![Trainspotting](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Trainspotting.jpg)
A railfan, rail buff or train buff (
American English
American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States and in most circumstances i ...
), railway enthusiast, railway buff or trainspotter (
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal A ...
/
British English
British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Lexico, Oxford Dictionaries, "English language, English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in ...
), or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally interested in trains and rail transport systems.
Railfans often combine their interest with other hobbies, especially photography and
videography
Videography is the process of capturing moving images on electronic media (e.g., videotape, direct to disk recording, or solid state storage) and even streaming media. The term includes methods of video production and post-production. It used ...
,
radio scanning,
railway modelling
Railway modelling (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland) or model railroading (US and Canada) is a hobby in which rail transport systems are modelled at a reduced scale.
The scale models include locomotives, rolling stock, streetcars, t ...
, studying
railroad history
''Railroad History'' (initially, ''The Railway & Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin'') is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society since 1921.
''Railroad History'' consists primarily ...
and participating in railway station and
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...
preservation efforts. There are many magazines and websites dedicated to railfanning and railway enthusiasts, including ''
Trains
In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often know ...
'', ''
Railfan & Railroad
''Railfan & Railroad'' is an American monthly magazine that has been in publication since the 1970s. It was the first magazine title established in-house by Carstens Publications. As a magazine dedicated to trains and rail transportation, it stands ...
'', ''
The Railway Magazine
''The Railway Magazine'' is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it was, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation in ...
'', ''
Locomotive Magazine'', and ''
Railway Gazette International''.
Other names
In the United Kingdom, rail enthusiasts are often called trainspotters or
anoraks. The term ''gricer'' has been used in the UK since at least 1969 and is said to have been current in 1938 amongst members of the Manchester Locomotive Society, according to the ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...
''. There has been speculation that the term derives from "grouser", one who collects dead
grouse
Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochondria ...
after a
shoot
In botany, a plant shoot consists of any plant stem together with its appendages, leaves and lateral buds, flowering stems, and flower buds. The new growth from seed germination that grows upward is a shoot where leaves will develop. In the sp ...
, but other etymologies have also been suggested.
In Australia, they are sometimes referred to as "
gunzels".
Numerous terms exist for rail enthusiasts in
Japan, including ''Toritetsu'' for fans of photographing trains, ''Nori-tetsu'' (people who enjoy travelling by train) and ''Eki-tetsu'' (enthusiasts of train station architecture).
In the United States, they can be referred to pejoratively as "
foamers". There is a dispute over the origin of this term. Some cite the extensive use of
styrofoam
Styrofoam is a trademarked brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam (XPS), commonly called "Blue Board", manufactured as foam continuous building insulation board used in walls, roofs, and foundations as thermal insulation and water barrie ...
to create scenery and landscaping in
model railroad
Railway modelling (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland) or model railroading (US and Canada) is a hobby in which rail transport systems are modelled at a reduced scale.
The scale models include locomotives, rolling stock, streetcars, t ...
building, while others trace its origins to the related term "Foamite" (which stands for "Far Out and Mentally Incompetent Train Enthusiast") or claim it refers to "the notion of foaming-at-the-mouth craziness".
Activities
![Bill Nye model train 2018](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Bill_Nye_model_train_2018.jpg)
The hobby extends to all aspects of rail transport systems. Railfans may have one or more particular concentrations of interest, such as:
*Railway
locomotives
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the ...
and
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...
*Still-used or disused railroad lines, bridges, tunnels,
stations,
signal boxes
On a rail transport system, signalling control is the process by which control is exercised over train movements by way of railway signals and block systems to ensure that trains operate safely, over the correct route and to the proper timetab ...
and other infrastructure
*Subways and other local rail transit systems
*Railway history
*Railway photography
*Railway books and
magazines
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...
*
Railtours
*
Railway signalling
Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormo ...
*Playing
train simulators
A train simulator (also railroad simulator or railway simulator) is a computer based simulation of rail transport operations. They are generally large complicated software packages modeling a Three-dimensional space, 3D virtual reality world i ...
*
Railway modelling
Railway modelling (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland) or model railroading (US and Canada) is a hobby in which rail transport systems are modelled at a reduced scale.
The scale models include locomotives, rolling stock, streetcars, t ...
, both physical and virtual model railroading,
toy train
A toy train is a toy that represents a train. It is distinguished from a model train by an emphasis on low cost and durability, rather than scale modeling. A toy train can be as simple as a toy that can run on a track, or it might be operated b ...
collecting,
live steam and outdoor
miniature railways
*Collection of railway artifacts, in particular: tickets, timetables, railway paper, locomotive
whistles, number plates,
builders' plates,
builder's photos, badges, uniforms, railway crockery and other
railwayana
Railroadiana or railwayana refers to artifacts of currently or formerly operating railways around the world. Railroadiana can include items such as:
* Brakeman's or marker lanterns
* Date nails, rail spikes, or short sections of rail
* D ...
. Many items, such as timetables and railway paper (i.e. internal railway documents), are collected for study and not just as collectibles.
*Railway art or architecture
*Railway operations, economics or commerce
*
Railway preservation
A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...
/restoration
*Level junction. This is where the railfan can also be interested in the railroad or "grade" crossing signals.
*Monitoring railroad radio communications with a radio scanner.
The scope of the subject is so large that fans may additionally concentrate their interest on a particular country, town,
railway company
A railway company is a company within the rail industry. It can be a manufacturing firm or an rail transport operations, operator. Some railway companies operate both the trains and the track, while, particularly in the European Union, operation ...
, field of operations or era in history – or a combination of any of the above.
Railway photography
![TGM23V48 cabin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/TGM23V48_cabin.jpg)
Train photography is a common activity of railfans. Most railfans do their photographing from public property, unless they have permission to use a specific private property owner's land. Occasionally, they run into problems with law enforcement, especially due to
post 9/11 security concerns, because they are sometimes viewed as suspicious. In 2004, for example, the
New York City Subway attempted to institute a photo ban, which was met with fierce opposition and ultimately scrapped. The
Port Authority Trans–Hudson (PATH) successfully implemented a photo ban that is still in effect (although it predated the September 11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing); it has led to confiscations and arrests on the PATH system.
* In the United Kingdom, photography is allowed at all stations on the
National Rail
National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the ...
network.
Transport for London, however, does not allow photography without permission and a permit issued by the TfL Film Office. However, photography for personal use, without ancillary equipment is allowed without a permit. The
Tyne and Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro is an overground and underground light rail rapid transit system serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and the City of Sunderland (together forming Tyne and Wear). The network opened in ...
prohibits all photography without written permission from
Nexus
NEXUS is a joint Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection-operated Trusted Traveler and expedited border control program designed for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. Members of the program can avoid waits at border ...
, the system's operators. As of 2015, it is the only system in the UK with such a policy.
* In Singapore, photography and filming is permitted in all
MRT
MRT may refer to:
Transport Rapid Transit Systems
* Mass Rapid Transit (disambiguation)
* MRT (Singapore) or Mass Rapid Transit, Singapore
* MRT (Bangkok) or Metropolitan Rapid Transit, Thailand
* Manila Metro Rail Transit System, Philippine ...
stations for non-commercial purposes during weekdays between 10am and 4pm.
* The Spanish
RENFE railroad company used to ask for a permit, but since 2018 it is not needed.
* In
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
, railway photography is permitted on all networks
* In Russia, railway photography is permitted on all networks
* In Italy, the Royal Decree n°1161 enacted on July 11, 1941, concerning "military secrets", prohibited all and any photographs and video recordings in and around a number of civilian and military installations, including public railways. Railway photography was largely tolerated by tacit agreement, but could be prosecuted as a felony. The law was repealed by Legislative Decree n°66 enacted on March 15, 2010.
* In Germany,
Deutsche Bahn allows non-commercial photography as long as no additional equipment such as tripods are used.
* In Indonesia,
Kereta Api Indonesia
PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) (English: Indonesian Railways Company, abbreviated as PT KAI or simply KAI) is the sole operator of public railways in Indonesia. It is completely state-owned and pays track access charges to the government. ...
allows photography on a train station and inside the train as long is for private use, on a public area and without additional equipment such as tripod and drones (unless they have a permit from the railway)
Trainspotting
![1844 LIRR schedule](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/1844_LIRR_schedule.jpg)
A trainspotter may use a data book listing the locomotives or equipment in question, in which locomotives seen are ticked off. An early trainspotter was 14-year-old Fanny Gordon, who in 1861 recorded the names of locomotives passing
Westbourne Park station
Westbourne Park is a London Underground station in the Notting Hill area of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is on the Circle and Hammersmith and City lines, between Ladbroke Grove and Royal Oak stations, and is in Travelcard Z ...
on the
Great Western Railway. In Great Britain, this aspect of the hobby was given a major impetus by the publication from 1942 onward of the
Ian Allan "ABC" series of booklets, whose publication began in response to public requests for information about the locomotives of the
Southern Railway.
Railway trips
Bashing
The term "bashing" is used by railway enthusiasts to mean several things. Used alone, it is a general term for a railway enthusiast's trip, excursion or holiday involving train travel and observation. "Line bashing" is an attempt to cover as much of a railway network as possible. It may also be called "track bashing", especially if the person wishes to cover individual sections of track, such as crossovers and sidings, in addition to completing an "A to B" journey on each of the line's sections. In the UK (especially), Germany, and to a lesser extent other countries, railfans often use a special excursion train (usually known as a "railtour") to cover freight-only railway lines to complete their coverage of a country's rail network. "Shed bashing" describes going out to as many railway sheds or depots as possible. It was very popular in the 1950s and 1960s. As they required a permit that could be hard to obtain, some "shed bashers" were illegal.
Another development from trainspotting, almost unique to the UK, is the "haulage basher" or locomotive
haulage Haulage is the business of transporting goods by road or rail between suppliers and large consumer outlets, factories, warehouses, or depots. This includes everything humans might wish to move in bulk - from vegetables and other foodstuffs, to cloth ...
enthusiast.
Fantrips
Many railway preservation groups run special trips for railfans using
restored trains
Conservation and restoration of rail vehicles aims to preserve historic rail vehicles.
Trains
It may concern trains that have been removed from service and later restored to their past condition, or have never been removed from service, like UP ...
, often on "rare mileage" lines that do not see regular passenger service. These trips are both social events and opportunities for railfans to photograph unusual trains. Chasing a fantrip by road for the purposes of photography is often referred to as "motorcading" in Australia.
Other activities
Some enthusiasts combine their interest in trains with the hobby of monitoring radio communications, specializing in listening to radio communications of railroad operations using a
scanner.
Origins of interest
![Railfans on 1939 camera excursion](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Railfans_on_1939_camera_excursion.jpg)
The motivation for someone developing an interest in railways can come from many sources.
Nostalgia may also result from the long, lonesome wail of the train's horn, which mimics vocalizations that want for a more simple time reminiscent of home, as heard in country or
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
worldwide.
Safety
Railfans in the United States have been asked to keep railroad areas safer by reporting crimes and suspicious activity. In the United Kingdom the
British Transport Police
, nativename =
, abbreviation = BTP
, patch =
, patchcaption =
, logo = British Transport Police Logo.svg
, logocaption = Logo of the British Transport Police
, badge =
, badgecaption =
, f ...
have asked trainspotters to report any unusual behaviour and activities at stations.
In the United States, concerns about
terrorism
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
have led to situations where railfans are followed or confronted by local law enforcement or
transit police
Transit police (also known as transport police, railway police, railroad police and several other terms) are specialized police agencies employed either by a common carrier (a transit district, railway, railroad, bus line, or any other mass tr ...
. This has also led to situations where certain transportation agencies have implemented photography bans systemwide.
A railfan was a factor in the
2008 Chatsworth train collision
The 2008 Chatsworth train collision occurred at 4:22:23 p.m. PDT (23:22:23 UTC) on September 12, 2008, when a Union Pacific freight train and a Metrolink commuter train collided head-on in the Chatsworth neighborhood of Los Angeles, C ...
, as the driver responsible for the accident had been distracted by texting the railfan while in charge of his train, eventually causing it to pass a signal at danger and crash into an oncoming Union Pacific freight train, killing 25 and injuring 135 others.
The
BNSF
BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...
railway instituted the "Citizens for Rail Security" (CRS) program for the general public to report suspicious activities on their railways. Obtaining this card was common for railfans and is a derivative of the BNSF "On Guard" program for employees. However, this card does not recognize members as employees or contractors, asks them to keep off railway property, and is no longer obtainable.
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
offers a similar program, "Partners for Amtrak Safety and Security" (PASS).
In Japan, ''toritetsu'' have been frequently criticised for their behaviour when photographing trains, including incidents of vandalism and trespassing into restricted areas to set up cameras, destruction of lineside property and plants to clear a view of the track, stealing goods to sell on to fund expensive cameras, theft of railway equipment, being rude towards station staff and train drivers,
physical assault
An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...
, and attempting to intimidate passengers and road users for inadvertently interfering with their activities.
Network Rail, the British rail infrastructure owner and station operator, has produced guidelines for the behaviour and responsibilities of railway enthusiasts at its stations. In May 2010, the dangers of acting carelessly in the vicinity of an active railway were highlighted after an enthusiast, standing next to a double track line photographing the ''
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...
'', failed to notice a
Turbostar express train approaching at ~70 mph (112 km/h) on the nearer track in the other direction, and came within inches of being struck by it.
See also
*
Anorak (slang)
"Anorak" is a British slang term which refers to a person who has a very strong interest, perhaps obsessive, in niche subjects. This interest may be unacknowledged or not understood by the general public. The term is sometimes used synonymously w ...
*
List of railroad-related periodicals
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
*
Rail terminology
*
Railway enthusiasts societies in the United Kingdom
A railfan or railway enthusiast and sometimes also called a trainspotter is a person interested, recreationally, in rail transport. Railfans of many ages can be found worldwide. To support the hobby in the United Kingdom, railway enthusiast societ ...
*
Rail transport modelling
* ''
RR'' (2008 railfan film by
James Benning)
* ''
Sensible Train Spotting'', the world's first computer train spotting simulator
*
Train whistle
A train whistle or air whistle (originally referred to as a steam trumpet) is an audible signaling device on a steam locomotive, used to warn that the train is approaching, and to communicate with rail workers. Modern diesel and electric locomot ...
*
Tracks Ahead
''Tracks Ahead'' is a television series about railroading, produced by Milwaukee PBS, originally solely for their station WMVS, then syndicated to public television stations, starting in 1990.
In general, the series examines all aspects of rail ...
Similar hobbies
*
Aircraft spotting
Aircraft spotting, or plane spotting is a hobby of tracking the movement of aircraft, which is often accomplished by photography. Besides monitoring aircraft, plane spotting enthusiasts (who are usually called plane spotters) also record informa ...
*
Bus spotting
Bus spotting is the interest and activity of watching, photographing and tracking buses throughout their working service lives within bus companies. A person who engages in these activities is known as a bus spotter, bus fan, bus nut ( colloquial ...
*
Gongoozlers, enthusiasts of canals in the United Kingdom
*
Roadgeek
A roadgeek (from ''road'' + ''geek'') is an individual involved in "roadgeeking" or "road enthusiasm"—an interest in roads, and especially going on road trips, as a hobby. A person with such an interest is also referred to as a road ent ...
*
Fire buffs, enthusiasts of firefighting and emergency services
Glossaries
*
Glossary of North American railway terms
This article contains a list of terms, jargon, and slang used to varying degrees by railfans and railroad employees in the United States and Canada. Although not exhaustive, many of the entries in this list appear from time to time in special ...
*
Glossary of Australian railway terms
This article contains a list of jargon used to varying degrees by railway enthusiasts, trainspotters, and railway employees in Australia, including nicknames for various locomotives and multiple units. Although not exhaustive, many of the entr ...
*
Glossary of United Kingdom railway terms
This article contains a list of jargon used to varying degrees by railfans, trainspotters, and railway employees in the United Kingdom, including nicknames for various locomotives and multiple units. Although not exhaustive, many of the entrie ...
*
Glossary of New Zealand railway terms
This is a list of jargon commonly used by railfans and railway employees in New Zealand.
B
; Blue Rattlers
: ADK class on the Auckland suburban network
; Blue Streaks
: Three NZR RM class 88 seater railcars renovated for a fast service ...
References
Sources
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Further reading
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External links
*
{{Fandom
Fandom
Observation hobbies
Rail transport hobbies