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  • Taking the Train down State highway One

  • Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.
Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.

Moderators: Komachi, David Benton

 #1561664  by David Benton
 
"For a small town, Kawakawa has a couple of very big surprises for visitors.

The unique and colourful set of public toilets is one, but the other is literally show-stopping: a train that runs right down the centre of the busy main street, effortlessly halting traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian. It is, in fact, the only working train in the country to do this – just one of several notable claims to fame."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinat ... y#comments

Does anyone know of other railways running down the centre of main Highways/ Main streets ? I know of plenty going down back streets etc , but this is NZ's S.H.1. Mind you , the amount of traffic is probably less than many back streets elsewhere.
 #1561723  by ExCon90
 
In the U. S., I think the blue ribbon must go to the Union Pacific (formerly Southern Pacific) line down the middle of the Embarcadero (originally First Street) in Oakland, Calif.: Something over a mile of two main tracks, heavy mainline rail, reverse signaled, featuring, in between long double-stack freight trains, Amtrak's Coast Starlight and Amtrak California's Capitol Corridor (San Jose-Oakland-Sacramento) and San Joaquin (Oakland-Bakersfield) services. Not so much as some red paint in the track area -- automobiles and trucks are free to drive on the tracks when they're not being used by a train. I suspect that knowledgeable locals use alternate parallel streets.
 #1561726  by ExCon90
 
Under New York State Railroads there's a thread called "Make Way" NYS&W Schuyler St. Utica (I'd link it if I knew how) of a center-of-street operation in Utica, N. Y.

Trains magazine had a story awhile back about a steam-powered narrow-gauge line at the Baltic Sea resort of Bad Doberan, in Germany, called the "Molli." There's a video of it which I found on Google by searching under Molli narrow gauge but don't know how to link. Center of street, portions of which are evidently a pedestrian zone.

A former Conrail line, originally the Camden & Amboy, runs down the middle of Broad Street in Burlington, N. J. The line has freight service during the midnight hours (I don't know which freight railroad runs it today) and daytime light-rail passenger service using Stadler dmus.
 #1561818  by Benny
 
Don't forget the street running of the Chur-Arosa RhB line, along the main streets of the Grisons capital.

Ciao :wink:
 #1562224  by spRocket
 
Michigan City, Indiana, on the NICTD South Shore Line, has a stretch of street running as well. Although the title is a bit hyperbolic, the video itself shows a good selection of action through town.