Tracking Tracks — Motivation
Ideas and innovation are never generated on-demand; rather, they’re the product of perpetual thought and a keen eye for improvement.
Naturally, the best source of exposure is directly in the field. And with every station, line, segment, and mile offering something different, traversing a system’s entirety is the only way to guarantee comprehensive exposure and a true fostering of rumination (the “systems-level” approach).
Below, you’ll find a listing of the systems I’ve covered as my quest for covering new segments expands:
Systems
Stations
Route Miles
EXO
REM
TFL London Underground
London Cable Car
DLR
Montmarte Funicular
IDFM Paris Metro
RER B & E
CDGVAL
TECO Streetcar
TPA SkyConnect
Cincinnati Connector Streetcar
Cincinnati Airport People Mover
San Diego Trolley
NCTD Sprinter
NCTD Coaster
Getty Center Tram
Angel's Flight
Odense Light Rail
Lund Light Rail
DSB S-Train
Copenhagen Metro
MTA New York City Transit
SEPTA Regional Rail
MBTA Rapid Transit
SEPTA Heavy Rail
MTA Maryland
WMATA Metrorail
DC Streetcar
NJ Transit Light Rail
NJ Transit Rail Operations
Amtrak NEC
Amtrak Keystone
LA Metro
SFRTA Tri-Rail
Miami-Dade Transit
PATH
PATCO
AirTrain JFK
AirTrain EWR
ATL – The Plane Train
DFW Skylink
LIRR
CTA
Walt Disney World (Monorail & Railroad)
Disneyland Monorail
Chicago ORD ATS
SunRail
Virginia Railway Express
Seattle Streetcar
SoundTransit Central Link
SoundTransit Central Link
SoundTransit Tacoma Link
TriMet MAX Light Rail
TriMet WES
Portland Aerial Tram
Caltrain
SF Cable Cars
SF Muni Metro
SF Market Street Railway
BART
MARTA
Atlanta Streetcar
ATL SkyTrain
Chipman Central Railroad
Shore Line East
MBTA Commuter Rail
Amtrak Downeaster
Brightline
CTrail Hartford Line
Roosevelt Island Tramway
PAAC
Amtrak Empire Corridor
Amtrak Knowledge Corridor
Buffalo Metro Rail
Falls Incline Railway
TTC Subway
UP Express
YYZ Link Train
MTA Metro-North Railroad
Société de transport de Montréal
O-Train
AirTrain (SFO)
SacRT Light Rail
Capitol Corridor
SkyTrain
West Coast Express
Seattle Center Monorail
Sea-Tac Satellite Transit System
PHX SkyTrain
Valley Metro
The Hop MKE
Amtrak Hiawatha
DEN AGTS
RTD Light Rail & Commuter Rail
MetroTransit Light Rail
Northstar
MSP Airport Trams
Amtrak Piedmont
CATS LYNX
Reno Tram
SMART Train
Morgantown PRT
Greater Cleveland RTA
PIT Airport People Movers
Amtrak Norfolk Service
The Tide
CapMetro MetroRail
Hermann Park Railroad
Harris County METRORail
IAH Subway & Skyway
MARC Train
WeGo Transit "Music City" Star
Miami Airport Skytrain & e-Train
IAD AeroTrain & Mobile Lounge Shuttles
DART Light Rail
Dallas Streetcar
McKinney Ave Trolley
Denton County A-Train
Trinity Rail Express
TEXRail
JTA Skyway
ION Light Rail
Q-LINE
Detroit People Mover
Greenfield Village Railroad
Amtrak Wolverine
Metra BND, MED, & RID
- BN District (BNSF Line)
- Metra Electric District (Main Line, South Chicago, and Blue Island Branches)
- Rock Island District (Rock Island Main Line, Rock Island Beverly Branch, Southwest Service, Heritage Corridor)
Altamont Corridor Express
UTA TRAX
FrontRunner
Agency/Division | Systems | Services | Lines | Stations | Distance | Every Mile as of | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EXO | Train | 6 | 6 | 63 | 158 | September 2024 | Includes the former Deux-Montagnes EXO line |
REM | 1 | 1 | 5 | 10 | September 2024 | ||
Transport for London | London Underground | 11 | 27 | 272 | 250 | June 2024 | |
Transport for London | Docklands Light Rail | 5 | 7 | 45 | 24 | June 2024 | |
Transport for London | London Cable Car | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | June 2024 | |
Île-de-France Mobilitiés | RER B; RER E | 4 | 6 | 72 | 87 | June 2024 | |
Île-de-France Mobilitiés | Paris Metro | 16 | 18 | 314 | 144 | June 2024 | ✪ Inaugural Trip of Line 11 Rosny Extension |
Île-de-France Mobilitiés | Montmarte Funicular | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | June 2024 | |
Paris Aéroport | CDGVAL | 2 | 2 | 8 | 3 | June 2024 | |
HART | TECO Streetcar | 1 | 1 | 11 | 3 | February 2024 | |
TPA Airport | SkyConnect | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | February 2024 | |
SORTA | Cincinnati Connector | 1 | 1 | 18 | 2 | January 2024 | |
CVG Airport | People Mover | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | January 2024 | |
Utah Transit Authority | TRAX & S-Line | 4 | 7 | 58 | 47 | November 2023 | |
Utah Transit Authority | FrontRunner | 1 | 1 | 17 | 88 | November 2023 | |
Altamont Corridor Express | 1 | 1 | 10 | 85 | November 2023 | ||
SDMTS | Trolley | 3 | 5 | 62 | 65 | August 2023 | |
NCTD | Coaster & Sprinter | 2 | 2 | 22 | 63 | August 2023 | |
Getty Center Tram | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | July 2023 | ||
Angel’s Flight | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | July 2023 | ||
Odense Letbane | 1 | 1 | 26 | 9 | May 2023 | ||
Lund Tramway | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | May 2023 | ||
DSB | S-Tog | 7 | 7 | 86 | 105 | May 2023 | |
Copenhagen Metro | 4 | 5 | 39 | 24 | May 2023 | ||
Metra | BNSF, ME, & RI (RI, SWS, & HC) Districts | 5 | 8 | 118 | 194 | April 2023 | BNSF as of October 2019 |
Amtrak | Wolverine | 1 | 3 | 16 | 304 | April 2023 | |
Greenfield Village Railroad | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | April 2023 | ||
Detroit People Mover | 1 | 1 | 13 | 3 | April 2023 | ||
Q-Line | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3 | April 2023 | ||
ION Light Rail | 1 | 1 | 19 | 10 | April 2023 | ||
JTA Skyway | 1 | 2 | 8 | 3 | February 2023 | ||
TEXRail | 1 | 1 | 9 | 27 | January 2023 | ||
Trinity Rail Express (TRE) | 1 | 1 | 10 | 34 | January 2023 | ||
DCTA | A-Train | 1 | 1 | 6 | 21 | January 2023 | |
McKinney Ave Trolley | M-Line | 1 | 1 | 2* | 3 | January 2023 | |
DART | Light Rail & Streetcar | 8 | 5 | 71 | 95 | January 2023 | |
MWAA | AeroTrain & Mobile Lounge Shuttle | 2 | 2 | 7 | 3 | November 2022 | |
Miami Airport Airside Transport | Skytrain & e-Train | 2 | 2 | 6 | 1 | September 2022 | |
WeGo Transit | Music City Star | 1 | 1 | 7 | 32 | May 2022 | |
MARC Train | 4 | 4 | 42 | 203 | April 2022 | ||
Houston Airport System (IAH) | Subway & Skyway | 2 | 2 | 9 | 2 | February 2022 | |
Harris County METRO | METRORail | 3 | 3 | 39 | 23 | February 2022 | |
Hermann Park Railroad | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | February 2022 | ||
CapMetro | MetroRail | 1 | 1 | 9 | 32 | February 2022 | |
Hampton Roads Transit | The Tide | 1 | 1 | 11 | 7 | December 2021 | |
Amtrak | Norfolk Branch | 1 | 1 | 2 | 113 | December 2021 | |
Greater Cleveland RTA | Rapid Transit; Light Rail | 3 | 4 | 44 | 29 | November 2021 | |
Morgantown PRT | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | November 2021 | ||
PAAC | Light Rail; Inclines | 5 | 7 | 57 | 26 | November 2021 | Inclines as of October 2011 |
SMART | 1 | 1 | 12 | 45 | August 2021 | ||
Caltrain | Main Line + Gilroy | 3 | 1 | 31 | 77 | August 2021 | Main Line (SF-Tamien) as of August 2017 |
Circus Circus Reno | Reno Tram | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0.1 | August 2021 | |
CATS | LYNX Light Rail | 1 | 1 | 26 | 19 | January 2020 | |
Amtrak | Piedmont | 1 | 1 | 9 | 173 | January 2020 | |
MSP Airport Trams | Hub Tram & C Concourse People Mover | 2 | 2 | 5 | 1 | November 2019 | |
Northstar Commuter Rail | 1 | 1 | 7 | 40 | November 2019 | ||
MetroTransit | Light Rail | 2 | 2 | 37 | 22 | November 2019 | |
RTD | Light Rail & Commuter Rail | 12 | 10 | 75 | 101 | November 2019 | Updated August 2022 (N Line) |
DEN AGTS | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | November 2019 | ||
The Hop | Milwaukee Streetcar | 1 | 1 | 10 | 2 | October 2019 | |
Amtrak | Hiawatha Service | 1 | 1 | 5 | 86 | October 2019 | |
Sea-Tac Airport | Satellite Transit System | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | September 2019 | |
Seattle Center Monorail | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | September 2019 | ||
West Coast Express | 1 | 1 | 8 | 43 | September 2019 | ||
TransLink SkyTrain | 5 | 3 | 53 | 50 | September 2019 | ||
Phoenix Valley Metro | 1 | 1 | 38 | 28 | September 2019 | ||
PHX SkyTrain | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | September 2019 | ||
Santa Clara VTA | Light Rail | 3 | 4 | 63 | 42 | April 2019 | |
San Fransisco SFO | AirTrain | 2 | 1 | 9 | 3 | April 2019 | |
SacRT | Light Rail | 3 | 4 | 55 | 43 | April 2019 | Updated Nov ’23 (Morrison Creek) |
Capitol Corridor | Main Line (ex. Auburn Extension) | 1 | 1 | 15 | 133 | April 2019 | |
OC Transpo | O-Train | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | January 2019 | |
STM | Montréal Metro | 4 | 4 | 68 | 43 | January 2019 | |
MTA Metro-North Railroad | West-of-Hudson and East-of-Hudson Service | 8 | 8 | 124 | 384 | December 2018 | |
YYZ Link Train | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | November 2018 | ||
Metrolinx | Union Pearson Express | 1 | 1 | 4 | 15 | November 2018 | |
TTC | Subway | 5 | 4 | 75 | 48 | November 2018 | |
Falls Incline Railway | 1 | 1 | 2 | 195″ | November 2018 | ||
NFTA | Buffalo Metro Rail | 1 | 1 | 13 | 6 | November 2018 | |
MTA Long Island Rail Road | Electric & Diesel Territory | 13 | 12 | 126 | 322 | November 2018 | Updated Jan ’23 (✪ Inaugural Grand Central Direct Trip); Nov ’22 (⍟ Pre-Revenue East Side Access GCM Service); Electric as of February 2017 |
Amtrak | Empire and Knowledge Corridors | 2 | 2 | 6 | 118 | November 2018 | |
CTrail | Hartford Line | 1 | 1 | 9 | 62 | June 2018 | ✪ Inaugural Trip |
Brightline | 1 | 1 | 6 | 237 | January 2018 | Updated August 2018 (FTL-MIA); Updated Feb ’23 (BOC & AVE); Updated Feb ’24 (ORL) | |
NNEPRA | Amtrak Downeaster | 1 | 2 | 11 | 145 | January 2018 | |
MBTA Commuter Rail | 13 | 16 | 142 | 407 | December 2017 | Updated Feb ’19 (✪ Blue HIll Ave); Oct ’19 (✪ Foxboro Commuter Service); Oct ’22 (Foxboro-Mansfield); Jan ’23 (✪ Pawtucket) | |
Shore Line East | 1 | 1 | 9 | 51 | December 2017 | ||
Chipman Central Railroad | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0.05 | December 2017 | ||
ATL SkyTrain | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | October 2017 | ||
Atlanta Streetcar | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3 | October 2017 | ||
MARTA | 4 | 6 | 38 | 48 | October 2017 | ||
SF Market Street Railway | E/F Streetcar Lines | 2 | 2 | 4* | 7 | August 2017 | |
SFMTA | Muni Metro | 7 | 6 | 37* | 39 | August 2017 | Updated Nov ’23 (Central Subway) |
SF Cable Cars | 3 | 3 | 5* | 5 | August 2017 | ||
BART | Rapid Transit, eBART | 5 | 4 | 50 | 131 | August 2017 | Updated April ’19 (eBART); Aug ’21 (Berryessa) |
Portland Aerial Tram | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | August 2017 | ||
TriMet | MAX Light Rail & WES | 1 | 1 | 102 | 75 | August 2017 | |
SoundTransit | Central Link & Tacoma Link | 2 | 2 | 22 | 22 | August 2017 | |
Seattle Streetcar | 2 | 2 | 17 | 4 | August 2017 | ||
Virginia Railway Express | 2 | 2 | 19 | 86 | July 2017 | ||
SunRail | 1 | 1 | 16 | 49 | May 2017 | Updated Feb ’23 (Phase II South Extension) | |
Walt Disney World | Monorail, Railroad, Skyliner | 7 | 6 | 14 | 20 | May 2017 | Updated Feb ’23 (Skyliner) |
Chicago ORD | Airport Transit System (ATS) | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | May 2017 | |
CTA | Chicago “L” | 8 | 12 | 146 | 103 | May 2017 | Updated October 2019 |
NJ Transit Rail Operations | 11 | 12 | 155 | 440 | April 2017 | ||
MBTA | Rapid Transit | 13 | 16 | 84 | 78 | March 2017 | Updated April ’18 (✪ SL3 Chelsea); March ’22 (✪ GLX Union Square); December ’22 (✪ GLX Medford Branch) |
AirTrain EWR | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | February 2017 | ||
Miami-Dade Transit | MetroRail and Metromover | 5 | 4 | 44 | 29 | January 2017 | |
SFRTA Tri-Rail | 2 | 2 | 19 | 80 | January 2017 | Updated Feb 2024 (Downtown Link) | |
SEPTA Trolley | City, Suburban, Girard | 8 | 9 | 86* | 60 | December 2016 | Updated July 2024 (15 Richmond) |
Amtrak | NEC, Keystone Corridor | 3 | 2 | 42 | 556 | November 2016 | |
NJ Transit Light Rail | RiverLINE, HBLR, NLR/NCS | 6 | 6 | 62 | 57 | October 2016 | |
LA Metro | Subway, Light Rail | 6 | 6 | 100 | 112 | September 2016 | Updated August 2023 (K Line) |
Disneyland | Monorail | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | September 2016 | |
MTA Maryland | Light Rail & Metro Subway | 4 | 4 | 47 | 45 | May 2016 | |
WMATA Metrorail | Metrorail | 6 | 17 | 97 | 128 | April 2016 | Updated Nov ’22 (✪ Silver Line Phase II) |
MTA NYC Transit | Subway, Staten Island Railway | 26 | 37 | 493 | 250 | April 2016 | Updated January 2017 (✪ Second Ave Subway) |
D.C. Streetcar | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | March 2016 | ||
AirTrain JFK | 3 | 2 | 10 | 8 | April 2015 | ||
SEPTA Regional Rail | 13 | 13 | 155 | 283 | March 2014 | Updated August 2022 (✪ Wawa Extension) | |
PATH | 4 | 3 | 13 | 14 | February 2014 | ||
SEPTA Heavy Rail | MFL, BSL, NHSL | 3 | 3 | 75 | 39 | February 2014 | |
PIT People Movers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | October 2011 | ||
RIOC | Roosevelt Island Tramway | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | October 2010 | |
Dallas DFW | SkyLink | 1 | 1 | 10 | 5 | August 2009 | |
Atlanta ATL | The Plane Train | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | April 2008 | |
PATCO | 1 | 1 | 13 | 14 | July 2006 |
✪ Denotes a ride along the full primary passenger route on a service’s inaugural passenger trip.
Jeff Rules™ to System Completion
At what point does a system count as being “complete”?
Since there are enough people who have asked me, both out of curiosity, and for their own adventures, I’m officially documenting the guidelines by which a system is marked as such: A system is considered “complete” when every route mile in regular service has been traversed, and at least a portion of the territory was traversed on the system’s own equipment.
There are several implications from this, guidance of which is below.
- Riding the entirety of a service’s territory on an intercity train does not count in and of itself, until one has also used the service itself.
- e.g. Riding Amtrak between New Haven and New London does not count for SLE until SLE itself has been ridden.
- e.g. Riding Amtrak between New Haven and New London does not count for SLE until SLE itself has been ridden.
- Not all of the territory must have been ridden at the same time, on the same trip, or even on the same service, provided the entire territory of the service is traversed
- e.g. MNR’s Hudson Line could be completed by riding a MNR train to Riverdale, and taking Amtrak betwen Penn Station and Poughkeepsie on a separate occasion; doing so traverses the entire territory and covers the service.
- Every route-mile does NOT mean every track-mile. Where express tracks run parallel to local tracks, they both count as the same route and either can be used to traverse the territory.
- Where lines split, merge, and operate unilateral segments, these need not be traversed independendently unless the route itself (e.g. customer-facing messaging, stops, etc.) diverges to operate separate one-way segments.
- Where different services operate on isolated trackage/networks, there is a preference for covering the adjacent segments on each network, although this is not required.
- e.g. Riding the MBTA Commuter Rail’s Old Colony Lines to Braintree would generally not count for the MBTA Red Line Braintree Branch.
- Where bidirectional services operate different one-way route segments, each one-way segment must be traversed.
- e.g. Tri-Met’s MAX in Portland operates several one-way segments through the downtown core, each of which must be traversed separately.
- The start/end of bidirectional trackage need not be traversed per the above guidance on route miles vs track miles.
- A territory must see regularly-scheduled service to be considered a required segment for a system’s completion.
- Other territories can certainly be counted and tracked as part of a system’s rare mileage, but need not be completed to consider a system “complete.”
- e.g. The multi-year suspension of the SEPTA Route 15 Trolley and GCRTA Waterfront Line, and the event-only MBTA CR service between Mansfield and Foxboro, exclude them from the required components of their respective systems. However, these can still be tracked as rare mileage.
- When in doubt, the “Line of Sight” heuristic applies: if the territory could be seen from the adjacent territory, it counts; if it can’t be seen, it doesn’t.
- e.g. Riding the Brunswick Line’s branch to Frederick, MD, returning to Point of Rocks, and riding the other segment to Martinsburg, WV counts for the system’s completion since the wye at Point of Rocks is visible from the Brunswick Line’s tracks (and is visible from the station itself).