Trains.com

Detroit City Zoo railroad: Still in business?

2955 views
8 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    April 2005
  • 484 posts
Detroit City Zoo railroad: Still in business?
Posted by caboose63 on Sunday, April 8, 2018 9:45 PM

I have not been down to Detroit City Zoo in almost 40 years. I was wondering if their narrow gauge railroad is still in operation or abanonded. Also what other city zoos' excursion railroads in the USA are still in operation?

  • Member since
    June 2009
  • From: Dallas, TX
  • 6,952 posts
Posted by CMStPnP on Sunday, April 8, 2018 11:46 PM

caboose63

I have not been down to Detroit City Zoo in almost 40 years. I was wondering if their narrow gauge railroad is still in operation or abanonded. Also what other city zoos' excursion railroads in the USA are still in operation?

Milwaukee Public Zoo has a miniture railroad that you can ride around the zoo grounds with. 

  • Member since
    August 2006
  • From: South Dakota
  • 1,592 posts
Posted by Dakguy201 on Monday, April 9, 2018 9:08 AM

The Omaha zoo has a nice ride:

http://omahazoo.sitewrench.com/train

 

  • Member since
    September 2014
  • 1,180 posts
Posted by ROBERT WILLISON on Monday, April 9, 2018 5:12 PM

Cedar point on the shore of lake Erie has the last coal fired narrow gauge locomotives found in an amusement park.

  • Member since
    March 2016
  • 1,568 posts
Posted by CandOforprogress2 on Monday, April 9, 2018 5:18 PM

  • Member since
    November 2013
  • 18 posts
Posted by morey2001 on Monday, April 23, 2018 8:58 AM

A quick look at their website, https://detroitzoo.org/visit/zoo-attractions/tauber-family-railroad/ ,  shows this is still running......

Chris M.

 

 

  • Member since
    February 2018
  • 66 posts
Posted by Eastrail11 on Monday, April 23, 2018 10:08 AM

Zoo Miami has a monorail if that counts.

Also the Gold Coast Railroad museum is right next door, you can walk from the Zoo to the museum, It would probably take less than two minutes from parking to the muesem, they even use the same entrance point. Funny part is you have to enter zoo grounds, or area designated to the zoo, to be able to reach the museum. 

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.615426,-80.3980371,691m/data=!3m1!1e3

 

~Eastrail

~Eastrail

  • Member since
    October 2013
  • 75 posts
Posted by spsffan on Wednesday, April 25, 2018 4:51 PM
Santa Barbara, California, has a nice, if somewhat smaller zoo with a trian ride that goes around grounds. Plus, the UP Coast Line, complete with Amtrak California (and Coast Starlight) trains is right across the street. I never knew the zoo was there until one day, riding on Amtrak approaching Santa Barbara (from LA) and I saw an elephant out the window!
  • Member since
    May 2017
  • 382 posts
Posted by xboxtravis7992 on Saturday, April 28, 2018 2:06 PM

Outside the San Diego Zoo is a small train ride alongside the parking lot. The train cars are painted in a nice tribute to the SP Daylight scheme: http://desertempireproject.blogspot.com/2017/07/another-day-of-sun-trip-to-california.html

Hogle Zoo in Utah has one of those CP Huntington styled engines that loops around the park's Africa section and through a western town area.

Lagoon Amusument Park in Utah also has a train passing by some animal displays. The two engines in Lagoon are the only regularly ran live steam engines that carry passengers in the state right now (not counting the backyard railroad scales).

 

Join our Community!

Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.

Search the Community

Newsletter Sign-Up

By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our privacy policy