Would you still be interested in Railways if…..

[dangie]

My interest in railways began back in the 1950’s when as a young child my dad used to take me to nearby Norton Bridge on the WCML to see the then steam locomotives. This was followed by early diesels including the blue prototype Deltic. My railway interest has carried on into my 70”s.

This however has got me thinking. If I was a young child now, would I begin to have an interest in railways? Does the railway have the same appeal as it did years ago? Considering the trials & tribulations within the current railway industry is the young enthusiast becoming a dying breed?

So I ask, if you were a younger version of yourself, would you still become interested in railways in the modern age? I honestly don’t think I would.

 

[Bletchleyite]

This however has got me thinking. If I was a young child now, would I begin to have an interest in railways? Does the railway have the same appeal as it did years ago? Considering the trials & tribulations within the current railway industry is the young enthusiast becoming a dying breed?

I don't think so. There are probably hundreds of young enthusiasts producing videos on YouTube about trains.

The things that were interesting 30 years ago aren't the same ones that are interesting now, but different things are interesting. For instance the boring new plastic in the 1980s (Class 150s, say) are now interesting classic DMUs to some!

 

[FlyingPotato]

I've been interested in trains for as long as I can remember having a Thomas the tank engine cake at my third birthday.

When I was younger, I hated HSTs, I found them noisy, dirty and didn't like the doors (I am now fond of them don't worry), I preferred modern trains with electrification, with the Pendolino having a special place in my heart.

Not all rail enthusiasts will be interested in older trains, they may be interested in other parts of the railway.
And as modern trains get old, they will become interesting and unique. See the HST hated when it came out, now loved, same applies to the Pendolino. And it's currently happening to the IET

 

[mike57]

My interest in railways began back in the 1950’s when as a young child my dad used to take me to nearby Norton Bridge on the WCML to see the then steam locomotives.

I am in a similar situation but haven't quite reached 70, My Grandad owned a shop, and on a Wednesday afternoon (early closing day, remember that...) would often pick me up from school and would take me to various places to 'watch the trains' At the time I lived in SW London and a favourite spot was just outside Wimbledon, there was a footpath running by the railway with good views. It was the last few years of SW main line steam, Grubby Merchant Navy's and other locomotives that I dont remember. I have a couple of poor quality Agfachrome slides from that era, but they havn't aged well and are only really of personal interest as a result. On another occasions, during the school holidays my Gran ran the shop on a Wednesday and he took me on the Bournmouth Belle and the Brighton Belle, at different times, both memorable.

As an engineer I am now interested in the 'how' and 'why' so I suppose my interest is pretty wide, I am interested in the latest stuff as well as the historical things. I have seen the full life cycle of the HST, from introduction on the ECML (I moved to Yorkshire in 1980) to almost retirement, another niche interest of mine is the early days of electrification, this stemmed from my Grandfathers reminisences about the 'overhead electrics' in south London.

Edit: Thinking back it got me curious, and the footbridge and path are still there, look for Alt Grove, Wimbledon.

 

[brad465]

The 90s appeared to be the "golden age" in how electric trains sounded: 323s, 365s, 465/466s and maybe to a lesser extent the 319s and similar all produced traction motors with very unique dynamic sounds. Being born in 1995 I've lived an embraced these sounds really well and has driven my general train enthusiasm, perhaps even helping build interest even among trains sounding more boring. However, since the 00s the Electrostar and Desiro fleets have come with more bland-sounding motors IMO, so it's possible were I born today I wouldn't have this interest.

In the diesel world I do often enjoy the "roar" produced by Sprinters and Turbos, however more modern diesel either sounds okay but not interesting (Turbostars), is quieter (IETs), or is irritating (Voyagers).

 

[12LDA28C]

I've been interested in trains for as long as I can remember having a Thomas the tank engine cake at my third birthday.

When I was younger, I hated HSTs, I found them noisy, dirty and didn't like the doors (I am now fond of them don't worry), I preferred modern trains with electrification, with the Pendolino having a special place in my heart.

Not all rail enthusiasts will be interested in older trains, they may be interested in other parts of the railway.
And as modern trains get old, they will become interesting and unique. See the HST hated when it came out, now loved, same applies to the Pendolino. And it's currently happening to the IET

Really? I'm not sure this is true at all. People now love IETs because they're getting 'old'? Seriously?

 

[peteb]

I must admit I have little interest in modern dmu/emu/bi-mode traction, but still addicted to loco haulage be it diesel, electric or steam. I think if I were younger I would volunteer with a preserved line to learn how to maintain and drive steam and diesel, something I wish I'd done years ago and now probably too old!

 

[FlyingPotato]

Really? I'm not sure this is true at all. People now love IETs because they're getting 'old'? Seriously?

Ok, not necessarily loved yet, but people are now getting used to them and becoming more fond. I have seen it on the forum. Especially surrounding the new Avanti IETs as they have decent seats which was a complaint surrounding the first generation IETs

 

[CaptainHaddock]

My interest in railways began back in the 1950’s when as a young child my dad used to take me to nearby Norton Bridge on the WCML to see the then steam locomotives. This was followed by early diesels including the blue prototype Deltic. My railway interest has carried on into my 70”s.

This however has got me thinking. If I was a young child now, would I begin to have an interest in railways? Does the railway have the same appeal as it did years ago? Considering the trials & tribulations within the current railway industry is the young enthusiast becoming a dying breed?

So I ask, if you were a younger version of yourself, would you still become interested in railways in the modern age? I honestly don’t think I would.

Definitely! For me it's not about the rolling stock, the infrastructure or the "anorak" side of things. I love railways because they enable me to go to places that would otherwise be inaccessible, to see wonderful landscapes and scenic views and just to enjoy the wonders of spontaneous travel.

In fact I would go so far as to say I'm not a rail enthusiast, I'm a landscape enthusiast!

 

[urbophile]

Although I grew up in the steam age and have some fond memories especially of the Gresley pacifics, my interest actually started with childhood trips on the London Underground. I've retained a fascination with urban transport systems ever since, and I am more interested in maps and networks than the actual trains I suppose. Hence I am addicted to the Youtube videos of Geoff Marshall and Jago Hazzard in particular.

 

[dangie]

Thanks for the replies everyone.
All or most of us on here will have had a long time interest in the railways when to be honest that interest began when the railways were probably more interesting than they are now. As times have changed enthusiasts will have still found aspects of the railway to keep their interest.

My thoughts are that is the railway interesting enough nowadays to attract new enthusiasts?

 

[YorksLad12]

One of my nephews was always interested in "trains", and has even done some solo spotting. He now wants to work on the railway (he lives in Chiltern territory, so I can barely understand a word the young cockney says). For me, trains represent order which appeals to the way my mind is wired up. It's not so much the trains themselves, and my current colleagues have stopped asking me how my journey in was

 

[JohnMcL7]

I lost interest in the railways in the 90s when the 37s were replaced by Sprinters however around 2016 I was passing the station and spotted a familiar looking large BR logo on a 37. That restarted my interest in trains and while there's far less interesting trains to see, technology makes it easier to know when there are worthwhile trains to go and see. Plus it's so easy so capture and share photos and videos of trains these days it helps fill in the gaps, rather than just rely on what I could see at the station and in books I can now find content on any trains anywhere.

A friend's son started with an interest in trains during covid when visiting the station and is still keen on them. He enjoys spending time trawling Youtube for what's happening around the UK and the visits from classic locomotives are all the more special now because they're unusual, it was great to see how excited he was when on a bridge that a 37 had roared under.

 

[sprinterguy]

Growing up in a house adjacent to a railway line gave me the impetus to garner an interest in the railway: While my personal interests hark back to the nostalgia of my early youth, as I suspect do the interests of many, I think I'd still develop that same fascination if I was growing up in that same house today. In fact, the rail traffic outside the window today is somewhat more varied than it was for much of my conscious childhood!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 12 Dec 2024 ==

I lost interest in the railways in the 90s when the 37s were replaced by Sprinters however around 2016 I was passing the station and spotted a familiar looking large BR logo on a 37. That restarted my interest in trains...

I think Direct Rail Services did wonders around that time in revitalising interest in the hobby, with the accepted 'proper' locomotives, increasingly in the heritage liveries of our recollection, working rural passenger services.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 12 Dec 2024 ==

...it was great to see how excited he was when on a bridge that a 37 had roared under.

It's astonishing how much "presence" a class 37 has, even when not yet visible: They have a sound that far outstrips their moderate engine output.

 

[satisnek]

I think I would be, yes, if exposed to railways, e.g. living adjacent to one. Don't forget that any young enthusiast from any time in history has no recollection of what things used to be like. My own interest developed less than a decade after the end of steam on BR, so many older enthusiasts were probably asking exactly the same question back then.

From my observations the young enthusiast is certainly not a dying breed! There was a dip in the late '80s,'90s and possibly into the '00s when any interest other than basic animal instincts, football or high-performance cars was considered 'sad', and railway interest was reduced to aloof cliques of diesel enthusiasts and a few old relics of the steam age characterised by sandwiches in cling-film and a Thermos flask, but in recent years I've noticed a new generation of enthusiasts and things are looking healthy again!

 

[birchesgreen]

I see more kids around "spotting" (though mostly doing AV stuff) now than i was a youth myself in the mid-80s. I think the nature of the hobby has changed a lot, and thats fine

 

[Magdalia]

If I was a young child now, would I begin to have an interest in railways?

So I ask, if you were a younger version of yourself, would you still become interested in railways in the modern age?

The answers to these are probably no, but that's not important.

Does the railway have the same appeal as it did years ago? Considering the trials & tribulations within the current railway industry is the young enthusiast becoming a dying breed?

That's because the answers to these questions are also no. The railway has a different appeal, and young enthusiasts are not a dying breed, The thing that's changed that is technology, particularly digital photography and access to information via the internet.

Railway enthusiasm is alive and well, but it does not look like this.

My interest in railways began back in the 1950’s when as a young child my dad used to take me to nearby Norton Bridge on the WCML to see the then steam locomotives. This was followed by early diesels including the blue prototype Deltic. My railway interest has carried on into my 70”s.

 

[Carbean]

I think may of us interested in railways are also interested in other forms of transport eg aircraft, ships and buses. Probably all those who like transport systems mentioned above have a passing interest in railways

 

[12LDA28C]

I think may of us interested in railways are also interested in other forms of transport eg aircraft, ships and buses. Probably all those who like transport systems mentioned above have a passing interest in railways

Not me personally. No interest in planes (not even a big fan of flying) and haven't used a bus in many years. Not much of interest left on the railway these days compared to 40 years ago.

 

[75A]

I don't think I would, if I was born and brought up where I now live I wouldn't have a clue what a railway was.
My interest began in the mid 60's when my Father took the family to Woodhorn crossing (between Barnham & Chichester) to see 4472 on a 'special". It was about an hour late but I was transfixed by the noise and the steam/smoke, nothing like the Emu's which I was familiar with.

 

[birchesgreen]

I think may of us interested in railways are also interested in other forms of transport eg aircraft, ships and buses. Probably all those who like transport systems mentioned above have a passing interest in railways

Yes if it moves, i'm there!

 

[nw1]

My interest in railways began back in the 1950’s when as a young child my dad used to take me to nearby Norton Bridge on the WCML to see the then steam locomotives. This was followed by early diesels including the blue prototype Deltic. My railway interest has carried on into my 70”s.

This however has got me thinking. If I was a young child now, would I begin to have an interest in railways? Does the railway have the same appeal as it did years ago? Considering the trials & tribulations within the current railway industry is the young enthusiast becoming a dying breed?

So I ask, if you were a younger version of yourself, would you still become interested in railways in the modern age? I honestly don’t think I would.

What killed off my interest in the current railway was Covid. I kept interested to a greater or lesser extent through various rounds of ownership and stock changes (though I'd still rate the 80s and 90s as the most interesting within my memory, with my first journey in 1982) until Covid but the cut-back-to-the-bone nature of the post-Covid railway with an almost complete lack of peak extras on the South Western, for example, has meant that I've almost completely lost my interest in current railways. Hence I spend most of my time here in the Nostalgia section.

But someone coming to the railway now would know no different. I'm sure there is a percentage of those who grew up with steam, pre-Beeching and the Atlantic Coast Express who would find the South Western Division of 1982 boring!

I am still however interested in current bus operations. In my area they seem more interesting and unpredictable than the local railways nowadays.

 

[birchesgreen]

Interest can easily wax and wane and change over time. I was obsessed as a kid, my bedroom had pictures of Brush Type 4s not pop stars (well except for Iron Maiden ) but in my late teens my interest went...

Then in my early 30s it came back a little but when i had a few months when i was rail commuting daily then my interest exploded. And now i'm a published author and have a youtube channel with hundreds of videos (if not views)...

However, i admit i am more interested in seeing new stations than rolling stock these days.

 

[Harpo]

There have always been newcomers to the hobby, arriving with affection for what operated at the outset of their interest and very often having little affection for whatever eventually replaced them.

That cycle has long rippled through the hobby. Steam lovers despise ‘boxes’. Followers of early diesels rejected the duff plague and the HSTs/15xs that ousted loco-hauled. I’ve come across 158 bashers who will eventually have to face that class’s demise.

If you’ve any interest in railways I suspect that whenever you were born, something current would hook you.

 

[Ken H]

I am lucky. I live in a semaphore signalling area so there is that to see. And the odd kettle. Passing the gantry at Settle jct often is a priveledge. I always look at the signals as I drive past. But I do miss the cl 81-87 on passenger trains on the west coast.

 

[55002]

Not now if I was a kid, brought up near ECML and Deltics started it for me, being able to lay in bed at night with the window open and hear their drone. alas they were on their way out but the sheer volume of loco hauled stuff with different classes in the 80s was the appeal, and the amount of traffic. Passenger, parcels,mail, freight of all kinds. Alas now everything is pretty much the same, fixed units and container traffic hauled by 2 different types of loco in the main. I guess if you grew up on the WCmL now you’d take an interest though.

having said that I am still very interested in the types of freight operations, and the operation of the railway in general and do watch the youngsters who do the live streaming and produce the videos, so like others have said the nature of the beast has changed.

 

[Calthrop]

Thanks for the replies everyone.
All or most of us on here will have had a long time interest in the railways when to be honest that interest began when the railways were probably more interesting than they are now. As times have changed enthusiasts will have still found aspects of the railway to keep their interest.

My thoughts are that is the railway interesting enough nowadays to attract new enthusiasts?

Just "speaking for myself" -- reckon self perhaps rather weird re these matters; people in general "will do what they will do", and are endlessly varied. Re me and the thread's heading; I'm not sure. Was born in 1948; my earlier childhood was in a country town, meeting-point of three secondary rail routes (lines going off in six directions -- only two of same, now active in any way), and everything running thereon was steam-worked. With things being thus, I fell in love from infancy, with what was then the rail scene. For me, it very largely -- not a greatly long way down the line, time-wise -- went to hell in a handbasket, with the end of BR regular-daily-service steam, and of the majority of branch-and-lesser lines: my interest in the modern rail scene (home and abroad) has for the past half-century-odd, been minimal. If I'd been born, say, fifteen or more years later than I actually was: suspect that I could likely never have got "turned on to" railways.

Not certain, though. Got (with kind parental approval / assistance / encouragement) hooked on rail-related books, from an early age. Have always been disposed to be fascinated by; and to love, and wish to have known; railway stuff learned of second-hand, which I could (date of birth / where I could have been, when) never have been able to experience first-hand -- have always done a lot of my "gricing" in my head, rather than in tangible reality. Very many people aren't like this -- they have to have had direct personal acquaintance with it, to get to love it. Am not striking a "superior" attitude here; just -- as above -- people differ from each other. For instance -- from what I've read / heard / seen per photographs / film, I've been fascinated and enraptured lifelong, by the British Isles' public narrow-gauge lines; notwithstanding -- again as above -- "born too late / in wrong place" ever to have had first-hand acquaintance with any of them in everyday-public-service pre-preservation form. Maybe, even if born a decade or two after I actually was; love might have come about, from second-hand reading / viewing re what had once been.

 

[contrex]

The 90s appeared to be the "golden age" in how electric trains sounded

Nope, it was the 1930s and 1940s, not that I was around then, but relics were still running around when I was exposed to electric traction as a kid in the 1950s. It all got worse when AC drive took over from DC motors. That awful Networker noise. Give me a 6-PUL any day!

 

[StoneRoad]

Been fascinated by technology - mainly transport / heavy industry - for most of my life, largely due to parental encouragement to investigate ...

However, I don't think I would have quite the interest in the modern system compared to how I felt as a youngster.
That being said, a modern / young me in these days would still / probably head to to the heritage side of things, although the medium might be more electronic and not "hands on" ...

 

[Harpo]

Nope, it was the 1930s and 1940s, not that I was around then, but relics were still running around when I was exposed to electric traction as a kid in the 1950s. It all got worse when AC drive took over from DC motors. That awful Networker noise. Give me a 6-PUL any day!

The sound of P, Q & R stock in an underground station was lovely.