I am thinking of asking for a scanner for my birthday. My idea is to listen while riding as a passenger on Amtrak, primarily in the Northeast Corridor. I would like to hear what members of traincrews say to each other and what dispatchers say to them. Do any railfans do that? I would plug in an earpiece or headset; even so, would I get hassled for this?
My experience over a number of years is you won't be hassled. I've had my scanner chatting away while I was talking to a conductor or other crew member and not one of them ever questioned it. I think it's because my scanner and maybe yours doesn't allow one to do anything other than listen, so one can't interfere with anything.
You'll be glad of earphones and so will your fellow passengers. The chat itself isn't very interesting. At least at night in the middle of the nowhere you'll know where you are, what the axel count is, if there's any dragging equipment and what the temperature is. When the train is sitting you'll know whether it's because of a signal or something else. You'll know it as soon as any crew member, too.
On the odd day something major comes up, like a small avalance that needs to be cleared from the tracks, or the fire area the train's about to go through, or a sun-kinked rail that requires "wash rack speed," as one engineer at Cape Horn (Calif.) termed it, etc., you'll know why. Especially so if the train crashes into a car or truck.
I bought my first scanner for use on Amtrak about 40 years ago because I was frequently wondering, Where are we stopped and Why? A scanner gives me the information.
I once took a 1200 mile Amtrak trip with a friend who had a scanner. No headphones.
It was interesting for about the first 100 miles.
Then I wanted him to shut it off.
York1 John
With earbuds or headphones you'll be fine. No one will care. I concur that most of the time the talk is pretty dry, but I enjoy knowing whatever I can. And if something unusual happens, it will be interesting.
Still in training.
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