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Any Tildesian railfans?
After the Reddit exodus, I was really glad this community was so open and welcoming, and it warms my heart to have something akin to the original forum days of Web 1. Some of my favourite subs were rail related - London Underground, Trains, Transit Diagrams - so I figured I’d ask: Are there any other railfans among the Tildes?
I personally love all kinds of trains, but gravitate most to inner-city rapid transit. Think your Subways, Metros, Ls, the MRTs of the world. I also do a lot of train spotting, looking for interesting rolling stock and logging their NVR numbers.
What about you? Are you a fellow trainthusiast or did you never pay mind to rail traffic?
Moderator of r/LondonUnderground and r/tunnelbana checking in. Hello! And welcome to Tildes.
Funny to see you here! I’m the guy that did those human designs for all the lines and services. Seen anything interesting on the tube lately?
And the Mornington Crescent board game due to sleep deprivation?! I always feel so dirty creeping people's Reddit profiles. You should definitely share some of your creative endeavours here some time.
I was surprised how popular the post about TfL's new safety poster campaign did.
Wait, someone made a Mornington Crescent board game?
I did! https://rmv.fyi/mornington-crescent
Zones 1 and 2 - this appears to be a faithful interpretation of Lord Grosvenor’s rules. Quite beautiful 😍
The very same! I even have a remastered version on my website now if you wanna download it - https://rmv.fyi/mornington-crescent
Haha, I can see why, that train looks adorable! A bit like a TFW Class 150 without the weird nose, really like the look. That special Evangelion wrap looks badass!
I would call myself a “rail fan” instead of a “railfan” as I am not part of any community online, but I come from a city with a very poor transit system and I just returned home from London. The Underground is really a work of art. I didn’t realize there were online communities about this, although I suppose it’s obvious in retrospect. I’m excited to see what comes out of this post.
I was subbed to /r/trains and am an avid player of Railway Empire 2 and other railroad management games. I also greatly enjoy getting stopped at a train (so long as I can see it). I like to roll the window down and just enjoy the sounds because I find them to be very relaxing.
And that's about the extent of it I guess. I'm not so into them that I could identify a specific model or anything though. I just think they're neat.
Very much so! When I lived in Japan ~10 years ago (wow, does it not feel like that much time has passed), I really liked riding the trains there, especially since it was a lot more freeing for a teenager who was too young to drive. The part of the US I currently live in doesn't have any trains or subways, but if I ever move back to the mainland, it's a dream of mine to one day do a trans-continental trip through Amtrak.
Not a rail fan in the strictest sense. But I did work on the software development side of the organization/company (privatized in the 90s but all stocks are government owned) that owns and maintains the rail network in my country. So for a few years I was involved in the software that controls the signs, switches, schedule, etc. Which did give me a new appreciation for how rail networks work and how well actually works around here.
To echo what some of the others here are saying, I'm no rail fan but I used to work for a railroad (I left, they are actually pretty cheap and treat non union workers not that well) if that counts.
I find the history of trains to be a really fascinating part of American history*, and I particularly like getting to see restored old steam engines. If anyone can recommend good online videos or other resources, good books, or especially good train museums -- please do!