You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
My garden backs onto a railway line and there is a pretty big sycamore growing right by the fence on the Railtrack side. It's now at the point where the sap from the leaves is causing dis-colouration of the stonework and the height and spread is blocking a significant amount of light.
Where do I stand in asking Railtrack to reduce the height and spread, it also over hangs the garden quite a bit too. Alternatively, can I get someone to reduce it for me?
Alternatively, can I get someone to reduce it for me?
They would be trespassing so no (unless they could do all the work from your side of course).
Speaking to Railtrack would be my first port of call.
You can take off anything overhanging, but yes speak to them first as they may do it for you. Railway lines and leaves generally not a good mix anyway.
Railtrack are very precious about people going onto their land. Might be even more of an issue if it is an embankment. You really need to speak to them. That said I'd be happy enough to cut any overhang unless it seriously unbalanced the tree
TBH sycamores are a bit of a weed tree so I suspect they'll be happy to remove it
https://www.networkrail.co.uk/communities/living-by-the-railway/vegetation/vegetation-maintenance
Railtrack has been extinct for a while. The 'contact us' box on that page might be a decent starting point, they should be able to point you in the right direction if they can't get things logged (sorry) and moving themselves.
Hire / buy / borrow an extending silky pole saw.. cut off branches from the safety if the ground.
As long as the branches won't be falling into the track...
Railtrack are very precious about people going onto their land
Scotrail in my case, but for good reason, you don't want folk wandering around when many tonnes of passenger/freight train is rattling by at the speeds they do.
TBH sycamores are a bit of a weed tree so I suspect they’ll be happy to remove it
This, tell them you've seen it swaying in the wind, and that if you cut your side you worry about imbalance, they won't be long in getting rid, the penalties imposed on contractors for closed lines will see them do it sharpish.
Sycamore is a coppice tree so even if it was taken to ground level it will come back eventually.
Anything you cut off that is over hanging your property does in theory still belong to RT so you could tell them to come and collect it or just chuck it back over the fence but not across the rail lines obvs.
Network Rail not RailTrack
Definitely contact the rail operator. Apart from the safety trespass / issues of doing a DIY job, they are quite heavy handed with trackside trees and sycamores are one of the species that produces the "wrong type of leaves", which reduce traction and interfere with the tracking system, so there a fair chance they would remove it.
Thanks for the rapid replies!
I'll write to them mentioning swaying, proximity to line, leaves and imbalance if I reduce my side.
Don't bother the train operator, they'll politely ignore you. You want the infrastructure company - that's Network Rail, and that includes Scotland. ScotRail are just a train operating company and just run trains, it's still Network Rail infrastructure up there.
Trespassing to interfere with vegetation management won't be very well received. Similarly if you were to lop off a load of branches on your side then say this winter a storm fells the tree onto the running lines causing a serious incident I wouldn't want to be you. Go through the right channels and they will sort it for you, they do this all the time. At least it's not Japanese knotweed.
ScotRail are just a train operating company and just run trains, it’s still Network Rail infrastructure up there.
Just an example, I actually wouldn't contact network rail either, I'd call QTS as it's them that have the responsibility locally for this.
At least it’s not Japanese knotweed.
Ha! We had that on the embankment too. Called the necessary bodies and it was removed over a 2 year treatment. Been knotweed free for about 10 years now.
QTS? I'll Google it. 🙂