I Hear The Train A-Comin'
On my first visit to the US, I was staying with a friend who lived close to the railroad tracks. During the night a train was approaching and honked his horn because of a nearby unsecured grade-level crossing. Man, I never woke up that fast at 3am in the middle of one of my R.E.M. phases. I mean I was standing next to the bed wondering what just happened to me. Growing up, I was used to a mere loud whistle, but that intensity could have woken a dead man!
The next morning over coffee, I asked my friend about the trains and he shrugged his shoulders and said, that he can't hear them anymore when they are driving by at night. Well since then, train horns became part of my life, wherever I lived, I was able to hear "short short long short" outbursts of air. Sometimes from a distance, sometimes closer to the tracks.
Trains fascinated me since my early childhood, when my grandfather took me to watch trains passing the big train bridge leading them into my hometown and the love never subdued. Recently we stumbled upon some special locomotives of a small local railroad, in yellow and blue livery. And that's where I took the picture of the train chimes as they are also called. I loved the minimal approach with the blue sky behind the horns.
And no, I did not know that there are that many different manufacturers of horns and that they all chime for a free-passing in different tones, till I stumbled upon the video below.
I was there for that! I'm not shitting you!!!
my dad and grandpa used to take us as kids out to the beach where the train tracks were and when we heard one coming we would put a penny or coin on the track before it ran over and get all excited when it was flat afterward lol never see ppl doing that anymore
Thanks for sharing great memories, I still believe in the power of train as a mass transportation system. With today's technology (aka Speed Trains) we could do so much more to lower the carbon imprint.
the train system in europe is really impressive!
Yes it is - I never owned a car in Europe - went by train everywhere. Criss-crossing the whole continent - from the most southern tip of Italy all the way into Norway and through the former East German Republic to Berlin. Even with the rigourous border controls that were in place to go through the DDR - it was actually fun to see something.
In some cases, train horns have been heard up to several miles away, especially in rural or quiet areas with favorable atmospheric conditions and minimal obstructions. However, the actual distance the sound travels can vary widely based on the specific circumstances. Additionally, regulations and safety standards often govern the minimum audible distance for train horns to ensure that they are heard by pedestrians and vehicles at railroad crossings.
It's important to note that the sound of a dewalt air horn kit from https://bosshorn.com is designed to be loud and attention-grabbing to signal the presence of an approaching train, especially at railroad crossings, where safety is paramount. If you are in the vicinity of train tracks, it's crucial to obey all safety signals and warnings to avoid accidents.