Rail contractor covers manhole, and Vermont town takes case all the way to state Supreme Court

A Vermont town sued a railroad contractor for covering a manhole, and the case went as deep into the judicial system as it could go.

However, in the end the Vermont State Supreme Court ruled in favor of the contractor. It all started back in October 2018, when the town of Rutland sued RA Filskov & Sons Inc. for covering up a sewer manhole with aggregate while constructing a rail spur. The town argued it could no longer access the sewer system for repairs, and claimed vibrations from rail traffic put the infrastructure at an increased risk.

The Vermont Supreme Court said the trial court concluded there was insufficient evidence for a jury to determine that future damage would likely occur as a result of rail traffic, and that the town’s evidence of damages relied on the testimony of an engineer.

The three-justice panel also said a jury would have to speculate in order to favor the town for any damages.

“Even if the jury were to credit all of the town’s expert’s opinions and discredit any countervailing evidence, it could not conclude without speculation that the covered manhole would probably result in damage to the specific system. The jury could a best conclude that covering the manhole more likely than not increased the potential for system failure by some unknown degree. The trial court correctly concluded there was no triable issue of fact as to damages,” the Vermont Supreme Court said.

Read more articles on track construction.