Trespassing on rail road tracks

In case you haven't heard, WI state law was changed in 2006 no longer allowing people to walk directly across r/r tracks. Last Winter r/r "detectives were warning ice anglers they could be cited to trespassing. This will also effect shore anglers, hunters, trappers, anyone who has to cross tracks to access especially the Mississippi River. I've written 8 politicians so far but we need numbers to get their attention. Please consider contacting State Representatives Nerison, Brooks, Doyle and Tranel, State Senators Marklein, and Schilling. I also wrote Cngressman Kind and DNR Secretary Stepp. One response back thus far. "The Senator will discuss this with his legislative colleagues to see if there is wide-scale interest in making a change to the law." Duke

It was not taken out of the budget, it was vetoed.

The RR's are what made the country what it is now. Without them expansion would have been severely limited. I'm guessing that they were given a lot more than what the tracks are on now to give them incentive to build the RR and they sold it years ago.

How many acres of land do R/R "own" in WI? How did they obtain title to these acres, many of which are shoreline acres? What do they pay for property taxes compared to ordinary land owners. My acres in MFL require me to pay a 5 dollar per acre fee to keep my land closed. Wanna bet the big shot R/R isn't paying that? My point is they got a sweet heart deal decades ago and now are fencing off our natural areas while they reap enormous profits and influence politics. Maybe the R/R aught to start paying the same property tax rates as us little guys if they want the same property rights. Duke

My understanding of why the bill was taken out of the budget is that safety was the deciding factor, that said crossing RR tracks is no different than crossing the highway. There are rules that govern when and where you cross and I do understand the dangers involved with rail cars as I worked with them 25 years (yes they are quiet enough that you will be hit if you don't look, no different than crossing the road). I am a strong believer that there is an reasonable accommodation both sides of this issue can agree to. Any why has this issue been sneaked into a budget bill both in 2005 and now in 2015? DISCLAIMER- I am not trying to take away landowner rights, my interest in this is as an elected representative of the of the county I live in and as an advisory to the NRB.

I can confirm they are enforcing this law in Washington County the last two years. I grew up on a family farm that runs up to some tracks. Spent a lot of time walking up and down tracks to hunt and fish so I see both sides of the issue. I have talked to the guy who is enforcing this new policy on a number of occasions and have seen him write tickets(Theresa Marsh area).. Hard to believe but this guy has confirmed and shown me articles about people getting hit on tracks in Wisconsin.. Always thought that would be nearly impossible unless you had too much to drink, but it happens. I now have to drag a duck boat up and down the river to get to some of my favorite spots.. A lot of work but the goods news is not a lot of guys want to go thru that effort. Like many things in life the extra work is worth it. I have told several other hunters I see using tracks about this new policy but most just ignore me..They must have a lot of extra cash !!!

Shoot Straight, How would a politician justify taking away private property owners rights? So if someone decides that your land would be better served if everyone was allowed to hunt on it would you feel the same? I know it sucks not being able to cross RR tracks but honestly would you want a government that just takes away someone's land rights? It's like years ago the farmer that didn't care who hunted on his land and it was sold and the new owner posted it. Yes it sucks that you can't hunt it anymore but it's not your land to decide.

This law doesn't affect me at all. However with that said I find Redhooks comments informative. So I have to ask if this affects you or are against it, did anyone contact Walkers office? Why isnt there a post about it even being brought up and a chance for him to Veto it? I for one never even knew this was on the table- You had a chance to change it- did you do anything about it???

You can sure tell the people who used them in the past and those that didn't on this site. I spent many days nights from the age of 12 till my college days crossing the tracks to fish the mississippi. I would ride my bike 5 miles before I was 16 if my mom or friends mom couldn't take us. We had 4 great cat fishing spots different areas just off the tracks. I understand it's private property but it SUCKS my kids will never get to enjoy this. Had lot of great times with friends in these spots lot of stories. Almost 25 years ago but lot of memories. Change sucks.

Good! It's nice to see that Walker respects private property rights. How would you like it if he passed a law that allowed trespassing on redhook's land?

A repeal of the trespass law for RR tracks was in this last budget but WALKER FOR SPORTSMEN took it out with the veto pen.

"The way I see it is that a law is a law. You cannot break one simply because you disagree with it. No offense, but it really doesn't matter what the distinctions are in your mind" Interesting take on this. Not picking on amaranth because a few voiced this opinion on the matter. I do ask though, do you all take the same stance on following the speed limit to the nearest mph? How about that drive home after a fish fry/slice of prime rib over the weekend after a few beers or old fanshioneds while waiting for your table (remember buzzed driving is drunk driving)? How about accidentally spilling some gas at the pump while trying to get that tank topped off? The sign next to the pump clearly states to report all spills. Many other examples of breaking the law come to mind but I'll stop now. Calculates risks friends. Calculated risks.

my land goes to the edge of it and i walk the side of the rail road tracks deer hunting

The way I see it is that a law is a law. You cannot break one simply because you disagree with it. No offense, but it really doesn't matter what the distinctions are in your mind, the law says it is trespassing so trespassing is what it is. I prefer to take the legal route and contact the legislature to change the law rather than simply break it because i disagree with it.

The last two comments are just great - just break the law and trespass if you don't like it! Tell me what lands you own and if you would mind if I just go on it to hunt a bit or maybe just to walk around on it. And I hope your insurance is paid up in case I trip and hurt myself while trespassing on your land. It's pretty simple - it's not your land and you're not welcome on it SO STAY OFF OF IT!!!

Just run! Gotta know the back way in/out too. Most the places I cross tracks to get to are private anyhow. Pack light and bring a crap rod you can ditch if need be. Edit: FYI the places I go to are owned by the county or state. Nobody is ever there although LE does check on some of them from time to time. Obviously I wouldn't be ice fishing because that requires too much gear to run. Although I have thought about bringing a crap hand auger and some plastic tip ups and just run. But I hate littering too much for that.