Can you get in trouble walking on train tracks?

Question

Can you get in trouble walking on train tracks?

Answer 1

Simple answer is yes. It is actually a federal crime to trespass on railroad property if the railroad special agents choose to do so. If you are on the tracks and a train is coming and they have to put the train in emergency and stop you can go to jail for stopping commerce on federal property.

Answer 2

Not unless a train is "walking" towards you too! HA!

Answer 3

Yes.

And it is an excellent place to get injured or killed as well.  There are other ways you can be hurt besides an unwelcome encounter with a train.

Footing is poor in most cases.  A sprained or broken ankle can be in the offing to the inexperienced.

Walking on top of the rail may seem a challenging game but in actuality is quite foolish.  Employees are forbidden to even step on a rail because of the danger involved.  It is a great way to slip and fall.  Hit your head on the other rail and you'll be laying unconscious when run over.  There is also a thing called "flash," found on the inside, top of the rail.  Flash is thin strips of metal that have been worn off the rail by the wheels passing over it and they are just as sharp as a surgeon's scalpel.  It'll lay your skin open quite nicely, should your ankle come in contact with it.

There are also often times to be found empty tubes that resemble tubes of "calking," containing residue of a chemical compound used by maintenance of way personnel.  It is very caustic and, if handled, will burn your skin quite severely.

Think you'll hear a train coming?  Don't bet your life on it.  Locomotives don't always pull cars around.  They shove 'em, too, in switching operations or in a simple reverse move.  The engine may be a mile away and equipment can sneak up on you in near silence.  At other times, freight cars will be found rolling on their own; no locomotive to hear and no one to shout a warning.

And, some of the people who hang around the tracks and yards are not usually the type of folks you'll want to spend any time with, after being beaten to a pulp and robbed.

Best to stay off railroad property.  You don't see any of us hanging around the tracks on our days off...

A good safety question.  Here's a star.

Answer 4

You could get run over by a train, and even if this doesn't happen, you are liable to be arrested for trespassing on the railway - if convicted, prison or a large fine, or both.

Answer 5

Yes, unless you are a railway employee who has all the correct certifications and track access permissions. In the UK, trespassing on a railway is a criminal offence punishable by a fine of up to £1000.

Answer 6

common sense says you would get off the track when a train comes on it.

I used to walk on the track for a far as I could without falling off, usually a block or so

you bring back memories of steam engines...I used to walk between the tracks and a canal full of water.  The engineer would shoot a cloud of steam out towards me and blow the whistle real loud.  I would get lost in the fog and be so close to the engine I would have to jump into the canal or fear falling into the engine.

Answer 7

If your foot got stuck and a train came I guess you would

Answer 8

yes!!!!

Answer 9

You certainly can. Apart from being the offence of trespass, it's an extremely foolish thing to do - many trains are very fast and relatively quiet. I remember one night when an electric freight train arrived at my local station one winter night with a man's body stuck to the front (the driver hadn't noticed the impact). They found his arms and legs ten miles away.

Answer 10

Of course.

Apart from the obvious fine if you get caught, modern trains are not only fast but many are also very quiet, they're upon you before you know it.

Answer 11

Have you ever hued the word Trespasser? You'll pay a fine, and railroads don't think kindly of people on the tracks. You could end up in a body bag with your parts misplaced..

Answer 12

Yes, railroad tracks are private property, owned by the railroad, they are not state or federal property like roads and highways.  It is considered trespassing, and will be treated as such by the railroad police (aka special agents).