tons of other spots in the western and southern suburbs to safely observe BNSF trains from public property.
    Robby Gragg - EJ&E fan Railpictures photos: http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=5292 Flickr photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24084206@N08/ Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=EJE665 R-V videos: http://www.rail-videos.net/showvideos.php?userid=5292
  • EJE818.  Yes, Thats what I thought myself, As long as I wasnt on their property they have no rights. Yea, Up all along the racetrack is where I usally go for BNSF, Besides JUS. I also visit The station alot. I live in nearby shorewood, so its pretty close. The action there is great! Not so much speed wise but just a large volume of traffic flowing through there. All the times I have visited there, There were quite a few run-throughs. UP, NS, CSX, and Also CN. Thats not including the regular traffic with BNSF and Metra. I do however think that Im gonna give the west end of Eola a try. It sounds pretty interesting. Can you give me an Idea of what goes on up there? Are there any visible switching operations? Thanks again, Dillon
  • By the way, Take a look at my picture, EJE818. If you can see its at JUS. Great spot!
  •  EJE818 wrote:
    I don't think they have the right to take anything from you unless you are on their property.
    Watch out with that thinking. In my area, RR Police have authority within 1/2 mile (or so) of any railway property. That includes everything from RR related crimes to enforcing traffic laws.
    The grey box represents what the world would look like without the arts. Don't Torch The Arts--Culture Matters http://www.allianceforarts.com/
  • I can see them having the right to do that. At West Eola, as long as you don't go past the tresspassing signs or run all over the tracks, you should have no problems. I have seen BNSF tell people who park past the signs to leave, but I have never have had problems and I have never have heard of anyone else having problems there when parking before the signs. As I said earlier, it is a very popular and well known spot. Don't go to Clyde Yard now either as the only public place to see the yard, Clyde Station, is now closed to the public after Metra shut it down. LaVergne is now the closest place to the yard.
    Robby Gragg - EJ&E fan Railpictures photos: http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=5292 Flickr photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24084206@N08/ Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=EJE665 R-V videos: http://www.rail-videos.net/showvideos.php?userid=5292
  •  

      i am not a big picture taker i enjoy looking at others work so i dont have the problems stated here. My thought is maybe in each area where a railfans wants to take pics he or she should contact local authorities first to inquire about taking pics. And if they are told no problem as long as they are on public property try getting some type of e mail or something in writing to show the railroad cops!

  • Just read through this entire thread, and feel like the main point has been mostly missed (a couple folks saw it).

    You were trespassing. Doesn't matter that you were doing it safely, you were trespassing.

    As to the cop's view that you can't take pictures from public areas, he was flat out wrong, but it doesn't matter, because at the time he caught you, you were trespassing.

    I've been stopped by police a few times.  Nine times out of ten, all goes well if you just cooperate and they realize you're not a threat.  I've shot the northeast corridor very recently, by the way, in NJ, near NYC, without being questioned.  Main thing is this... DON'T TRESPASS.  As long as you don't, the law is on your side.  If a cop wants to take you in for photographing from a public area, ask him to call his field supervisor to confirm he has the right to.  Fact that you asked him to talk to his field supervisor about what the law is, will make him back down if he actually knows the law, and educate him if he doesn't.

    Charles Freericks
  • Boy i'm glad to be a Canadian Railfan! I can't believe he actually said something with 9-11, 9-11 was a set up by "some businessman guy" and the U.S Government, but it's like a control thing to them.
    TMC (CNR Mixed train GMD1 1063 with combine coach) (Remember always at Railway X-ing's, (Stop, Look and Listen!)
  • And i am a responsible railfan too, i know the boundaries. Where it says "Private Property" do not enter, i do just that. And when i take videos of CPR trains, i am on the other side of a ditch near a public road, so there is nothin they can legally say. Winnipeg is a great place to Railfan, and you can get very close to the tracks without being on CPR or CNR property, Central Manitoba Railway crosses a nature park close to where i live, and i can be 10 feet away and they coulden't say nothin, unless you were an disrespectful hooligan or something. And always remember to, Stop, Look and Listen!! Angel [angel]

    Photos below are taken close to the CN High-Line in Winnipeg, shows how close i can get, without being on Railway property, pretty cool eh!(The smaller pics are from Video stills)Approve [^]

    TMC (CNR Mixed train GMD1 1063 with combine coach) (Remember always at Railway X-ing's, (Stop, Look and Listen!)
  •  BNSFreak wrote:
    We asked if we could take pictures from the side walk, (IN A PUBLIC NEIGHBORHOOD). He said, absolutly not! If any of you ever get caught taking pictures (on Or near) BNSF property, We will be arrested on the spot and the film and tape will be desrtoyed.  
    100% wrong and yet another example of cops making up their own laws. I say, do it, let them "arrest" you, then sue BNSF for all you can.

    You have rights, and they are as guilty as any other criminal when they unlawfully attempt to take those rights from you.

  • The west coast is so different people are not so paranoid, I have railfanned all over seattle I have never been questioned, and while i was in Coos Bay I was taking pictures from inside the middle of the yard and one guy from the switch crew just said "be careful" and didn't seem to care I was in the middle of there yard well inside thier property. I guess thats the difference from between shortlines and Class 1s. They probably knew i was a railfan anyway

    BTW: I had no prior permission and im 18. 

    Rio Grande forever
  •  DRGWfan wrote:

    The west coast is so different people are not so paranoid, I have railfanned all over seattle I have never been questioned, and while i was in Coos Bay I was taking pictures from inside the middle of the yard and one guy from the switch crew just said "be careful" and didn't seem to care I was in the middle of there yard well inside thier property. I guess thats the difference from between shortlines and Class 1s. They probably knew i was a railfan anyway

    BTW: I had no prior permission and im 18. 

     

    Try doing that in LA.

    Charles Freericks