§ 24 — Change of route, grade or terminus; abandonment of line or portion thereof

§ 24. Change of route, grade or terminus; abandonment of line or\nportion thereof. Every railroad corporation, except elevated railroad\ncorporations, may, by a vote of two-thirds of all its directors, alter\nor change the route or any part of the route of its road or its termini,\nor locate such route, or any part thereof, or its termini, in a county\nadjoining any county named in its certificate of incorporation, if it\nshall appear to them that the line can be improved thereby, upon making\nand filing in the clerk's office of the proper county a survey, map and\ncertificate of such alteration or change. If the same is made after the\ncorporation has commenced grading the original route, compensation shall\nbe made to all persons for injury done by such grading to any lands\ndonated to the corporation. But neither terminus can be changed, under\nthis section, to any other county than one adjoining that in which it\nwas previously located; nor can the route or terminus of any railroad be\nso changed in any town, county or municipal corporation, which has\nissued bonds and taken any stock or bonds in aid of the construction of\nsuch railroad, without the written consent of a majority of taxpayers\nappearing upon the last assessment-roll of such town, county or\nmunicipal corporation, unless such terminus, after the change, will\nremain in the same village or city as theretofore. No alteration of the\nroute of any railroad after its construction shall be made, or new line\nor route of road laid out or established, as provided in this section,\nin any city or village, unless approved by a vote of two-thirds of the\ncommon council of the city or trustees of the village. Any railroad\ncorporation may, by a vote of its directors, change the grade of any\npart of its road, except that in the city of Buffalo such change must\nconform to the general plan heretofore adopted and filed by the grade\ncrossing commissioners of said city, or any modification thereof, within\nthe territory covered by said general plan, in such manner as it may\ndeem necessary to avoid accidents and facilitate the use of such road;\nand it may by such vote alter the grade of its road, for such distance\nand in such manner as it may deem necessary, on each or either side of\nthe place where the grade of its road has been changed by direction of\nthe commissioner of transportation, at any point where its road crosses\nany canal or canal feeder, except that in the city of Buffalo such\nchange must conform to the general plan heretofore adopted and filed by\nthe grade crossing commissioners of said city, or any modification\nthereof, within the territory covered by said general plan. The\ncommissioner of transportation shall have a general and supervisory\npower over that part of any railroad which passes over, or approaches\nwithin ten rods of any canal or canal feeder belonging to the state so\nfar as may be necessary to preserve the free and perfect use of such\ncanals or feeders, or to make any repairs, improvements or alterations\nin the same. Any railroad corporation whose tracks cross any of the\ncanals of the state, and the grade of which may be raised by direction\nof the commissioner of transportation, with the assent of such\ncommissioner, may lay out a new line of road to cross such canal at a\nmore favorable grade, and may extend such new line and connect the same\nwith any other line of road owned by such corporation upon making and\nfiling in the clerk's office of the proper county a survey, map and\ncertificate of such new or altered line. Notwithstanding the foregoing\nprovisions of this section or of any other provision of law, any\nrailroad corporation may by a vote of two-thirds of all its directors,\nor by action of its receiver or trustee if in receivership,\nreorganization or bankruptcy, taken with the permission of the court\nhaving jurisdiction, abandon all or any portion of its line or lines, or\nthe operation thereof, provided, however, that the commissioner of\ntransportation has determined that such abandonment is in the public\ninterest.\n