(erielack) Fwd: [NSlehighline] A informative article about NJT's photo restrictions...

[KSmollin_@_aol.com]

In a message dated 8/14/2005 4:24:29 PM Central Daylight Time, 
tjh308_@_bellatlantic.net writes:
was found in Sunday's (Aug 14th) Courier News. I thought it was 
written in a matter-of-fact manner and informative in stating the 
facts railfans deal with. Even though it doesn't pertain to the 
Lehigh Line, it is something that everyone has in the back of their 
mind when they go railfanning these days...

To railroad enthusiasts keen on taking pictures of passing trains, a 
proposal by NJ Transit that would regulate that activity is like a 
slap in the face from a friend. The policy would require amateur 
photographers to apply -- and be photographed -- for a permit issued 
by NJ Transit. They would then have to call NJ Transit police 24 
hours before taking their pictures. Some train enthusiasts believe 
the proposed policy would go too far. NJ Transit officials say the 
process is necessary for safety and so they know who is on the 
property. A decision could be made by NJ Transit's Board of Directors 
this fall, said Dan Stessel, spokesman for the state agency. The 
policy is a hot topic in places where railroading enthusiasts meet, 
such as in the Big Little Model Railroad Shop in Somerville, owner 
Jan Kucsma said. "I'd have a problem with a permit," said hobbyist 
Paul Krueger of Warren. "As long as you stay on the public (station) 
platform, you don't need a permit. It's a public right to take 
pictures on public property." Krueger said he's familiar with the 
public safety aspect and follows this rule: Stay on the station 
platform. Not all railroad hobbyists or amateur photographers know 
that, Stessel said. One condition of the permit is that photographers 
have to familiarize themselves with safety rules, he said. "The 
amateur photographer is likely to engage in those behaviors that 
compromise safety -- leaning over the platform as the train is 
coming, using a flash (at an approaching train). Since the primary 
objective is safety, we want to get them familiar with the rules." NJ 
Transit currently requires amateur and commercial photographers to 
obtain a daily permit from the agency's real estate office, he said. 
Media photographers and camera crews are covered by their press 
credentials. The permit idea was proposed by a former Central 
Railroad of New Jersey railroader, Bill Wright of Cranford, who saw 
it as a compromise. But Wright, who also is a director of the New 
Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers, said he's not happy with 
how the agency has interpreted his idea. "I suggested give them a 
permit and that gives NJ Transit a list of people interested in 
transit," said Wright, who serves on NJ Transit's North Jersey 
Advisory Council. "The 24 hours calling ahead is ridiculous. People 
grab a camera and go; they don't plan unless they're coming in from 
Oregon," he said. Wright and others who take an interest in 
railroading say that in some instances, NJ Transit police have gone 
too far, even confronting people taking photos from streets and other 
public places. Dennis Connell, vice president of RailPace magazine 
based in Piscataway, has gone as far as contacting the state attorney 
general last year and the New Jersey chapter of the American Civil 
Liberties Union about the issue. The magazine started a column, 
entitled "Boberwatch," named after NJ Transit's police chief Joseph 
C. Bober, to document instances of photographer harassment. In the 
column, Connell cited instances of NJ Transit police challenging 
amateur photographers taking pictures of NJ Transit trains from 
public property. "Profiling photographers, historians, artists and 
ordinary citizens for photography, based on a hunch that their 
photography is some how terrorism-related, is offensive and illegal," 
Connell said. He also questioned how NJ Transit police intend to 
regulate use of cell phones capable of taking pictures. Connell added 
that a terrorist isn't going to be as obvious as a railroad hobbyist 
carrying a camera bag loaded with equipment. One hobbyist wrote to 
the magazine about an incident in Trenton where he was on a street 
photographing NJ Transit's River Line light rail and was stopped by 
NJ Transit police who asked for identification. The officer conceded 
that he was off NJ Transit property but advised him that he would 
need a permit if he intended to ride the train and take photos. Other 
hobbyists told of being detained, forced by police to delete images 
from digital cameras and asked for identification. That concerns 
Connell because such people could have their names turn up on watch 
lists. Speaking of Bober, Wright said: "My concern as an advisory 
board member is that he'll get NJ Transit sued and they'll lose 
because his rules have no bearing on safety," Wright said. "Someone 
will get hassled and will sue that their civil rights have been 
violated." Stessel said the state attorney general's office has been 
consulted about the proposed permit policy. Wright and Connell 
dismiss the anti-terrorism argument because, in their view, a 
terrorist could turn to volumes of photos of NJ Transit equipment, 
tracks and stations available in books, magazines and on the 
Internet. Both said NJ Transit is alienating a community which has 
long functioned as a "neighborhood watch" for the railroad. Wright 
told of calling NJ Transit after spotting a piece of broken rail in 
Garwood. "When they see something wrong they call up and report it," 
Wright said. "Railfans are well-versed on what's right with the 
railroad." Some clarifications to the policy have been made and 
transmitted to NJ Transit police, Stessel said. "We have no 
jurisdiction off the property -- you can stand in your yard and take 
pictures of our trains. We concede there may have been instances 
where the policy isn't clear and we've sought to remedy that. It's 
been communicated to our police." Central Jersey hobbyists who've 
been approached by NJ Transit police say they've been treated with 
courtesy. "I've been politely asked what I'm doing and I've explained 
I'm taking pictures of engines and cars," said George J. Schuler of 
Manville. "They were satisfied with my response and left." Schuler 
says the issue of security must be balanced with a person's 
constitutional rights. 
"If a law came down that said I had to get a permit, I wouldn't waste 
my time getting one, when I can take pictures from the side of the 
road. Taking pictures is something that happens spontaneously." New 
York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which includes the 
city's subway system, has abandoned two planned photo bans, Connell 
said. Stessel noted, however, that the PATH line, operated by the 
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, has had a photo ban in 
place since 1986. "The cops have this lockdown mentality," Wright 
said. "No one wants the average person wandering around a shop or 
train yard, but if they stand on the station platform, it's no harm 
to anyone."






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