Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with train

Where can I listen to Japanese train station melodies?

avocet — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:38:16 -0800

Where can I listen to Japanese train and bus station melodies and onboard announcements, preferably without installing RealPlayer? My previous go-to archive is 404ing. My Japanese is mediocre but good enough to help me navigate sites.

Hope me, Mr. Conductor!

hincandenza — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:28:55 -0800

Looking for good train sim software/railroad creation games... I know, I know- you'd think that a train simulator would be the most boring thing in the world- I mean, at least with flight simulators you can bank and fly all over the place, but a train simulator?! Meh!

However, I've developed something of a fascination with railroads lately, and think it'd be fun to find a good train simulator/railroad simulator. I've been to www.train-sim.com but the number of options are kind of confusing. What I'm looking for is a happy user's review of the best one to get as I figure among the teeming masses of MeFites there must be a few diehard train simulator afficionados to guide me. I'm seeking a combination sim and railroad creation game, and would like to:

Be able to freely lay out my own fictitious tracks and railroad lines anywhere in the world, either following well-known routes or inventing new ones- mostly in central Europe
Have a wide variety of train types (from early 20th century to modern high-speed rail)
A reasonably active user community of free and some pay add-ons and models (those appear to be found at train-sim.com, similar to flight-sim.com)
First-person driving and the ability to kind of "explore" my model railroad in-game, much like you'd explore something like this
Relatively recent would be good, since the graphics will at least be passable
Less important but desirable: be able to also have a "SimTrain" like quality of creating these fake railroads and crafting timetables and even budgets (provided there's still an unlimited money option)

There seem to be a number of options, the most recent and promising including "Trainz Simulator" and "Rail Works" (which may or may not be the same as Rail Simulator). I'd be running this either natively in Mac OS X 10.6, a VM Windows Vista/Windows 7, or rebooting to bootcamped Vista/Windows 7 as necessary. So platform shouldn't be critical, but native Mac would obviously be the best if unlikely option.

The right book for a train ride

timory — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 01:07:43 -0800

What are good books to read on a train? This holiday, for the first time, I'll be taking the train home instead of flying. I'm relishing the thought of being able to read while traveling (airplanes make me queasy), and I'm looking forward to the forced downtime from the internet and other things that distract me from reading even a fraction of what I used to read.

The journey is about 8 hours long, 16 round trip. It seems the perfect amount to read a smaller novel each way, or a longer one I could split half and half on each leg.

Please give me your recommendations. I'm looking for something more literary (not necessarily part of "the canon," but definitely nothing pulpy or best-sellery), and engaging enough to hold my attention for 8 hours straight. I want the perfect thing to read while staring out into snowy Pennsylvania and listening to the tracks chug by. I think the Mountain Goats are the best music to listen to on these long journeys alone, but I want the literary equivalent of that.

Here is a sparse sampling of the kinds of books I'm looking for:
Calvino, If on a Winter's Night a Traveler
Gaarder, The Solitaire Mystery
Updike, Rabbit, Run
Murakami, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World

I'm sensing a theme... maybe the theme of journeys, whether fantastical or mundane, seems to fit the mold for me here.

Recommendations for (simpler) novellas in Russian or Spanish are also welcome, because I could very much stand to brush up on those languages. Bonus points for magically guessing and suggesting books I already own but haven't yet read. Thank you!

train food

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:37:31 -0800

Train ride from Portland to Chicago. In coach. I don't want to buy food on the train. What should my food strategy be? Limitations:
1. Food should be vegetarian (no beef jerky!).
2. As far as I know, there are no microwaves or refrigerators that I can use.
3. Food should be sufficient to sustain me for the entirety of the 46 hour train ride
4. I won't have access to a kitchen or cooking supplies while in Portland.
5. I would like some variety (I've tried just doing fruits&nuts on previous long journeys [though not this long] and it got boring fast.

What delicious things can I bring with me to sustain myself for the entire 46 hour journey?

How do you get from Houston to Dallas?

bluefly — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:57:13 -0800

Is there a cheap way to get from Houston to Dallas without renting a car? I'll be in Houston for a week over New Year's, and I'd like to visit Dallas for a couple days. Is there a bus or a train? Airplane tickets are ~$200 with tax, which is a little pricey for the sort of jaunt I was imagining. Thanks.

Train travel bargains in the UK

feelinglistless — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 10:08:18 -0800

I'm hoping to go on a day trip by train in the UK next week. I'm not too choosy about my destination but I am about the price. Is there a website where I can enter the amount I'm willing to pay and it will list destinations that are available at that price and at what times?

BUtton Button Who's Got The Button

The Whelk — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 08:14:18 -0800

Shibboleth-Filter: I saw a man on the NYC subway wearing a strange button. A green san-serif "L" on a white background with a big red "No" strike-through symbol. Googlefu is failing me. What was he for or against anyway?

Choo choo?

cestmoi15 — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 08:16:39 -0800

Toy train filter: I know not of toy trains, but would like to buy a set for a Christmas gift. Specifics inside. Mr. Cestmoi's favorite Christmas as a kid was getting a toy train set. I'd like to recreate that for him this year (his parents got rid of the one he had as a kid so that's not an option), so this is a surprise (i.e. I don't want to give away what he's getting so I can't ask too many questions.)

What I've gotten out of him so far is that he likes the postwar lionel ones, and the New York line. I don't have a large budget for this, so my current thought is that I'd like to get him a basic track and a train or two (so it will go around the tree), and then he can add on more things later.

Is this a reasonable plan? It looks like they are both O tracks so I assume this will work? Do I need anything other than just the tracks and train (there seems to be a million different controlers on eBay and I'm totally lost)?

I'm totally new to this and lost, assume I know nothing.

Also, is there anywhere you recommend shopping? I'm in the NYC metro area, I know there are a few hobby stores in mindtown, online options welcome too.

Bronx to Boston: What's the fastest way?

archofatlas — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:10:54 -0800

My question is a simple transportation one - I'll be in the Bronx for an interview near the Albert Einstein College of Medicine on a Tuesday. I'll probably be done around 2 or 3, but then would like to get down to Boston by dinnertime (7 or so). Can anyone suggest to me the quickest way to get there? I'm not sure if I should aim for a plane, or a train, and would love to hear if anyone has suggestions... cost is less of an object, getting down there is the higher priority.

CTA advertisement: "Less Than Perfect"

phunniemee — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:57:30 -0800

[Chicago Filter] Does anyone know anything about the "Less Than Perfect" ads running on the CTA? I would love to know the origin of the ads that have been showing up on the trains recently. They're all black with plain text, and say things like:

"The guy who forgot to shower this morning. Again."
"The public-display-of-affection-couple."
"The guy who sings along to his iPod. Poorly."
"The woman who gives her shopping bags their own seat."

And they have a little thing that says "Less Than Perfect:" in the upper left-hand corner.

Anyone know what this might be about? There's nothing else on the signs, and they're not (overtly) advertising anything. Google only returns results for that sitcom from a few years ago.

My boyfriend thinks this is the CTA trying to be hip, but I say the CTA is too broke to be edgy where someone else could pay for advertising, but he thinks that there aren't enough paying advertisers so the CTA is just filling the space. I wanna know!

quiet beachy birthday romance

pearl228 — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:41:49 -0800

Awesome, romantic getaway in proximity to nyc? Secluded, autumn beach spot preferred... So, I'm looking to take my man on a sweet trip outside of the city for his birthday this weekend. I can rent a car, or we can take a train then rent a car. I was thinking Montauk, which remains a possibility, but would prefer something a little more unexpected if I can figure it out.

Does anyone have any specific suggestions in terms of towns, transport, lodging, and things to do when we're not taking long walks on the beach..?

Thanks in advance!!

from venice to lyon

swimmingly — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:13:33 -0800

Recommend somewhere in between Venice and Lyon to spend 3-4 days this December? Winter break travels:

My sister and I (two college-age girls) were originally thinking of taking an overnight train to Geneva from Venice since Venice-Geneva-Lyon seems like a pretty straightforward route looking at the map. Also, we thought that taking the cable car up Mont Blanc would be nice.

Problem is, bahn.de's Geneva-bound night trains currently appear to transit through Innsbruck and Zurich, which seems like an unnecessarily long detour with not much time for sleep. Is there any awesome place in between Venice and Lyon that doesn't have that much of a detour by train? Or should we just suck it up and go to Geneva anyway?

The Venice and Lyon bits are fixed, unfortunately or not.

Prior to this, we will have visited Rome and Florence. We'd like to visit somewhere in Switzerland, but it seems like every train will go through Zurich. Should we just do Zurich then? Another possible option I've considered is Milan but it doesn't seem very interesting, from what others have said.

Thanks!

Audio of old departing train announcements?

Mo Nickels — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 07:17:39 -0800

Where online can I find historic audio of train conductors or platform announcers calling out the coming stops on a train and then saying "all aboard"? This past weekend I was at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento. In one of the exhibits they had what sounded liked genuine old-time announcements of a train's coming stops, something like (made-up cities) "San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Los Angeleez, all aboard!"

I'm looking for as many recordings of such announcements as can be found online. I prefer the ones that call out the stops and then bid the passengers to board. If you remember Mel Blanc's "Anaheim, Azusa, and Cu-ca-monga!" then that's exactly what I'm looking for, only genuine and longer. I've googled like mad but only come up with some very modern announcements about security or prerecorded subway/metro announcements.

How to get from Toronto to Brussels (and what to do with a 4-year-old once there)?

fsmontenegro — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:22:58 -0800

Hi. Two questions related to an upcoming family trip - from Toronto to Brussels: - cost-effective (but not too tiring) ways to get from Toronto to Brussels? Non-stop flight? Connect elsewhere (London, Paris, Frankfurt, ...)? Fly into large hub (Paris, Frankfurt, ...) and book secondary flight or train? - things to do in Brussels with a 4-year-old?

What is this (possibly train-related) device?

humpy — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:59:31 -0800

I saw this thing on a recent trip to a train museum - does anyone know what it is? On a recent trip to the Rail Transport Museum I spotted this device in one of the older passenger carriages. I suppose I should have noted exactly *which* of the carriages it was, but anyway! As I recall, it was in a Pullman car, which was a sleeper. These carriages are all renovated/restored to varying degrees. As my daughter and I moved to the end section of the carriage, I spied this device on the wall. It kind of looked like a small light. I guess it was the size of my fist. If you look closely at the pic, you can see that it has a wire? cable? coming from the bottom of the device, into a drilled hole in the wall.
I asked the guide what it could possibly be. He had no idea! The device was mounted next to some cupboards that were "flush" with the wall. I suggested opening the cupboard door nearest the device, and seeing where the cable went to. After some difficulty the guide and I did manage to get the door open (he was a pretty cool guide, most museum guides would probably have told me to keep my hands off!), but of course the path of the wire was not visible (it must have gone off to the left of the cupboard).
Here is a closer look at the device. You can see it says "Call Dealer When Red". As you can see, it is red!
These carriages are pretty much stationary, but they are powered (the lights do go on and off, my daughter was playing with some of the light switches and they work as they would have when the carriage was in service), and they do move from time to time, and are even taken out of the museum, and members of the public allowed to ride in them (whilst being hauled by an engine). So even though they are museum displays they are expected to get (very limited) use in the real world.
What in the hell is this thing? Has anyone ever seen anything like it before?

Park and Ride in From PA to DC

mulkey — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 09:48:32 -0800

Help me figure out a Park and Ride scenario during rush hour PA -> DC. I'm trying to figure out the best way to minimize driving between Harrisburg, PA and Washington DC during evening rush hour on a Friday afternoon. I have a car, but I'm headed to downtown DC and it would be far better/cheaper/happier if I can park and use public transit.

Both Greyhound and Amtrak from Harrisburg to DC are four hours (ouch) and Amtrak conveniently takes me through Philadelphia (huh?). So I'm looking at Marc trains, which would be a little more driving, but it looks like there are park and ride options.

But where do I go? Looks like the closest places to me are: Monocacy on the Brunswick line and West Baltimore on the Penn Line. Maybe Penn Station on the Penn Line as well (Actually Hunt Mills, Timonium and Owing Mills are closer but there's no park and ride).

But I'm wondering if it's better to go to Monocacy because there might be less traffic in getting there (avoiding Baltimore entirely) but am I wrong? What would you do?

Presumably since I'd be getting there around the evening rush hour I wouldn't have a problem finding a park and ride parking space right??? Right?

Any other ideas/suggestions that might work? I've heard there are faster buses between DC and Harrisburg but I have no idea where they might be found.

Ontario Northland Rail

hylaride — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 09:10:44 -0800

I've been thinking of taking a trip on the Ontario Northland Railway from Toronto to Moosonee on the foot of James Bay. Help me plan. I've been interested in taking this train trip up all Summer and I'll finally have the chance at the end of September. I know the train trip of this government owned railroad is a bit rough as the tracks are poorly maintained, but that's part of the allure. That and the fact it and flying are the only way to get to tiny Moosonee.

Can anyone comment on the experience? Did they have to book someplace to stay in Moosonee ahead of time or can I just get off and walk in somewhere (the place is very small)? Is camping possible? What are some of the fun things to do? Should I bring my own meals on the train or are the meals provided satisfactory?

Tips for a train trip across the West.

the jam — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 21:00:53 -0800

In September, I've got 10 days to see everything I can see from Minneapolis to Portland, OR along the route of Amtrak's Empire Builder. Know anything about these places? I'm looking for some Metafilter reconnaissance about my route. My vague plans so far:

Camping at the Minnesota State Fair

Camping in Glacier National Park, being eaten by bears

Another yet-to-be-determined stopover in Idaho or Washington

Powell's Books, Stumptown Coffee in Portland

That's all I have so far. While I'm a fan of winging it, I'd still appreciate any suggestions of things to see, hikes to take, sites to camp, friendly coffee shops and bars in the cities, or anything you can throw at me, really -- this is my first time visiting this part of the country.

Have you used the Canrailpass?

skwt — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 21:36:46 -0800

Have you used the Canrailpass? Or traveled across Canada in a similar way, by train or bus? I'm thinking about doing a last-minute 3 or 4-week Canrailpass trip around Canada. Anyone have any pointers/stories?

In particular:

1. I'd like to travel through the northern provinces if possible. Does the Canrailpass cover that? I'm finding it hard to find coverage. 'Anywhere VIA Rail goes', it says, but I don't know where that is.

2. I'd like to zig-zag all around, and it's not like I know which towns to stop in, other than a few of the major cities. How do I decide where to book my destinations, such as my first one out of Toronto? Has anyone done this? Can anyone offer an example itinerary? Even a few stops would be useful. Basically I want to cover as much of the country as possible in let's say 30 days. How do I even begin to plan this.

3. I guess I'll be staying in hostels mostly, when I'm not sleeping on the train. By the way, if you've used the Canrailpass, is it practical to sleep in 'Comfort class' (the lowest/worst class)?

4. Doing this all last-minute, will I have problems with everything being booked?

And whatever else you think I should know...

Thanks very much.

Cheapest way from Tokyo to Kumamoto?

0bvious — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 03:09:56 -0800

Last minute Japan travel: after making an error with timing I need to arrange one-way travel from Tokyo to Kumamoto quite quickly. What are the cheapest options? I have looked into flights and trains (for the 17th of August) and both seem expensive (about £200-£250 a ticket). I am in the UK at the moment. Would it be worth waiting until we arrive in Japan? Perhaps trying to get last minute flights at the airport? Information on this site suggests cheap train travel, but has no links to buy: frommers.com

Air travel is looking pricey: farecompare.com or skyscanner.net

Is it possible to book overnight traisn from the UK? what re the other cheap-cheap train options?

Any help or advice you have would be much appreciated

Lake District via train

swimmingly — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:28:09 -0800

Will be taking train from Edinburgh to the Lake District and staying there one night before I take another train to London. Which part of the Lakes should I visit (and how), that will provide maximum convenience and gorgeousness? In other words, I am looking for information on which part of the Lake District will be the most convenient to get in and out of by train, and will be the most rewarding if I can spend only one day and one night there. I will probably be booking a B&B instead of camping, and I cannot drive. Will be carrying one rather cumbersome luggage bag so I'd rather not have to take many buses.

I'm not asking people to do my research for me -- I have Googled and wiki-ed and am now suffering from information overload. I am posting here in the hopes that people with more knowledge of the area can help me narrow down the dauntingly huge pool of available options.

Preferences: Since I'm travelling alone and an inexperienced hiker, I probably will only climb mountains that have mild ascents with established, non-deserted footpaths.

Thanks!

"I can't believe I got the whole thing!"

GJSchaller — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 08:00:32 -0800

Graffiti Filter: Looking for a photo or confirmation of a myth of an epic and humorous piece of graffiti. A friend recounted the tale of someone unlocking a train yard one morning, only to find a (previously) clean multi-car train tagged with "I can't believe I got the whole thing!" sprayed the entire length of the train.

Google-Fu has failed me, images comes up with the ever popular "ate the whole thing," and text comes back with a large amount of NSFW fiction involving things fitting places they shouldn't...

Source of rising locomotive sound?

Mapes — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 09:51:30 -0800

What is the MMM ^{M^{M^M!}}sound an idling locomotive makes every few minutes? I used to live by a rail yard, and recently took a long train ride from Boston to Chicago. I've noticed a weird rising sound that idling locomotives make occasionally. It's very loud, has a rising pitch, lasts a second or two, and is so unusual and distinctive that it sounds like God's own spaceship being charged up. What is it?

Habla inglese?

djgh — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 06:37:09 -0800

Getting from Benicassim to Madrid. Speaking no Spanish, trying to get three bus/train tickets from Benicassim to Madrid on the 21st July, arriving before 19:00, is proving virtually impossible.

Can anyone point to a website in English where this route is available, on that date for that time?

Many thanks for any help which you can offer.

Reaching a traveler with no phone?

muhonnin — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:00:55 -0800

I'm in the UK, and would like to get a message to a passenger who's now on an Amtrak train scheduled to arrive into Boston's South Station in a couple of hours. She doesn't have a cell phone. It would be fine to get her the message at any point before she leaves South Station. Any suggestions? (It would be very very useful to get her the message, but it's not a matter of life and death, if that makes a difference.)