Paul Smith at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. There’s been some movement on the railroad crossing issue you should know about. This week Rep. Lee Nerison (R-Westby) drafted a bill to fix the problem. The draft is called LRB 2303. It is being circulated for signatures. This is basically the time a piece of legislation is sent around to gauge interest and gather support. It would be a very good thing if a bunch of other legislators signed on as co-sponsors. If it moves forward, it would be given a different name like AB XXX and hopefully get a public hearing.
So if you want to be able to cross the tracks along the Mississippi River without threat of a trespass ticket, take a few minutes today and tell your elected representatives to co-sponsor LRB 2303. They will know how to find out more about it and what they need to do. Since this legislative session is getting close to the end, this bill would need to move fast to have a chance to pass.
The bill is about as simple as they get. It would allow pedestrians to cross railroad tracks at a 90 degree angle. It adds no cost to taxpayers and presents no added liability to the railroads. It also doesn’t create anything new – it would change state law back to the way it was before 2006.
If you don’t know who your representatives are in the state senate and state assembly, you can find them on legis.wisconsin.gov
Rep. Nerison is trying to get a list of co-sponsors by noon Friday so this thing can get “down the tracks.” Take a few minutes today to make your feelings known on LRB 2303. I’ll plan on writing an article on this no matter what happens in the coming days or weeks. Thanks and good fishing.
I pasted this cause I like to cross RR tracks to fish every now and then and don’t believe I should be in jeopardy of a penalty ( fine ).
