Anyone live beside the railway.

[thejuggler]

I once lived in a flat which overlooked Gunnersbury station.

A relative lived in a property with a rear garden which backed onto the now closed Luton Dunstable line, now a busway. This was late 80s when it was only used a few times a week for a freight service.

 

[MetroPleb]

I overlook the Chat Moss route from my bedroom window - all sorts going past. Used to be 142, 150, 156 - now 323, 331, 195, 185, 802, 67/Mark4 (occasional), 158, 197, freight and even the odd Pendolino. When 185s go past I don't even need to look.. just listen for that distinctive low engine rumble...

As a child I grew up elsewhere knowing all about Stephenson's Rocket and the famous line from Liverpool to Manchester - a legend from the past. When I moved here I thought - good, a railway station nearby... and then I realised it was the same line... cool!

 

[Peter0124]

Thanks again. Anything that shows the Caledonian Sleeper especially in and around Scotland would be my pick if I had the chance.

The sleeper empties from Edinburgh (and the earlier sleeper into Glasgow) roar past my place in the morning. Can always hear the distinctive 92

 

[pokemonsuper9]

I live within earshot (and with sightline from two rooms) of the Atherton line, but the gaps in houses and trees are few so it's pretty much impossible to see them for more than a few seconds (and gathering numbers is just barely impossible on everything except certain freight trains that have the number in big numbers on the side).

 

[Somewhere]

I have family that live directly opposite Worthing station. It used to be more fun to watch the trains in the past though! South West Trains, 158s, 313s etc... now its endless electrostars!

Give it another 20 years and you'll be yearning for the days of endless Electrostars!

 

[SWRtrainfan]

Used to live in a flat on the London side of Basingstoke station (from 2007 to 2013 or when I was 3 to when I was 8) and loved watching the trains. In fact I suspect that's how I got into trains!

 

[chessie]

I live in a bungalow right next to the WCML, a mile or so south of Carnforth.

In my case, it was a deliberate, conscious choice to buy a property as close the line
as humanly possible and 25 years later the novelty still hasn't worn off!!



I've got one of those on my roof - "Railcam Bolton-le-Sands" is aka Freightmaster HQ




MARK

Thanks for hosting, I view that cam often.

 

[65477]

Bought up in a house that had a good view of the GER Enfield line with a regular procession of N7's. Moved well away from railways for many years when we moved to a house that backed onto the Chingford line. The highlight of our 5 years there was the year when the track was relayed and we had Cl66's parked outside for a couple of weekends. Retirement has brought us to a house where we can hear steam trains on a preserved line but cannot see them.

 

[Deepgreen]

We moved six weeks ago from Betchworth to Gomshall. I used to be able to see trains on the North Downs line and the Dorking - Horsham line (at a pinch, in winter!) from our garden/paddock - now I can hear the NDL, but not see it, as it's in the valley. The crossover at Gomshall creates a satisfying clatter! I was brought up in a house in New Malden which had a tiny sliver of a view of the Kingston line between the two opposite houses. As a child I used to enjoy seeing which units were green and which were in the new-fangled BR blue!

The view from my "holiday cottage" *

View attachment 170965

(pic shows Jacobite steam train passing alongside Loch Eilt)

* It's actually an open bothy, so anyone can stay there, but it's not heavily used, and I've been responsible for looking after it for the past 30 years

And my house in Evesham backs on to the station, so I can lay in bed listening to the station announcements ..... Rarely notice the trains (mostly 800s) - the doors opening/closing make more noise than the engines! The station building itself obstructs most of my view of the trains though.

Lovely - as a young man I stayed many times at an ex-railway cottage by the line near Loch Eil Outward Bound - trains would appear to be running through the garden!

 

[RailcamUK]

Thanks to the OP here for starting this thread. If anyone here is interested in hosting a camera on Railcam UK, we'd be delighted to talk to you...

Generally speaking, we provide all the equipment and install it ourselves... and hosts benefit from free VIP membership - and the warm fuzzy feeling of adoration from other Railcam members!

Please drop us a line via the Contact page :

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Cheers

 

[vuzzeho]

Last year, I lived directly overlooking Stratford International, and this year I live directly overlooking Surrey Quays! They play the announcements very loud in Stratford International.

 

[stuu]

Not now. A previous house backed on to the Chatham main line just south of Herne Hill, with my room being on the top floor level with the tracks, and next to the signal for the junction.

So opening the curtains to see a packed SE train right outside wasn't unusual, and something the ex only did naked the once

 

[Mr. SW]

Just down the road from me...


Tornado at Beeches Road GCR(L)

 

[HOOVER29]

I live next to the Leicester-Burton freight line
Laugh a minute back in the coal days

Now we have diddly squat using the line

Used to be a signalling issue but can’t say if that’s sorted now.

 

[WideRanger]

My flat in Japan has its front door facing directly into a station on the Keisei Main Line - 3 metres from door to track boundary, with the lightest of protection (think railings found near UK pedestrian crossings. 3 trains in each direction every 10 minutes, off peak, and passing loops in the station used at peak times.

Heaven.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

My home in the UK overlooks the WCML 3.9 miles north of Preston at the start of the Barton loop.

 

[JRHurst]

I back on to the East and North London Lines and grateful for the variety the NLL brings.

 

[Tw99]

Not beside, but I can lie in bed and see the GWML in the valley a few hundred metres away. Seeing the XC to Bournemouth at 8:36 which always creeps along behind the GW Didcot to Paddington semifast is often my cue to get up !

 

[AlastairFraser]

I can hear the WCML on a bridge about a mile north of Preston station at night, I live a few mins walk away but not quite in sight of the actual line unfortunately! You can hear quite a variety of units if you listen carefully.

 

[Spamcan81]

Nearest I’ve come to living by a railway was on a school exchange to Aachen in 1969. My pen friend’s flat was right next to the line to Belgium and for two weeks I was royally entertained by steam locos banking trains up the climb out of Aachen.

 

[chris53]

I live next to a manually operated level crossing on the Southport to Wigan Branch line.

 

[Western 52]

My house backs on to the south Wales main line near Pembrey and Burry Port Station. We still have a signalbox and semaphores, although they'll soon be gone. Unit classes at the moment are 150, 153, 158, 197, 800 and 802. Locos are mainly 66s on the Robeston oilers, sometimes double headed.

 

[John Luxton]

I didn't actually live by a railway but my great aunt and uncle along with my maternal grandmother shared a house beside the Liverpool to Crewe line close to the site of the old Sefton Park Station on Nicander Road.

Used to visit very regularly to watch the trains as it was only about 10 minutes walk from home. Watched the demise of steam in the north west from there.

Used to enjoy watching the visits of the "Overhead Maintenance Train" usually on Sundays as well.

Whenever I took a trip on a train out of Lime Street would tell my relatives and they would usually be in the window waving easy in those days with drop windows to wave back.

All the time spent at their house obviously helped develop my interest in reailway and grandmother and great uncle whilst not enthusiasts were more interested than your average person and would tell me about unusual happenings.

 

[cornishjohn]

Grew up next to a London suburban railway. Often woken up by the 5 o'clock ECS move at the start of the timetable. Quite "exciting" when our garden tree almost fell on the line.

Now in hearing distance of the ECML.

 

[ikcdab]

My garden is directly adjacent to the line at Cogload Junction. So we get great views of everything on the GWR main line. It's also great having the railway as our neighbour, getting the hedges cut etc!

 

[MadCommuter]

I live beside a station on the Harrogate Line. Mainly just the drone from the 170s on the line so it isn't too bad.

I used to live next to this line in the Headingley area. The early morning HST took some getting used to.

 

[PaulLothian]

Forty-four years ago, when we moved into our present house, our 4-year-old would regularly watch trains on the Edinburgh and Glasgow line down the hill from us. Now, tree growth along the intervening canal means that not one train is visible ☹️

 

[Scotrail84]

My folks garden backs right onto the ECML in Scotland, and I mean right onto it, you can literally outstretch and arm and touch passing trains. 158s,170s, HSTs, 800s,73s on the sleeper and freights all pass by daily.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

I can hear the WCML on a bridge about a mile north of Preston station at night, I live a few mins walk away but not quite in sight of the actual line unfortunately! You can hear quite a variety of units if you listen carefully.

Cadley?

 

[AlastairFraser]

Cadley?

A bit further south than that. Closer to Ashton on Ribble and the Docks!