You should never grow food on rail property without a soil study for hazardous chemicals.

I think it's very nice of CP rail to allow the community to use their land for a little while

AS a former conductor and a person that has a lot of rail road legal experience, from what I see here on this news posting and my research I would have to say that CP is being VERY kind in their approach. Traditionally the government and legal have sided with the rail roads. Their land rights will 99% of the time cover not only the land but also the water and mineral rights, which for a lot of people that own a home or business think they own, but they don't. The C.P. really does have the right to just come through and plow everything 50 foot on either side of the rail. They do not need an environment study, nor permission they can just do it. Traditionally when the rail was laid they purchased the right of way on both sides in perpetuity. Only the Rail Road (C.P. in this case) can release that clause of their contract. And then and only then they must remove ALL tracks and ties. also they can sell the land to the state OR a private person BUT the mineral right and water rights will either stay with the rail road OR go to the state. Sorry folks it is that simple. I have seen it done over and over and the "squatters" or trespassers as they will be referred to will be removed and they will have no say, there is no law that says since the rail has not run in x years that it reverts to whomever is using the land and considers it "abandoned"

REACTIVATE THE LINE!

Just so everyone knows, this story was from 2014. CP sold off the corridor in 2016 and this line is now a public greenway.

oh no, the community garden must move --- think of the children!

They need to put all tracks back in service

This happened in Tijuana, Mexico, to a line that was still in service. They had trains running 3 times a week and people still built homes and moved in on the right of way. The government had to buy land and pay them to move off. The right of way in North America is 100 feet wide with the tracks usually centered on it, so if you measure 50 feet from the center of the track, that is the boundary. In some places, in Mexico and elsewhere, criminals have claimed to own parts of the right of way and have sold the land to ignorant poor people. It is a cruel thing, but criminals are seldom nice people.

Man I love seeing raillines put back in service

The tracks were sold to the City of Vancouver, and they eventually created a walking and cycling path along most of it, with plans to build an LRT along it in the 2030s. The Arbutus Greenway is currently the nicest new addition to the City, which not too many people outside of Vancouver know about. Still, it's exploded with popularity, and more people use it every day. I daresay it might have the same impact as the Stanley Park Seawall. It also seems as though the pedestrian path is being extended along granville street bridge downtown.

"I am Arbutus of Borg. Your back gardens will be assimilated"

put the line back in service

13 years, that's nothing! The G&U south of Grafton was inactive from the 1980s until 2008. That's 30 years folks, and the weed capital of the world (not Seattle surprisingly) was very upset when gorgeous GP9s a CF7 and BLE F7 720A began working. Let's be realistic, rail is making a comeback. If you don't like it, get out the way!

There are videos of a rail line in Thailand I think running through a market. People have to fold up their awnings and move their wares, giving it barely inches to pass at a few mph. The rail line is okay with them being there it seems.

Although CP has sold this rail line already, The comments on here from some, or one those who are against the company for taking back there rail property is complete asinine thinking at best. The cost to ship extreme heavy goods across long distance far outweighs the cost to ship those same goods the same distance with multiple trucks. Many goods are too heavy to be ship in the mass quantities that trains ship on a daily bases. In spite of how much trains hold in fuel they are much more fuel efficient than using trucks and have a greater cost savings per freight mile than trunks when it comes to shipping the largest of largest amounts of freight long distance. The only other mode of transportation that beats the cost of rail shipping is river barge. Just think about it for a moment. Due to the limitations of road weight allowed per mile on federal hyways in both the us and Canada a single truck is limited on its payload as it is shipped at an average of 450, 500 or so miles with one driver, while a train can ship 80 times more payload with greater weight allowance to a distance greater than 1,200 miles without needed to refuel. Without trains goods will cost several times greater than what they are now.

As a kid in thr 60s, we used to pull r old Buicks, Olds, etc onto abandoned tracks near our house. Once u let some air out of the tires & got car positioned on tracks, the car would travel down the tracks with trans in "D" & no accelerator - no need to steer. We'd sit on hood & trunk & cruise the rails.

20 years ago I worked a job in Albany, NY. Some guy had built about a quarter of his garage on Williams Comm. Co. property. Since it wasn't used for years, no one said anything until we went to build on it. NY state said he could keep it since no one said anything in the allotted time. Something about squatter's rights under adverse possession.

Good news. As a train lover here in Australia I'd love to see CP re-open this line. It would hsve to serve a worthwhile purpose for freight or passengers but the bottom line is rail should be encouraged as opposed to road traffic. CP, get it done!

Good its not their property its CP Rail's

I’m sure the railroad would permit the community garden so long as the train can pass safely without posing a risk to anyone. Rights-of-way we’re given wide berths in order to accommodate variations possibly needed for more favorable conditions in which to lay track, but once it’s already built, the RR is not in the business of sticking it to anyone.

Abandoning railways of the past breaks my heart as I have loved steam trains in my time. It was a better America back then.

Just roll a train down there smashing everything that gets in its way. The community garden, lawn chairs, bbq grills, club houses. Everything will be taken care of by the train and everything will be all cleared out of there then. Problem solved.

TRains should (always) have priority.

Sounds like the pot plants in their garden got to stay after all.

Why couldn't they utilize it some how. Maybe not today but what happens in 20-30 years

If they owned the line at the time, they had every right to have people move stuff away from the tracks. It is their line after all.

Trespass is against the law!

To everyone just watching this, Aug 2017, this video is now 3 years old. As to why its popping up in feeds now, I'm not sure. This stretch of track and land has long since been sold to the City of Vancouver, more info can be found here: vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/arbutus-greenway.aspx

*Guess thats what happens when ya Squat on others land... Move it or Loose it!*

The city wouldn't pay a fair price to the railroad for the property so they decided to take it back, fully. Blame Gregor Robertson.

That Railroad has been removed for ever…

Cool that a good thing it time that you get the songs of trains moving through your neighborhood I Love Trains I hope you learn to love me as much as me

In the U.S., I'm pretty sure one can not claim "adverse possession" against railroads or other chartered public utilities. Probably the same in Canada, since both countries share the same common law roots.

Back in the Sixties I'd walk from my house at 15th and Arbutus all the way to downtown Vancouver and back using the rail corridor, even crossing False Creek on the rail trestle.

Always stay clear in case military trains have to use them.

Just looking at the sleepers tell me they will have to rebuild the whole track.

até no Canadá tem 🚆 trilhos desativados, aqui em Alegrete rs tá bem assim, o vídeo aí tá bem parecido como aqui com matos e plantações na viação férrea.

Love seeing old rails come back to life!! :)

yeah CP Rail is breaking down on people on their land they're going all over telling people they need to be 50 feet away from the track we have the same problem at my work we got move stuff to get away from the track I guess it's their property even though they don't use it got to get off it

That's nice out there. Those people do not want a goofy train rolling by. It will disturb them. Find another place to put your tracks.

Looking forward to seeing the train again

3 years ago, old news but youtube wanted me to watch it.

You can't run a Locomotive over those rails, the ties are all rotted out! You are going to need to replace all that old rusted rail and bolts. You need to remove all that brush Try and use those rails and your Locomotive will be on the ground!

so did they reactivate the line? a little follow up?

CP gave warning to vacant the area with a certain time limit. After that CP could just run through it or spray it with defoliant to clear the track. Also it's CP track right of away, so they are on PRIVATE land.

I would like to be on that train!!

Is an update available? Was the line reactivated?

That would have been an automatic no no. If the tracks were never pulled up, no way would I take residence there to begin with.

Quite right, too.

Any updates on this reactivation?

I don't blame people for makingood use of the land withe community garden. Enjoy it while you can. They know it can easily be removed.

CP ripped up some of the gardens. The city bought the tracks in 2015 and CP then ripped up the tracks. It's now a greenway.

Was it ever re-activated?

Has there been any update on when the line will be back in service?

REACTIVE THE LINE :D

i wouldn't be too concerned about the garden, when temperatures drop below freezing, it will be gone, turned into a morass of brown foliage. Sometimes when people get used to being given a few feet to use temporarily, that foot grows into miles, along with having the "temporary use of" evolves to "Its our land, our garden" followed by protests making CP look like Stalinists. We live in an entitlement society, hence "we want it, we deserve it, it's ours) I let a friend use one of my vehicles when his were repossessed, I have no idea where he is or the condition of the car. One of my best friends did the same thing, allowed his daughter and son-in-law to use his Mercedes SUV over the summer. Now he needs it back so he can go to and from his teaching position, with university staring in a week; he's told "We put a lot of money into it, (a new tire, as well as new sparkplugs, and a windshield that their insurance paid for) so it should be ours. He hates to take his daughter and son-in-law to court but...... You don't mess with railroads, they don't much care what you want. If they had to fight to use the "right of ways" they own, they would never leave the courts building. As well they pay a LOT of taxes whether they are actively using all the owned property or not.

City of Vancouver Canada bout the property for 55 million to turn in to a greenway

Update on the track: CP did not reactivate the line instead they tore it down and built a trail I’m pretty sure

It was nice of them to let people use the land for a while, but I think they should leave it as is. Go in there and trim up the tracks and it will be good. I don’t think there is anything of impedance to the railroad there. So what if there is some gardens near the tracks.

OK, this was 4 years ago, what's the news about the line now in 2018?

Update? Is the track back active since?

Wasn’t the line sold to the city long ago?

Rain road has 25 feet both side of track 50 in all

this track looks better than the ND&W Railway (Maumee and Western) in another video

Any update?

It has been converted into a greenway.

I still need to get my stuff moved out of the way, I've been putting it off.

That's good; an old track coming back to life.

Yes They have the right of it , my father in 1990 have bought a part of an abandoned railroad from the CP that is 60 feets wide on each side by 1.6 km long make a road access with it and buy some land fields on each side that wasn't sold , then sell the road to the township , and sell every land parcels formerly CP from the road to the land owner ( about 40 feet by the width of the land of the owner ) for cheap. Not long before my bought the abandoned railroad, the CP removed the the old rails from the erra , And they forced all those who have build bridge and other construction within the 60 feet to remove all that , and they have inspected all that , no one have asked permission to build or use the railroad to get access to their lands , fortunately it was the only way to get access anyway . Also very large trees was cut down etc ... they was risking big .... they all receive letters by lawyers....

As CP rail has plans on possibility reactivating its Arbutus corridor when they warned property owners on the line to clear the line when they gave a short timeframe to have the line cleared as what if the railway partnered with the city of Vancouver when railway workers along with city workers had the okay to clear the line as what if costs are recouped from the property taxes.

So how did this all turn out? Are they going to reactivate that line?

I do not know what made people think the residents could take over the railroad property.

So basically everything on either side of the tracks will have to be removed; everything within 50 feet on both sides. Wow, that also includes some telephone poles too.

Update as of April 2020?

Community garden? Get out of the way, CP rails always prevail!

Did they restore this line?

How about a follow-up?

I'm not so sure they want to use that track. it looks in pretty rough shape!!!

It's 2012 now ... so what is the result? Did they reopen it ?

so what happened with this route is it now in use?

so this was 3 years ago. Any update?

I thought Canada used the metric system. The reporter said feet 50 on either side of the tracks

Basically dont place your stake in someone else lot! They have the right to run a train with a cow catcher on the front straight through and clear it them selves but they have asked nicely 🤷🏼‍♂️

Why don't they reactivate the track on Vancouver Island and run a passenger train between Victoria and Nanaimo?

So what happened?

Excellent!

"I am Arbutus of CP Rail. You now service us."

What happened to that line finally?

I never understand why (in 2021) American TV News still have reporters with massive microphones?!! Don't any American reporters wear small microphones that clip onto clothing (shirts, blouses etc). It's quite weird for someone from the UK to see this. We stopped having reporters with large microphones years ago (maybe 20 or more).

It's a walking and bike trail now, looks nice

Why would anyone place items and a garden on a railroad that they did not own. No matter if it's active or not. That's trespassing

So was it ever reopened

i am guessen the rail was never put back in serivce and all this was for nothing

They should have made this part a trolly line. This was once part of the interurban railway system.

Track need rail road up keep .

Shouldn’t build over ROW’s. Especially if it’s not abandoned

Long since over but pretty self entitled to take something that’s not yours. The city of Vancouver was pretty ridiculous over the whole thing.

Did they ever reactivate the tracks?

GOOD!!

i need to know... did they open the line for service?