What do you call people that hop trains?

The hobos sought not only employment, but also the freedom and independence the life allotted them. But that life also came with hardships and danger. Not only is hopping a train illegal, it is extremely dangerous. Many hobos were killed or injured while trying to board or jump off a moving freight train.



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The era of the freight train-hopping, job-seeking hobo faded into obscurity in the years following the Second World War. Many hobos from this era have since “caught the westbound,” or died. A small number of so-called hobos still hop freight trains today.

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He was a hobo, part of an American tradition that emerged after the Civil War: transient laborers who rode the rails and found short-term work along the way.

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It is absolutely not legal to ride on any part of a freight train without the express permission of the railroad. You would be guilty of trespassing and of theft of service since you would be getting railroad transportation without paying for it.

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Fines under the federal railway act vary, but can range as high as high as $10,000. In the U.S., felony trespass can result in up to 4 years in jail and/or a $2,500 fine. This varies by local and state jurisdictions.

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The term 'Benching' was coined in New York in the 1970's by graffiti writers. The bench is a place graffiti writers gather to watch trains.

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Female hobos were an integral part of the hobo culture, and their stories and experiences have been documented in literature, photography, and other forms of media.

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Called “bulls,” these unofficially deputized men are hired by various railroad companies to protect trains from the shady characters of the farthest outreaches of the vast American West. These are not law-abiding citizens. Nor are they well-trained, like the Pinkerton agents.

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The most common form of penalty for train surfers is a fine, however, in some countries, such as the United States or Canada, train surfers can be not only fined, but imprisoned too. In the United Kingdom, train surfing is prohibited under railway byelaw No.

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As far as I'm aware, there's no legal limit. Passenger trains do not normally exceed 12 cars (around 900 feet, dependent on rolling stock type), but many are much shorter than this.

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Most of Amtrak's network is on tracks owned, maintained, and dispatched by highly-profitable freight railroads, known as “host” railroads where Amtrak uses their tracks. Most of the trains on these rail lines are the freight railroads' own freight trains.

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The term hobo is a loose one used to define everything from happy-go-lucky train hoppers to large homeless communities (and sometimes derogatorily so). But in its most popular definition, itinerant workers traveling the country by train use the word to describe themselves and their unique and intentional lifestyle.

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