We just lost 50% of the access to the Cape Cod Canal

[BigFish]

This may be getting blown out of proportion? One isolated incident......it ain't gonna change anything! If a guy approaches me he is gonna get nothing but a chuckle and a "catch me if you can" as I ride away on my bike!

[BigFish]

Is it really going to cause any of you to fish any differently than you always have??? I know it won't affect me....not one bit! See you on the rails kiddies!!

[Back Beach]

Originally Posted by BigFish

Is it really going to cause any of you to fish any differently than you always have??? I know it won't affect me....not one bit! See you on the rails kiddies!!

Have you considered adding a side car to your bike? You drive the bike(with me in the side car) and I'll show you all Tony O's secret spots....

[JackK]

Originally Posted by Dad 818

Time to setup a bike jump or a pole vault. Can't arrest you if you don't touch the tracks can they??

Best idea yet!!

[Backbeach Jake]

Full Moon in June Day.
All fishermen, on the full moon of June , display their personal moons to the diners on the dinner train, ala Braveheart. If that doesn't do the trick, then Wanging Day can be celebrated, ala Braveheart. Your appetizer, sir....

[striperman36]

I bet its an insurance issue that now is a historical access issue.

[Pete F.]

Originally Posted by Backbeach Jake

Full Moon in June Day.
All fishermen, on the full moon of June , display their personal moons to the diners on the dinner train, ala Braveheart. If that doesn't do the trick, then Wanging Day can be celebrated, ala Braveheart. Your appetizer, sir....

If you have to wait till June it will be the 26th, what time does the train pass?
This would be too funny, it just might bring Belushi back from the grave.

[Green Light]

Originally Posted by Dad 818

Time to setup a bike jump or a pole vault. Can't arrest you if you don't touch the tracks can they??

I love this idea. I think their deed if for the land, not the air. Now where did I put that aerodynamic plug bag?

[mikecc]

I just got off the phone with John Pearson from Cape Rail Inc. I was informed that they will enforce the trespass order on all who cross their property. 1st time a warning 2nd time arrested and prosecution. I was also informed that this will be for all the property which they control, which is all the rail lines on cape cod. He went on saying there is 3 access points on the cape side and only 3 access points all others are not in agreement with the army corps and are not allowable and any use of these areas are not allowed and will be enforced
If you would like to give John a call his direct # is 401-862-5343
This is going to get interesting.

[Clogston29]

its going to be a tough fight to keep access if they decide that they are serious about preventing trespassing. if the railroad owns the property and there are not established legal right of ways (which would require standard, ADA compliant pedestrian railroad grade crossings with gates) they can do whatever they want on their land. Amtrak, CSX, etc. are all very strict on trespassing - you have to take a training course just to walk on their property as a contractor. the "i've always cut through here" argument really will not hold any water. they've always had the right to keep people out, they can decide to do it whenever they want. i was actually always surprised that cutting across the tracks was tolerated along the canal.

[JohnnyD]

Originally Posted by Clogston29

its going to be a tough fight to keep access if they decide that they are serious about preventing trespassing. if the railroad owns the property and there are not established legal right of ways (which would require standard, ADA compliant pedestrian railroad grade crossings with gates) they can do whatever they want on their land. Amtrak, CSX, etc. are all very strict on trespassing - you have to take a training course just to walk on their property as a contractor. the "i've always cut through here" argument really will not hold any water. they've always had the right to keep people out, they can decide to do it whenever they want. i was actually always surprised that cutting across the tracks was tolerated along the canal.

The only way to change it is to cause enough outrage to bring bad PR to Cape Rail. These battles are not won in the courts as the corporations have too much money. These battles are won in the newspapers, on the radio and in the news.

Unless the business is losing money or politicians might lose an election, the little guy can't win.

As Clogston mentioned, they are completely in their right to enforce trespass laws since they own the property. The difference is if enough people get outraged that they are forced to go back to turning a blind eye.

[Back Beach]

Great, just great....this means the few remaining peripatetic fisherman must either become canal bikers or take up golf....you know the kind I mean, 3-4 rod holders, fuzzy dice on the handle bars, missing seats, sissy bars, and the like.

I'm moving to Greenland.

[Clogston29]

another way to look at it is that they have a legal responsibility to enforce trespassing on their land as their operations (running trains down rail) endanger anyone on their property. if someone were to get hit by a train or fall while crossing the rails and get seriously injured, i would think that they could be found criminally negligent and responsible for knowingly allowing the general public to pass through their property, which contains known dangers.

an argument could be made that they should provide passage through their land to the canal as a service to the community, but I don't think it could be forced on them - especially if existing right of ways exist and the access road runs between them. and again, if they did it would have to be provided in a safe and ADA complient(read expensive) way.

[tattoobob]

If there land isn't posted with signs saying NO TRESPASSING then they can't enforce the laws of fine you

[MikeToole]

Originally Posted by mikecc

I just got off the phone with John Pearson from Cape Rail Inc. I was informed that they will enforce the trespass order on all who cross their property. 1st time a warning 2nd time arrested and prosecution. I was also informed that this will be for all the property which they control, which is all the rail lines on cape cod. He went on saying there is 3 access points on the cape side and only 3 access points all others are not in agreement with the army corps and are not allowable and any use of these areas are not allowed and will be enforced
If you would like to give John a call his direct # is 401-862-5343
This is going to get interesting.

If you call a company representative of course they will tell you they plan on enforcing the rules. They will always give you the standard company line. If they didn't they would open themselves up to all kinds of legal issue.

I would just keep quiet on this issue and see if they start really enforcing the rule on a large scale. This may just have been a case of one person being a jerk. Make a big deal out of it and others may start enforcing it just the first guy doesn't look like a jerk. Police will often do this to protect their own. Hopefully this will be a non-issue.

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by MikeToole

If you call a company representative of course they will tell you they plan on enforcing the rules. They will always give you the standard company line. If they didn't they would open themselves up to all kinds of legal issue.

I would just keep quiet on this issue and see if they start really enforcing the rule on a large scale. This may just have been a case of one person being a jerk. Make a big deal out of it and others may start enforcing it just the first guy doesn't look like a jerk. Police will often do this to protect their own. Hopefully this will be a non-issue.

This is exactly what I would say too. The more you call some flunky in RI, the more they'll realize how widespread this "problem" is and the more they'll send out people to enforce this. Eventually they may even fence off the tracks along the parking spots.

In any event, crossing RR tracks at grade crossings is not trespassing, and there are 3-4 "grade" crossings Capeside where they cannot stop people from crossing--as this clown in RI freely admitted to Mike.

Mike--one question--was the guy who got the summons fishing off the trestle--that popular tautog spot?

[mikecc]

He was crossing the tracks to launch a kayak. The guy that stopped him would not even let him retrieve it, and told him to bring it around to another spot down stream of their property.

[Karl F]

try calling Senator Brown's office..

was there not some kind of issue keeping fishermen off the canal a few years back, that Sen. Kennedy got involved in and straightened out??

[Pete F.]

I think that inasmuch as Fisherman belong to a highly migratory species (I've been known to travel hundreds of miles to fish) and are dependent on the resouces available in the canal, that this may fall under the jurisdiction of some federal agency. Or perhaps even the Bonn Convention of the United Nations.
Don't worry the goverment will save us.

[codderboy]

Now I suppose they can ticket me for driving my truck over their tracks? No difference a motor vehicle and a bicycle.

[stripermaineiac]

They pulled this up here in Maine and we lost several spot. we filled suit against them for their trains speeding so they had to slow them down to 20mph going through residential areas,almost all the tracks are in residential areas, and we filled noise complaints against their horns and now they can only use them at registered crossings. they mostly leave us alone now. I'll donate towards a lawyer. Ron

[robc22]

The railroad is picking a fight with a lot of people......Not to mention two local town goverments and a federal agency.........

[johnny ducketts]

So does this mean you can't cross the tracks near the ice rink?
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[likwid]

Blown out of proportion.
This was in Wareham, not at the canal.

[robc22]

Originally Posted by likwid

Blown out of proportion.
This was in Wareham, not at the canal.

Ya..........

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by codderboy

Now I suppose they can ticket me for driving my truck over their tracks? No difference a motor vehicle and a bicycle.

Grade crossing are different. They can't ticket you for crossing the tracks at a grade crossing. They could if you carried your bike over the tracks away from a grade crossing.

Originally Posted by tattoobob

If there land isn't posted with signs saying NO TRESPASSING then they can't enforce the laws of fine you

That's why this guy got a trespass notice instead of a citation or summons. Trespass notices put you on notice that you were on private property without the consent of the owner, even if the property isn't posted. They can now ticket or even have the guy arrested if they see him do it a second time.

Theoretically, at least, this thread is now one big trespass notice, should the railroad find a way to connect ourselves in person to our screen names

[mikecc]

I’ve been on the phone most of the day today about this issue. I had a person from the Safety and transportation divisions of Cape Rail call me this afternoon. We got to talk for a while. They seem to agree that their enforcement person may have a little over on this. They do not want to be tainted with bad press but they do feel the need for additional safety issues. We agreed on a few issues and will talk again I’m sure. They also have some talks scheduled with the Wareham Selectman and town administrator coming up soon and will discuss access areas for their rail system and the potential commuter rail to the area.

[Gary]

Ever seen what a well placed sledge hammer does to rail?.......

[Raven]

Originally Posted by Gary

Ever seen what a well placed sledge hammer does to rail?.......

theres an old saying....

give me a big enough LEVER and i can move the world

ya get a bar so heavy it takes two men to carry it
with shoulder straps.

the third guy ( the watcher) carries a fulcrum

Jesse James those Bastids

[JohnR]

Not that we would advocate any damage to actual rail components as that would be a safety issue.

Hope this gets resolved. A little moonage would certainly make the national news. Though some might think the train runs through P-Town or something.