Terms and Safe Reporting Rules

Effective June 6, 2026. RailMonNA is an independent, community-supported railfan information service. By accessing the site, creating an account, or submitting a report, you agree to these Terms and to use the service safely, lawfully, and in good faith. If you do not agree, do not use the service.

Railfan Use Only

RailMonNA is provided for recreational railfan awareness only. It is not an official railroad, dispatching, operational, emergency, safety, regulatory, or employment tool.

Do not use RailMonNA data to make or support rail-related employment decisions, including hiring, firing, promotion, discipline, attendance, scheduling, crew placement, dispatching, qualification, fitness-for-duty, performance evaluation, workplace investigation, compensation, or regulatory-compliance decisions. Employers, railroad managers, dispatchers, contractors, insurers, investigators, and government agencies must use their own authorized and independently verified systems.

Safety Requirements

• Do not trespass on railroad property.
• Do not stand on tracks, bridges, equipment, signals, or restricted right-of-way.
• Do not interfere with railroad employees, emergency responders, or operations.
• Do not use the site while driving or in any way that distracts from safety.
• Do not rely on the map to determine whether tracks are clear, inactive, safe to cross, or safe to approach.
• In an emergency, contact 911 or the appropriate railroad emergency number. Do not report emergencies through RailMonNA.

Accuracy and Availability

Reports may be delayed, incomplete, duplicated, incorrectly located, stale, estimated, or submitted by third parties. Automated passenger feeds, map data, train symbols, directions, locations, and other information may also contain errors or become unavailable without notice.

You are solely responsible for independently verifying information before acting on it. RailMonNA does not guarantee that any train is present, absent, moving, stopped, on time, operating on a particular route, or safe to observe from any location.

Report Quality

• Submit reports you believe are accurate.
• Do not impersonate another user or railroad employee.
• Do not post harassment, spam, or intentionally false sightings.
• Use notes to clarify uncertainty instead of guessing as fact.

By submitting content, you confirm that you have the right to submit it and grant RailMonNA a nonexclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, reproduce, display, moderate, edit for clarity, and distribute that content for operating and improving the service.

Disclaimer of Warranties

To the maximum extent permitted by law, RailMonNA and all information, software, maps, feeds, reports, and services made available through it are provided "as is" and "as available," without warranties of any kind, express or implied. This includes warranties of accuracy, reliability, availability, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and noninfringement.

Assumption of Risk

Railroads, crossings, stations, roadsides, and other observation areas involve serious risks, including moving equipment, vehicle traffic, uneven terrain, weather, restricted property, injury, and death. You voluntarily assume all risks arising from your use of RailMonNA and from any travel, observation, photography, or other activity influenced by information on the service.

Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, RailMonNA, its owner or operator, administrators, volunteers, contributors, data providers, and service providers will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages; loss of data, income, employment, opportunity, or reputation; personal injury; property damage; or other loss arising from or related to the service, its content, third-party data, or reliance on any report.

Where liability cannot be excluded, the total aggregate liability of RailMonNA and the parties listed above will not exceed the greater of the amount you paid RailMonNA during the 12 months before the claim or US $100. Some jurisdictions do not permit certain exclusions or limitations, so portions of this section may not apply to you.

Indemnification

To the extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless RailMonNA, its owner or operator, administrators, volunteers, and service providers from claims, losses, liabilities, damages, and reasonable costs arising from your reports, your misuse of the service, your violation of these Terms, your unlawful conduct, or your infringement of another person's rights.

Third-Party Services

RailMonNA uses or links to independent maps, data feeds, websites, and hosting services. Those services are controlled by their respective providers and may have separate terms and privacy practices. RailMonNA is not responsible for third-party content, availability, security, or accuracy.

Moderation and Service Changes

RailMonNA may review, edit, hide, delete, or preserve reports and may restrict, suspend, or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or harm the service. RailMonNA may modify, suspend, or discontinue any feature or the entire service at any time without guaranteeing continued access or retention.

General Terms

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in effect to the extent permitted by law. A failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. These Terms may be updated as RailMonNA develops; continued use after an updated effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

These Terms are general operational terms and are not a substitute for legal advice. The site operator should have them reviewed by a qualified attorney before a broad public or commercial launch.