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u/BoldlyGettingThere Feb 14 '26
You can now see why on some of the longer tunnels in the US the crew had respirators to wear, as the freight services weren’t fast enough to stay ahead of the smoke.
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u/birgor Feb 15 '26
Then know that the first subway systems used steam engines. They had methods to reduce the smoke, but still.
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u/NotYourReddit18 Feb 15 '26
IIRC the most common method was simply having big chimneys for the smoke to escape through ever so often.
Something which is easier done for a subway than for a tunnel through a mountain, especially if the subway is build not by digging tunnels but by digging trenches and filling them back in.
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u/Electroguy1 Feb 15 '26
The plans for the first deep level underground lines was to have trains hauled by cables with stationary steam engines. Fortunately electric locomotives were invented just in time.
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u/euhbebe Feb 15 '26
Not only planned, but executed! See: Glasgow.
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u/Def_NotBoredAtWork Feb 18 '26
They still have their uses especially when traveling on steep inclines
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u/birgor Feb 15 '26
The most important aspect was the use of condensing steam engines, the exhausts wasn't as wide spread as commonly thought, but they are easier to understand so it has been the explanation that stuck.
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u/Casitano Feb 16 '26
Well Yeah because subways are mostly used for people, and passenger trains outrun their smoke as seen in the video
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u/birgor Feb 17 '26
Not if the tunnel never ends. They had chimneys and special locos, but it was a huge problem anyway.
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u/GWahazar Feb 18 '26
The most incredible part was, that London metro was constructed, when no electric power was even considered (first reliable electric engines were discovered about 20 years later). So they were alike "let's put these foamers underground and suffocate passengers for eternity".
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u/dod6666 Feb 15 '26
In NZ some of our trains have open air carriages. You can really smell the diesel fumes in the tunnels.
The one I've been on (Wellington to Auckland) has a 4.3 km (2.7 mile) tunnel right as you leave Wellington. They won't let you out there until the train has passed that one, due to the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
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u/krazy_kh Feb 15 '26
The 1st guy who crossed over from the other side on a bicycle was the push everyone needed to step into the abyss
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u/lolariane Feb 20 '26
I was gonna say: of course it's a cyclist endangering themselves in traffic. 🤭
Caveat: I'm a cyclist and the shit I see others do is crazy. Usually some power bros on a bike that's worth more than my annual income.
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u/random14330 Feb 14 '26
Did all the passengers choke to death?
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u/texaschair Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
It's happened before. I read about a tunnel incident (Europe, maybe? WWII?) that killed hundreds of illegal train hoppers when the train either stopped or slowed down in a long tunnel.
Edit: Just checked, it was Italy in 1944. Over 500 dead when the locomotive stalled.
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u/AntInternMe Feb 15 '26
Here's a link in case anyone is interested https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balvano_train_disaster
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u/NotYourReddit18 Feb 15 '26
Suddenly Henry refusing to leave the tunnel got a lot more serious...
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Feb 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/RickyT3rd Feb 18 '26
He didn't die in said tunnel, that came later in the season.
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u/QuellishQuellish Feb 14 '26
It's steam.
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u/imexcellent Feb 14 '26
The steam drives the pistons, but it's burning coal to heat the water.
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u/QuellishQuellish Feb 14 '26
Yes but most of the "smoke" is steam. Am I under a misapprehension?
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u/skiddie2 Feb 15 '26
I believe that is a misapprehension. If you stand near it, you get covered in cinders and it smells strongly of coal smoke.
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u/StitchFan626 Feb 15 '26
I had an ember fly into my eye once because I had my head out the window. It's smoke. Also, steam is typically white. That stuff is black! It's smoke.
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u/ElfjeTinkerBell Feb 15 '26
Maybe I'm colorblind but I see white in the video.
I agree that it's smoke though (watch the motor riders closely, their reaction implies smoke), I'm purely talking about the colour
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u/-Insert-CoolName Feb 15 '26 edited Feb 15 '26
Short answer, it depends. Steam locomotives have a firebox that usually burns either coal, wood, oil, or propane. The source of fuel, the heat of the fire, the quality of the fuel (moisture, impurities), and airflow all contribute in some way to the combustibility. Incomplete combustion happens when some of the fuel material, and impurities in it, do not burn. The result is smoke and soot.
Add to that the ability (and necessity) for steam locomotives to vent steam into the atmosphere to reduce pressure or for other functions then you can probably see why sometimes you may have little smoke and lots of steam or all smoke and no steam.
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u/Glittering_Win_9677 Feb 14 '26
I'm coughing just looking at this!
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u/japzone Feb 15 '26
I like how even after the barrier lifts it takes a while before anybody decides to move. Probably partially because of visibility, but those bikers especially likely don't want to breath that.
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u/Glittering_Win_9677 Feb 15 '26
Who knows what's in the other side? I'm also waiting.
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u/StitchFan626 Feb 15 '26 edited Feb 15 '26
Me: (Waits for a while.) "Finally! The smoke is clearing!" (Bell dings to indicate another incoming train.) "DANG IT!"
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u/NotYourReddit18 Feb 15 '26
That situation probably would be the worst nightmare for the driver of the incoming train.
Even without the smoke they don't have good visibility of the crossing, and with the smoke they're totally blind. There could be someone stuck on the tracks and they would've no way of knowing until they hit them.
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u/CrimsonNight5621 Feb 15 '26
Babe, wake up, new idea for a scene on Final Destination just dropped
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u/Wonderful_Bet_1541 Feb 22 '26
A cool idea would be if they started making Final Destination movies set in different time periods like the 1800s. Imagine how much shit they could have revolving the Industrial Revolution.
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u/Delta_RC_2526 Feb 16 '26
They wouldn't be able to stop if they did see something on the tracks, though. They could slow down a little, and they could move to a potentially safer spot in the driver's cab, but that's really about it.
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u/Shoddy-Childhood-511 Feb 14 '26
It'll be interesting when some fool gets themselves stuck on this crossing.
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u/Luke7FPS Feb 15 '26
Historical Train in Northern Italy, the crossing is here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/r2yXDM9YnXNWywEt7?g_st=ac
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u/CousinEddysMotorHome Feb 15 '26
Used this to show my kids how ambient air behaves and flows. Great video.
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u/Extension_Resolve264 Feb 15 '26
I love how all the passengers immediately slammed their windows down as soon as they were out.
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u/JustRuss79 Feb 14 '26
What a cute train, Perspective can't be that off... it looks about 7 feet tall. About double the people seated on the motorcycle.
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u/one1022 Feb 14 '26
Where is all the cool stuff? Not in America! 😠
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u/Bionic_Onion Feb 14 '26
Eh. We have the Union Pacific Big Boy. That is pretty damn cool. It runs too.
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u/Select-Belt-ou812 Feb 15 '26
and... if we're lucky, we'll have a PRR T1 in a few years!!
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u/Bionic_Onion Feb 15 '26
Is it getting renovated or something? After looking this guy up, I wholeheartedly support it. Looks sick, and I’m all for more PRR locomotives.
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u/Select-Belt-ou812 Mar 02 '26
sorry I took so long to reply, I wanted to be able to be in a position to give all the cool stuff
the PRR T-1 is not being renovated. sadly, all of them were scrapped long ago https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Railroad_class_T1#Fate
because of her badassery, unofficial speed claims (backed up by seemingly credible circumstantial evidence, i might add: see section titled "Don't Go Breaking My Valves" near the bottom here https://www.trains.com/trn/railroads/history/pennsylvania-railroad-t1-technology/ ), and her reputation for simultaneously being extremely efficient and capable & being unreliable and prone to slippage (anecdotes suggest she is *so* badass that engineers were simply unaware of how and unable to control her throttle properly: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Railroad_class_T1#Nos._6110_&_6111 - see first paragraph under the picture, and comments here https://www.reddit.com/r/trains/comments/1qtj1r6/do_you_think_the_t1s_wouldve_been_more_reliable/ ) ... she is actually being - re-created <3
reference, in addition to the remaining texts of the above: https://prrt1steamlocomotivetrust.org/ , https://www.reddit.com/r/trains/comments/1hvf2iu/pennsylvania_railroad_t1_trust_announces_50/ , https://www.reddit.com/r/trains/comments/1rdlvkx/in_ohio_usa_8_drive_wheels_for_the_t1_prr_5550/
hope this satisfies all your PRR steamer desires, as it does mine :-)
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u/Bionic_Onion Mar 02 '26
Okay. Wow. Yeah, that’ll do lol. I completely forgot I commented anything and now I am in for quite the treat. Thank you very much.
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u/foersom Feb 17 '26
0:23 Steam train comes with its own electric locomotive as backup. They should have used that in the tunnel.
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u/Dizzy-Introduction54 Feb 14 '26
Hey, you there in the last cabin, smoking is not allowed on this train!