52
In which I unironically praise the U.K. (upload.wikimedia.org)
submitted 1 week ago by wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net to c/chat@hexbear.net
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loud booing ok ok listen crowd jeers hold up listen I have a point to make jeers die off with some hesitation

Trains

crowd erupts into cheers and applause

The U.K. genuinely has some of the best historic preservation of railways in the entire world. Just take a look at this Wikipedia list of heritage railways! Heritage lines are dotted all over the country but that isn't even the best part, which is the British love of little trains :comfy:. There are little railways everywhere. Every seaside town seems to have some sort of miniature railway, and little railways dot the countryside. Look at this list! And better yet, because the railways are so ubiquitous, many young people are becoming involved in the railways and continuing on the grand tradition.

In conclusion, while the mainline network may be run by a bunch of capitalist vultures, the little railways of Britain provide a wonderful opportunity to see a full-sized adult comically operate a tiny train.

crowd chants "ti-ny-train! ti-ny-train!"

a steam whistle is blown

crowd erupts into thunderous applause

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[-] Aquilae@hexbear.net 13 points 1 week ago

Heartbreaking: The Worst Country You Know Did A Good Thing

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 11 points 1 week ago

One other thing of note: Don't think for a second that these programs weren't helped along by the UK's history of imperialism. Preservation costs money, and much of that money comes from the imperialist interests that control that country. Historic preservation isn't possible to the same extent in over-exploited countries. What I am praising here is what the money has been spent on and the volunteer work that goes into preservation.

[-] HakFoo 8 points 1 week ago

Another interesting thing is that the highly effective preservation is likely due to nationalization.

Thry had a top-down drop-dead date for steam, so preservation efforts knew it was now or never. The spotty retirement of steam in the US meant people weren't putting away stuff until it was too late. There were hundreds of PRR I-1 Decapods, until suddenly there weren't anymore. By the time preservation was top-of-mind, you ended up with a stilted selection of "what's left" and "hand-selected marquee engines that make for good PR tours"

The clear end date also created a huge glut of scrap locos which enabled the famous Barry Scrapyard experience. Effectively, they retired them faster than they could be cut up, and preservationists could exploit that to arrange purchases. Individual private operators dispensing out their fleets over a longer period wouldn't backlog as easily.

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 4 points 1 week ago

Oooo GOOD post

[-] 7bicycles@hexbear.net 9 points 1 week ago

I'm really miffed seemingly every narrow gage railways in germany was, at best, converted into a bicycle trail. Would love to look at some funky small trains. Or, you know, if any of them were kept updated and still operated. I usually look at the map of where they used to run and tbh, that's usually not far off from it being a pretty good rural public transport option today

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 6 points 1 week ago

In Switzerland that dream lives on. The Swiss probably have the overall best rail network in the world.

[-] MaoTheLawn@hexbear.net 8 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I went on the Ravenglass and Eskdale railway a few summers ago. 10/10. It's a proper route - through the mountains and by the lakes - with a manual turntable for the train at the end .

[-] Dirt_Owl@hexbear.net 6 points 1 week ago

They were even better before they were privatized

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 6 points 1 week ago

@Awoo@hexbear.net this seems like it is right up your alley

[-] Awoo@hexbear.net 6 points 1 week ago

I am not a train nerd but it's true that we have them everywhere.

This is one of the things that RMT has been fighting to keep actually. The "modernisation" that they want to do is partly a reduction in maintenance staff using drones to inspect the lines instead of humans that walk them, this would very likely reduce many small lines that end up not getting the maintenance they need.

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 3 points 1 week ago

drones to inspect the lines

This will not work properly. You need a person to see rail fractures, wear on the ties, etc. You need to be able to see the track close up!

Can you explain the British psyche around little trains? You did a great job explaining the British enjoyment of things that are a bit shit the other day, explain the love of little trains to me.

[-] Awoo@hexbear.net 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Uhh.

It's a day out? Lol. I don't know tbh I've never thought about it that much. I guess there is one thing that British people like and that's British things, anything historic is legitimately liked and supported here. Whether that's things like industrial revolution era stuff or whether it's more historic.

I'd say that the train stuff comes down to Britain being perceived by the British as the origin of the industrial revolution, which is a pretty fair argument. Practically everything from that era has been very deeply engrained into British culture and identity.

Americans like American revolution and civil war stuff right? I imagine that there is a similar reason.

Also the small trains are a bit silly and British do really like silly things.

[-] wtypstanaccount04@hexbear.net 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)
[-] Awoo@hexbear.net 3 points 1 week ago

Lmao this is fantastically silly and precisely what I mean about not taking yourself too seriously being a cornerstone of british culture. Brits love this attitude, it projects a real inner-strength and confidence to be able to be this silly and authentically not have a problem with it. Super healthy behaviour.

[-] HexReplyBot@hexbear.net 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:

[-] Saeculum@hexbear.net 4 points 1 week ago

There was a brief window of time where the country went absolutely mad over trains. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Railway_Mania building over half of the total modern rail milage in the UK in under two years. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the funny little historic railways surviving today were partially a result of this.

[-] Saeculum@hexbear.net 3 points 1 week ago

The Great Western Railway museum is really cool and if you're ever in the area you should visit it.

[-] HexReplyBot@hexbear.net 1 points 1 week ago

I found a YouTube link in your post. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:

this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2024
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