Title 05, Title 05: Aeronautics and Surface Transportation

§ 3649. Order of Board After hearing, the Board may make a written order requiring the corporation to construct or maintain in good repair such fence, cattle guard, or farm crossing, or to make or alter such watercourse or ditch, or to remove such impediment to the same, within s…

§ 3650. Penalty Unless the Board has extended the time for cause shown, a railroad corporation failing to comply with such order for more than 20 days after the time fixed by the Board shall be fined not more than $25.00 for each day’s failure. The corporation shall be further li…

§ 3670. Clearance standards; variance (a) No person shall construct, alter, or permit construction or alteration of a railroad track, railroad bridge, or structure over or adjacent to any railroad track unless the clearances provided equal or exceed the minimum standards set fort…

§ 3671. Destruction of weeds and thistles A person or corporation operating a railroad in this State shall cause all thistles and noxious weeds growing within the surveyed boundaries of such railroad to be cut and destroyed before August 1 in each year. (Amended 1969, No. 97, § 1…

§ 3673. Vegetation control A railroad shall take reasonable measures to control vegetation that is both on railroad property and on or immediately adjacent to the roadbed, so that the vegetation does not obstruct a highway user’s view of traffic control devices at a grade crossin…

§ 3674. Enforcement If a railroad fails to control vegetation as required by section 3671 or 3673 of this title within 30 days after written notice is given by the selectboard of the town in which the vegetation is located or by the Agency in the case of violations involving a St…

§ 3694. Rebate on fare paid on train; penalty A railroad corporation and its agents or employees shall not demand or receive for a single ticket bought or fare paid, on a train or elsewhere than at its ticket office, more than $0.10 in excess of the tariff rate charged at its tic…

§ 3695. Equal charges and facilities; long and short haul A railroad corporation whose railroad is located in the State shall not charge a larger sum for the transportation of freight, merchandise, or passengers thereon for a less distance, to or from a way station on such road, …

§ 3696. Special rates; fairs and schools Railroad companies may transport at special and reduced rates, to and from a public agricultural exhibition or fair, animals or other property to be exhibited there publicly and may transport at special and reduced rates, to and from schoo…

§ 3697. Equal and reasonable facilities A person or corporation operating a railroad shall give to all persons reasonable and equal terms, benefits, facilities, and accommodations for the transportation of themselves, their agents and servants, and of merchandise and other proper…

§ 3698. Connecting roads not to charge more for short than long distance; exception Two or more corporations whose roads connect shall not charge or receive for the transportation of freight to any station on the road of either of them a greater sum than is, at the time, charged …

§ 3699. Penalty; excursion tickets A person or corporation violating a provision of sections 3697 and 3698 of this title shall be liable to the party aggrieved for all damages sustained by reason of such violation, in an action on this statute. However, such sections shall not be…

§ 3700. Installation of telephone in stations Each railroad corporation doing business in this State shall grant to every person, firm, joint stock company, or corporation operating a public telephone line in the State and having at least 500 telephone connections equal and reaso…

§ 3721. Badges A conductor, baggage master, engineer, brakeman, or other servant of a railroad corporation employed in a passenger train or at stations for passengers shall wear upon his or her hat or cap a badge, which shall indicate his or her office, and the initial letters of…

§ 3722. Baggage checks Baggage masters and station agents on railroads shall give checks, when requested so to do, to the owners of baggage who hold tickets, when delivered to them for the transportation from station to station. Such checks shall be returned to the baggage master…

§ 3723. Ejectment of passenger from train When a passenger in a train refuses to pay his or her fare or toll or to comply with the reasonable regulations of the corporation for the government of passengers, or is disorderly or intoxicated, the conductor of the train and the emplo…

§ 3724. Liability for damages A person or corporation running trains on any railroad in this State and the conductors, agents, employees, or other officers of such railroad shall be responsible for all injury and damage to persons or property arising by reason of noncompliance wi…

§ 3725. Refusal to pay fare; penalty A person entering as a passenger upon a railroad train and refusing to pay his or her fare shall be fined not more than $20.00 nor less than $2.00.

§ 3726. Running out of time; penalty A conductor, engineer, or other person having the control of an engine or train of cars who runs such engine or train of cars or allows the same to be run upon a section of railroad at the time designated for any other engine or train of cars …

§ 3727. Only company’s engines to be run on road; penalty A locomotive, engine, or other power shall not run upon a railroad, except those that belong to and are controlled by the person owning and managing the road, unless by the person’s consent. An engineer or other person vio…

§ 3728. Employ of person using alcohol; penalty; damages When a railroad corporation employs or retains in its service a conductor, engineer, brakeman, switchman, semaphore operator or other signalman, train dispatcher, or telegraph operator who receives train orders who uses alc…

§ 3729. Use of alcohol by employee; penalty A person named in section 3728 of this title who, while in control of the movement of an engine, train, electric car, or semaphore or while engaged in the discharge of any duty relating to his or her employment, is intoxicated shall be …

§ 3730. Negligence of employee; penalty An engineer, fireman, or other agent of a railroad who is guilty of negligence or carelessness that causes an injury to a person shall be imprisoned not more than one year or fined not more than $1,000.00, or both. This section shall not ex…

§ 3731. Property held for injuries on road When the property or person of another is injured through the default of a person or corporation owning or operating a railroad, or the agents or employees thereof, the cars, engines, and other property that, at the time of such injury, …

§ 3732. Damages for fire communicated by engine A person or corporation owning or operating a railroad shall be responsible in damages for injury to a building or other property caused by fire communicated by a locomotive engine on such road unless due caution and diligence are u…

§ 3734. Trespass on railroad property; penalty (a) Definitions. As used in this section: (1) “Passenger” means a person traveling by train with lawful authority and who does not participate in the train’s operation. The term “passenger” does not include a stowaway. (2) “Railroad”…

§ 3755. Commissions Upon petition of a person or corporation owning or operating a railroad, the Commissioner of Public Safety may, subject to the provisions of section 3757 of this subchapter, commission any employees of the railroad as the person or corporation designates to ac…

§ 3756. Oath of office Each police officer so commissioned shall, before entering upon the duties of his or her office, take an oath of office administered by the Commissioner of Public Safety or his or her designee. (Added 1981, No. 104, § 1.)

§ 3757. Qualifications Persons commissioned pursuant to section 3755 of this subchapter shall be subject to minimum training standards established by rule of the Vermont Criminal Justice Council pursuant to 20 V.S.A. chapter 151. (Added 1981, No. 104, § 1; amended 2013, No. 141 (…

§ 3758. Powers Railroad police commissioned pursuant to this subchapter shall have the authority to act as police in and upon the premises and equipment owned, managed, or used by a railroad, and in all cases in which the rights of the employing or another railroad are involved, …

§ 3759. Arrest; place of arraignment and trial When a criminal offense occurs on a moving train, arraignment and trial of any suspected offender shall take place in the county or territorial unit in which the offense occurred. When arrest and continued custody by railroad police …

§ 3760. Carrying of badge Railroad police commissioned pursuant to this subchapter shall, when on duty, carry a badge with the words “Railroad Police” or “Railway Police” and the name of the employing railroad inscribed thereon. The badge shall be worn in plain view when the poli…

§ 3761. Compensation; liability of employer The compensation and cost of training, including minimum basic training, of railroad police shall be paid by the person or corporation upon whose petition they are appointed. The person or corporation shall be liable to parties aggrieve…

§ 3762. Reciprocity In order to more effectively carry out the purposes of this subchapter, the Governor of this State, referred to as the empowering state, may enter into a reciprocal agreement with the governor of any other state, referred to as the reciprocal state, empowering…

§ 3763. Termination of authority Upon termination of employment as a railroad police officer of any person commissioned pursuant to this subchapter, the person’s commission shall be automatically rescinded and his or her powers as a police officer shall terminate. Within 10 days …

§ 3783. Alteration, petition for; hearings The selectboard of a town within which a public highway crosses or is crossed by a railroad, or the general manager or attorney of a railroad corporation whose road crosses or is crossed by a public highway, may bring their petition in w…

§ 3784. Grade crossings; alteration; expense apportionment The Board shall direct that the expense of any alterations, changes, or removals referred to in sections 3783 and 3785 of this title, including the damages to any person whose land is taken, and the special damages that t…

§ 3785. Alterations, crossings; order by Transportation Board When the Transportation Board, in the absence of any application, is of the opinion that the public safety requires an alteration in any highway crossed at grade by a railroad, or by railroads belonging to or operated …

§ 3786. Tracks of more than one railroad When, upon an application or petition brought under the provisions of section 3783 of this title, the Board finds that a public highway crosses or is crossed by the tracks of more than one railroad and the tracks of such railroads are so n…

§ 3787. Taking of land; proceedings When a railroad corporation, a town, or any other party is ordered to do the requisite work in the alteration, changes, or removals at a railroad-highway crossing, or on lands or obstructions to the view near such crossing and it is necessary t…

§ 3788. Orders of Board; judicial review The order of the Board relating to any matter upon which it may act under the authority of this chapter shall be communicated in writing to the petitioners and to all persons to whom notice of the hearing on such petition was given. Any pe…

§ 3789. Record of changes The Transportation Board shall cause all orders made by it under the provisions of this chapter directing the alteration or relocation of a public highway to be recorded in the office of the town clerk where such public highway so altered or relocated is…

§ 3790. Agency approval Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter allocating certain costs to the State or permitting the Transportation Board to make such allocations, no claim for reimbursement of the State’s share of any work may be asserted against the State unless the S…