CHAPTER 14. ALTERING ROUTES OF RAILROADS

IC 8-3-14
    Chapter 14. Altering Routes of Railroads

IC 8-3-14-1
Abandonment or relocation; damages
    Sec. 1. If, at any time after the location of the line of any railroadchartered by this state, and the filing of the map thereof, it shallappear to the directors of such company that the line thereof isnecessarily dangerous, inconvenient, or expensive to operate, byreason of unavoidable causes, grades, or serious errors in location,such directors may make local alteration of the line, and cause a newmap to be filed in the office where the map showing the first locationis filed, and may thereupon take possession of the lands embraced insuch new location which may be necessary for the construction andmaintenance of such road on such altered line, either by agreementof the owner or by such proceedings as are authorized by the charterof such company, and may use such new line in place of the one forwhich it is substituted; but nothing in this chapter shall be soconstrued as to confer upon such railroad company any power tolocate its road on any route which would not have been authorized byits charter; and nothing in this chapter contained shall authorize suchcompany to make a location of its track within any city without theconsent of the common council of such city, nor to change its roadso as to avoid any point named in its charter. And any change somade by any railroad company shall subject said railroad companyto the payment of all damages that may be sustained by any person,persons, or corporation on account of such change; provided, that ifany railroad company change or relocate any part of its track for adistance of one (1) mile or more, thereby abandoning any part of itstrack or road as previously located, constructed, and operated, for adistance of one (1) mile or more, such railroad company shall,previous to such change, relocation, or abandoning, pay to the owneror owners of any real estate lying upon, along or near the route orline of said road from which such track is proposed to be taken alldamages which may accrue to such owner or owners on account ofsuch removal; such damages shall be assessed in the same manner aslands taken for railroad purposes in pursuance of the statute in forceon April 23, 1903, in this state; and said damages, when so assessed,shall be paid to the owner or owners of said lands, or paid into theoffice of the clerk of the county in which said lands are located, forthe use of said owner or owners, previous to the relocation orabandonment of said track; provided, further, that in all cases whereany railroad company has made, before or after April 23, 1903, anysuch alterations as are provided for in this chapter, the board ofcounty commissioners of the county in which such alterations aremade may locate a public highway on the old line or route of suchrailroad for which such new line is substituted by the sameproceedings and on the same terms as public highways are on or afterApril 23, 1903, located.
(Formerly: Acts 1865(ss), c.23, s.1; Acts 1903, c.121, s.1; Acts 1907,

c.211, s.1.) As amended by P.L.62-1984, SEC.30.