Trespassing

We recently had some photographs brought to our attention that appear to have been taken by people trespassing without our permission. We rarely provide written permission providing access to our property. I know that you all are aware that railroad property is private and trespassing is prohibited.
We are seeing a drastic rise in thefts on our property and have begun prosecuting not only the thefts, but trespassers also. Just this summer we have successfully prosecuted in excess of a dozen people with trespassing; several of those prosecutions involved arrests.

Please do not enter onto railroad property in pursuit of your photographic hobby. There are plenty of places available for photography without entering railroad property.

Enjoy your hobby safely and lawfully.

As a volunteer for Operation Lifesaver, and as my current Navy assignment has me working quite closely with security, I must :
a) seccond everything in the above post, and
b) commend MMA Security for the professional, courteous and respectfullnest of said posting.
Stay SAFE, Stay ALERT, Stay AWAY!
P. Barrington,
US Navy, Groton
CTOL

Thanks for warning us. Security policies (official and unofficial) change from time to time and place to place. Better to get a friendly heads-up than find out the hard way that what you thought was tolerated activity was actually uncaught activity.

I can't speak for other states' laws, but in New York State, it is generally legal to enter onto undeveloped property which is not posted against trespass. Railroads are exempted from this rule; entry without permission is always trespass.

Thank you for your recent posting to RAILROAD.NET regarding trespassing on MMA property. I noticed that the post was not signed, however. Please identify yourself so that we can confirm that you are actually representing the railroad's interests.

Thanks for your cooperation.

-otto vondrak

He's for real. I've had some very good communication with him regarding an upcoming trip I'm taking to MMA country. A nice guy who's rightfully concerned about his company's security and the safety of railfans.

Bobw,
those are the best kind!
Cosmo

I want to personally thank our MMA friend for his post. Someone had written earlier about a possible trek out to the Onawa Trestle, and while I provided directions, I did so with the caveat that the track is posted, and said that I didn't know the extent to which the MMA might conceivably prosecute anyone who is found on their track. This post was very helpful in clearing that up.

Suggestion to the MMA, for what it's worth: As a lot of people in Maine (and elsewhere) would like to see the trestle, would it be possible to arrange a public rail excursion to the site? This could be done by the railroad itself or as a joint effort between the MMA and, say, the 470 Club.