October 7th, 2007
The last line
Trains aren’t as popular as they should be. So to convince you to travel by rail, here are some of the things that I think make it better than any other form of transportation.
- It’s very difficult to get lost on a train
- You don’t have to park when you arrive
- You can ride a train drunk
- When else are you going to get a couple of hours to finish reading that book?
- You can try and fall asleep when you get on and wake up right at your destination – this must be how being in stasis feels in sci-fi films
- You always know you’ve been on a journey when travelling by rail
That said, trains aren’t as good as they should be, so here’s a few tips for them:
- Traditionally, the phrase ‘on rails’ means easy to operate and maintain. If this is so, what’s with all the cancellations, late arrivals and technical problems?
- Plastic mouldings look great and make the train seem modern, but those few inches they take up could give us all a little more room and therefore make us all a little less crippled when leaving the train.
- Please, please, learn how to make a decent cup of coffee. Expecting travellers to be happy without a good cup is just wrong.
Technorati Tags: trains, webcomic, comic, travelling
Sean on 
Maddie on
I’ve never been on a train, myself. They’re supposed to be putting in a commuter rail in my area soon, which is good, because the public transportation situation around here as of now is GOD AWFUL. I’ve also never been on a plane. My family always travels by car.
Travelling by train is my favourite way of travelling. If I could do it everywhere, I would.
The Buffalo, NY public transportation system is gonna make me snap sometime. Almost happened today. If it ever happens, I’ll attempt to not injure any of you fine people.
My grandparents took me on train rides as a little tyke and I loved it. I haven’t traveled by train since, however, save for a few metro rides into Washington, DC.
The line art on this is incredible, is it computerized? It’s so clean and straight.
When last I was in the UK, the train stations all had little coffee vendors advertising “proper” cups of coffee. Shouldn’t that be good enough?
I think ’snapping’ is an inevitable part of travelling on any public transport system. There more people involved in any single endevour, the more likely you are to lose it with someone.
Matt, now that is blasphemy. The Flowfield unity is hand-drawn in its entirety. All the strips exist as physical objects. So no, no computers, just pens and, in this case, rulers.
That said, scanning them in does allow for a certain amount of digital shenanigans. mostly I leave the contrast fairly natural so that you can see the pen strokes, but in this case I used some fairly brutal settings because of the geometric style and also because I wanted the tunnel black to be black.
Roo, that stuff they serve, it’s the only liquid known to man that can be only either super-heated-scold-your-face-off hot, or stone cold within an instant. A cup of that ‘proper’ coffee has all the ill effects of a normal coffee (slight heart tremor, requires frequent trips to the lavatory), but without the perks of waking you up and acting as an appetite supressant.
never been on a train, joe?? i pity you.
i like watching the people on trains
but the trains are cancelled in my city all week
hopefully its not long til the new system is ready to go
ive never heard the phrase ‘on rails’, use it in context?
They seat you in the non-smoking section at the end of the train, so you have to walk through all the stinky you-can’t-breathe smoking cars to get to the diner car. Truth!
I love trains, and considering what a royal pain in the arse taking an airplane has become, I intend to travel by train more often in the future.
I have been on trains. i spent a week in germany going on more trains and buses than doing anything else. i love trains rides, especially late at night for some reason. it’s quiet, comfortable and just cool enough.
But, that said, i don’t go on trains that often. everywhere i go is either within walking distance (school, friends houses…my house…) or there’s a bus/paren with a car. i wish i went on trains more often..
Ah, ok, so you’re straight-up traditional then. Yeah, I’ve noticed the strokes in past strips but didn’t see them here, not to mention the uber straight lines. I guess you’re just a robot, Adam.
Blasphemy is what I do
I love trains - my problem is that I always fall asleep - the rockier they are the better. I have even been know to fall asleep in the London tube when I was only going 2 stops.
Never been on a plane OR a train, Joe?! How scandalous. Those are my two favorite methods of transportation! Personally, I hate cars and driving. Plus, I’m working towards a pilot license so the plane thing is doubly scandalous to me.
The problem with trains, at least where I live, is that you can never actually count on them to get you anywhere if you have somewhere to be. Because more than likely, the train won’t get there until an hour late, and then who knows how long it will take to get there.
The problem with transportation you can’t steer is that if something ends up on the tracks, a car, say, there’s nothing you can do about it. That really has more to do with the fact that trains can’t stop than that they can’t steer, but whatever. The car thing actually happened to a bunch of my friends recently, too. They ended up getting home four hours late, because they had to shut down the track and everything. What excitement!
Trains are for the win. Steam trains especially (my steampunk is showing, isn’t it?). I wish it were cheaper to go by train across the US–I hate air travel too. It’s way too fast; being a wanderer I much prefer feeling the journey itself. Also, the anticipation has time to build exquisitely high.
H’m…wanderer…train…steam….
I want a train like the Wanderer (from Wild Wild West?). Gadgets!
With the new leaning trains we have over here, you can really feel the journey… apparently you’re not supposed to be able to feel it go around corners, but I can confirm that you can.
I think it takes a connoisseur to enjoy the journey – It’s a state of mind… like eating blue cheese.
…and welcome to The Flowfield Unity.
Thank you for the welcome–and the compliment (connoisseur? Me? ^_^)!