Where does poo go on a train toilet?

Where does poop go when you flush it on an Amtrak? Wastewater goes into a holding tank that is emptied at a discharge facility. Railroads are no longer permitted to discharge human waste onto the right of way. Older passenger cars discharged human waste directly onto the tracks.



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In the USA, staff were instructed to lock toilets when the train was stopped in a station and unlock them when the train was again underway. Mercifully, new trains no longer dump waste on the tracks. Instead, trains are fitted with chemical holding tanks.

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Some trains may have composting toilet tanks, which use bacterial action to break down solid and liquid waste. Only the broken down clean liquid is released to the trackbed after sterilisation. The solid waste only has to be emptied every half year.

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Many passenger trains (usually medium and long-distance) have toilet facilities, often at the ends of carriages. Toilets suitable for wheelchair users are larger, and hence trains with such facilities may not have toilets in each carriage.

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Other than a refrigerator/watercooler and a bathroom there are almost zero ammenities on a locomotive. Only way a engineer can go to bathroom is by stopping his train or if the conductor is a certified engineer he could run for while.

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Bathrooms start out clean, but honestly get pretty much like your typical public restroom near the end. To be completely fair, cleaning these bathrooms on a moving train would be difficult, and Amtrak probably doesn't think a stop for cleaning is worth driving up the transit time even more than it already is.

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The truck plugs a hose into the airplane's waste tank valve and removes all of the waste into the tank on the back of the truck. The truck then takes the waste to a special area at the airport reserved for the waste from all aeroplanes, and the toilet waste is emptied into the sewer system for that airport.

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Do trains drop waste on the tracks? Not anymore. In the US until the 1960's, some toilets emptied directly onto the tracks. A sign was posted over the toilet reminding passengers not to flush while the train was on the station.

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No one wants to sit with trash on the floor and in the seat pocket. So this Amtrak travel tip is don't be Gilligan. Carry a small plastic bag to hold your trash for the ride, or get up and throw it in the trash bins at either end of the car.

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Yes, locomotive engines typically have a toilet, also known as a lavatory or restroom, for the use of the crew members who operate the train.

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While fuel dumps don't happen every day, they're also not uncommon. Nor do they usually represent a major emergency. In fact if an aircraft is taking the time to dump fuel before landing, that's likely an indication that the issue forcing the plane to land is serious but not critical.

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If we take an overall view of the transport sector, 71% of transportation related carbon emissions come from road users, whereas only 1.8% of emissions stem from rail travel. So in absolute terms, trains are responsible for a lot less emissions than cars.

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Mathews points to research showing that trains emit the lowest of CO2 per passenger mile at 177 grams per passenger mile. Buses come in at 299 grams per mile, second-worst only to cars at 371 grams.

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What do freight train engineers (drivers) eat for lunch? Do they have to bring their own, or does the railroad figure out a way to feed them? Freight train engineers typically bring their own meals or purchase food at train stations or nearby convenience stores.

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Conductors and engineers sleep at home or at a hotel at their away terminal. The operating crew of a train in the US can only be on duty for 12 hours and then must be relieved.

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If the train has a toilet then there will usually be a sign in your carriage pointing you in the direction of the nearest one. Don't assume there will always be a toilet though. Short distance commuter trains don't always have them, they tend to only be on longer distance trains.

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