Regulation of a railroad's economics isn't the same as ownership of the railroad (unless it goes way too far - farther than we're talking here - and then it's an unintended consequence, not by right). Compare: Registration and licensing of your car by state isn't the same as ownership of it.
As between the railroad (with some type of written granted rights in the property, whatever they may be), and trackrat888 (as a trespasser, with no claim or written indicia of ownership whatsoever) - trackrat888 loses every time, as the railroad's rights are paramount to his (essentially none).
- Paul North.
trackrat888 Who owns the railroads? It is not as simple as you thing once you look into the matter. If the railroads were a totally private concern then why did they have to ask to get a charter in the first place and be subjective to the ICC and later the STB?
Who owns the railroads? It is not as simple as you thing once you look into the matter. If the railroads were a totally private concern then why did they have to ask to get a charter in the first place and be subjective to the ICC and later the STB?
The investors own the railroad.
Many corporations were/are chartered - not just the railroads.
Since the railroads needed long, linear properties, their methods of acquiring ROW varied. So, indeed, there are a number of ways that the railroads secured their properties.
But the bottom line is that the ROW is the property of the railroad, unless it's owned by some other entity, such as local municipalities - which is happening a lot with regard to local shortlines. Even then, it's still "private property." Ever see a sign that said "US Government Property - Keep Out?"
Regardless of how the property was acquired, in most cases, the railroads are paying property taxes on their ROWs. And that would be a hallmark of private ownership.
Regulation also occurs in a number of realms - transportation is just one. Most often regulation is the result of what some view as a monopoly.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Some people are simply less averse to risk than others.. looks like this lady likes to live on the edge a little more than most people do. Ever watch kids skateboard down a railing sideways? Probably not a smart thing to do or even legal.. but it beats waiting around for old age.
It's downright scary how quiet trains are in the snow.
I know I've been working in a yard and had either a train or car sneak up behind me. Not a good feeling. It's one thing I always made sure to pound into in any new guys' heads out here when working in winter weather.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
Semper Vaporo schlimm gardendance I was all set to let her go with a lesser charge since I thought she said she doesn't walk in the gauge, but reread and see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge, she actually had said "normally" she doesn't go between the tracks. If there's 20 feet clearance on either side, why does she ever need to be in the gauge? Why so much hostility to this person, who by her own admission erred? Next you'll be demanding jail time for someone who hurt nobody. 1. She is trespassing. 2. She is bragging about it. 3. She is setting a BAD example to others. 4. She does not seem to understand the gravity of the situation. 5. She offers lame excuses for what she is doing. 6. She thinks she will always be able to hear the train coming, which if you read any of the reports on human vs train events seems to be untrue. There is no action a human can do for which the human mind cannot find an excuse to do again.
schlimm gardendance I was all set to let her go with a lesser charge since I thought she said she doesn't walk in the gauge, but reread and see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge, she actually had said "normally" she doesn't go between the tracks. If there's 20 feet clearance on either side, why does she ever need to be in the gauge? Why so much hostility to this person, who by her own admission erred? Next you'll be demanding jail time for someone who hurt nobody.
gardendance I was all set to let her go with a lesser charge since I thought she said she doesn't walk in the gauge, but reread and see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge, she actually had said "normally" she doesn't go between the tracks. If there's 20 feet clearance on either side, why does she ever need to be in the gauge?
Why so much hostility to this person, who by her own admission erred? Next you'll be demanding jail time for someone who hurt nobody.
1. She is trespassing.
2. She is bragging about it.
3. She is setting a BAD example to others.
4. She does not seem to understand the gravity of the situation.
5. She offers lame excuses for what she is doing.
6. She thinks she will always be able to hear the train coming, which if you read any of the reports on human vs train events seems to be untrue.
There is no action a human can do for which the human mind cannot find an excuse to do again.
She admited she had trespassed ("a criminal act") ad apologized. She admitted it was dangerous, but say she is setting a "BAD" example to unnamed others. And then you inferred that, quite to the contrary of her explicit statement, she was bragging, not understanding the gravity of her act, offering an excuse, and that she "will always be able to hear the train coming" in the future. You must be a mind reader. That is a full load of personal animosity toward a handicapped woman who has not harmed you.
As this incident occured in New York state, a mention should be made of the relevant laws: The state of New York’s criminal trespassing are detailed in Article 140 within the Penal section of the New York Codes & Statutes In New York, regardless of intent, criminal trespassing is constituted by entering and remaining when the intruder is neither licensed nor privileged to do so. Signage plays a critical role in trespassing as unposted or insufficient notice can absolve trespassers of guilt in certain situations. Signage needs to be based in a conspicuous manner on the property to ensure that proper notice is given. Is the CSX RoW there posted properly?
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
Semper Vaporo
Pkgs.
The picture shows it all. She is an older woman, walking in snow, doesn't want to walk along side the tracks since the footing wouldn't be as level. Maybe she walks there in good weather, maybe not.
Now the bad thinking. She thinks she will hear the whistle of the train and/or the sound of the train approaching. Also, walking on railroad tracks is not tresspassing - it is something people have done since tracks were first laid.
Tresspassing is bad enough. What will get her is the silent train coming up behind her and the whistle (especially with her on the other side of a curve) will be too late. And I have no doubt she gave not one of these a 2nd or even a 1st thought.
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
schlimmWhy so much hostility to this person, who by her own admission erred? Next you'll be demanding jail time for someone who hurt nobody.
She erred, but has no regrets. Has been doing it for 20 years, and is probably continuing to do so. This was no one-time deal.
gardendanceI was all set to let her go with a lesser charge since I thought she said she doesn't walk in the gauge, but reread and see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge, she actually had said "normally" she doesn't go between the tracks. If there's 20 feet clearance on either side, why does she ever need to be in the gauge?
And around a curve too.
Patrick Boylan
Free yacht rides, 27' sailboat, zip code 19114 Delaware River, get great Delair bridge photos from the river. Send me a private message
gardendance...see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge...
Thusly...
Its not just RRs. Atlanta just had section of I-285 closed due to a predestrian being hit. Happened at 0640 and at 0950 traffic finally allowed to move. Section is near Ga-400 4 lanes westbound.
No indication yet why person was on road. An object moving may be hard to see.
IMHO its not about intelligence but common sense. Two entirely different items.
tree68 On Christmas Eve, our local daily ran a picture of a woman walking in the gauge of the CSX tracks in her town.... her letter to the editor in reply: ... The clearance on both sides is at least 20 feet, and normally I don't actually walk inside the rails. ... Also, I might point out, have never seen a train with more than 30 to 40 cars at most on any given day.
On Christmas Eve, our local daily ran a picture of a woman walking in the gauge of the CSX tracks in her town....
her letter to the editor in reply:
... The clearance on both sides is at least 20 feet, and normally I don't actually walk inside the rails. ... Also, I might point out, have never seen a train with more than 30 to 40 cars at most on any given day.
I was all set to let her go with a lesser charge since I thought she said she doesn't walk in the gauge, but reread and see that the original post says the picture shows her in the gauge, she actually had said "normally" she doesn't go between the tracks. If there's 20 feet clearance on either side, why does she ever need to be in the gauge? That's another meaningless statistic along with the length of the trains, which as others have pointed out doesn't have much bearing on how much the train will hurt you.
Paul_D_North_Jrhe woman in tree68/ Larry's Original Post clearly suffers from the disability of low intelligence (plus whatever else she meant when she mentioned that).
Maybe so, but she's been doing that for 50 years and no incidents. And given her writing ability, your comment about her intelligence is totally false. She clearly understood Tree's letter, as well.
How about "Grandma Got Run Over By A Freight Train" instead ? Better rhythm/ cadence . . .
More seriously: Would any of these people walk on or in an airport runway, an Interstate highway or racetrack, or the spillway of a dam ?!?
The woman in tree68/ Larry's Original Post clearly suffers from the disability of low intelligence (plus whatever else she meant when she mentioned that). And if she keeps walking the tracks like that, she may suddenly and unexpectedly acquire even more disabilities . . .
A two year old boy was killed today walking his dog along tracks in Kentucky.
I wonder if perhaps an older family member that should've known better had taken him for a walk down the tracks before, leading him to believe that this was okay?
If she has no concern for her own personal safety or the feelings of those that would be affected by her loss if struck by a train (Family, friends, emergency responders, and the locomotive crew that will never forget the moment), maybe she should consider the message she might be sending to any youth that might see her practicing this dangerous habit.
jeffhergert A 30 car train can kill you the same as a 130 car train. People always think they will hear one coming, but they can be amazingly quiet at times. I once called a local TV news room after they aired a railroad story where they filmed the reporter standing between the rails on a main track. The response I received from the person I talked to was, "Wow, I didn't know that was trespassing" Jeff
A 30 car train can kill you the same as a 130 car train. People always think they will hear one coming, but they can be amazingly quiet at times.
I once called a local TV news room after they aired a railroad story where they filmed the reporter standing between the rails on a main track. The response I received from the person I talked to was, "Wow, I didn't know that was trespassing"
Jeff
A note on the recent death in Southern California by a Metroink Train.. Saw a brief piece today on that incident.. Apparently, an acquaintance of the former Army Ranger Officer/Body Builder noted that Mr. Plitt( the deceased) thought he was standing on a parallel 'inactive line' and it was safe for him to film.
Firelock76 I hope that old lady wises up. "Grandma Got Run Over By an ES44AC" doesn't sound like much of a Christmas song.
I hope that old lady wises up. "Grandma Got Run Over By an ES44AC" doesn't sound like much of a Christmas song.
Last summer, in a rural area, I spotted a grandfather walking a small child on the track. Grandpa was off to the side while the child was walking in the gauge. A deputy I know was nearby and I let him know. He had a talk with grandpa. Gramps can be thankful it was a deputy and not a railroad bull. All he got was a scolding.
Norm
She should open her eyes and count, not that the number of freight cars even matters as already said. Just as you said, I've seen 100+ car trains here many times over the years and for many years, that was the norm.
They're only sometimes a bit shorter now due to intermodal schedules that often have them running shorter trains as they try to grow their container traffic. Can't hold a train for a full load and expect to grow that sort of traffic.
And I was surprised by the comments to your letter. Or more correctly, I wasn't surprised. As I recall from several days ago (Can't find your letter anymore), several people basically acted like you were making a mountain out of a molehill. People should check the statistics.
Amazing some of the asinine stuff that gets posted in the comments section of this paper's website for almost every single story.
On Christmas Eve, our local daily ran a picture of a woman walking in the gauge of the CSX tracks in her town. The tracks are those of the St Lawrence Sub (CR's Montreal Secondary), which see up to a half dozen trains per day, oftimes exceeding 100 cars. The rails in the photo are well polished.
I immediately sent (well, emailed) a "letter to the editor" to the paper noting that the photo recorded: 1, a criminal act, and 2, a dangerous act. In addition, I admonished the paper for publishing such a picture. That's the letter she references below.
I hope the editors of the paper got the message, because the woman in the picture clearly didn't. Here's her letter to the editor in reply:
Railway has perils but is more convenient (Newspaper's header for letter) I'm writing this response to a letter published on Jan. 4 in the {local paper} ("Walking along train tracks very dangerous"). I wish to thank the writer for his concern and apologize for any stress he may have endured as a result of the picture taken on Christmas Eve day. My deliberate act of criminal activity should be explained to further avoid any more do da. It's been my habit for more than 50 years to use that shortcut on occasion. My home is about 100 yards from my deck to the railway tracks. I can hear a train leavving DeKalb on clear days. I have a deep respect for the dangers of such a force. My decision to take the shortcut was as simple as it was convenient. I was carrying at least 20 pounds on my back and packages in both hands. I don't drive, therefore I walk everywhere. This stretch of track is a block long from one railway crossing to the next, both having not only arms but bells. My local street has a rather severe incline that challenges my multiple disabilities. No-brainer; I chose the nice level track route instead. The clearance on both sides is at least 20 feet, and normally I don't actually walk inside the rails. I truly value my life and freedom and independence. Yes .. it is dangerous, careless I suppose, and let's not forget criminal. My thoughts were only on the gifts I was carrying and the' pleasure of enjoying a beautiful Christmas Eve day. " I would like to thank Jason Hunter for the delight my grandson Mason had, seeing Grandma carrying Christmas presents that were probably for him. Now, I await justice. " Also, I might point out, have never seen a train with more than 30 to 40 cars at most on any given day.
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