Right-of-way (transportation)
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Look up right of way in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
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A right-of-way is a strip of land that is granted, through an easement or other mechanism, for transportation purposes, such as for a trail, driveway, rail line or highway.[1] A right-of-way is reserved for the purposes of maintenance or expansion of existing services with the right-of-way. In the case of an easement, it may revert to its original owners if the facility is abandoned.
In the United States, railroad rights-of-way are considered private property by the respective railroad owners and by applicable state laws. Most U.S. railroads employ their own police forces, who can arrest and prosecute trespassers found on their rights-of-way. Some railroad rights-of-way include recreational rail trails.
In the United Kingdom, railway companies received the right to resume land for a right-of-way by a private act of Parliament.
Sometimes, in residential areas, building setbacks are based on a street right-of-way, as opposed to the front property line.
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[edit] Uses other than rail transport
Railroad rights-of-way need not exclusively be for railroad tracks and related equipment. Easements are frequently given to permit the laying of communication cables (such as optical fiber) or natural gas pipelines, or to run electric power transmission lines overhead.
[edit] Ireland
In Ireland, pedestrian rights of way to churches, known as mass paths, have existed for centuries. In other cases, the modern law is unclear; on the one hand, Victorian era laws on easements protect a property owner's rights, amplified by the 1937 constitution, which stipulate that a right of way has to be specifically dedicated to public use.[2] Opposing these, those claiming general rights of way hark back to an anti-landed gentry position that has endured since the Land War of the 1880s. Rights of way can be asserted by Adverse possession, but proving continuous use can be difficult. A 2010 case concerning claims over the Lissadell House estate will probably clarify the law or create the climate for reforms by statute.[3]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Henry Campbell Black, A law dictionary containing definitions of the terms and phrases of American and English jurisprudence, ancient and modern: and including the principal terms of international, constitutional, ecclesiastical, and commercial law, and medical jurisprudence, with a collection of legal maxims ... "Right-of-way"(West Publishing Co., 1910), pg. 1040 http://books.google.com/books?id=R2c8AAAAIAAJ&vq=right+of+way&source=gbs_navlinks_s
- ^ The constitution guarantees the "life, person, good name and property rights of every citizen" (Article 40.3)
- ^ Lissadell owners' case, reported Jan 2010; and a group opposed to the current laws.
