How far can you go by train in 5 hours? (interactive map)

For the German trains I would add the qualifier "theoretically" or "with a lot of luck" considering the high chance of delays.

	▲	SoftTalker 11 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Same in the US. If you take Amtrak (particularly west of Chicago) there's a fair chance that at some point you will travel zero distance in 5 hours.
	▲	jcutrell 11 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		This could be modeled with stdev

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GuB-42 10 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It would be interesting to layer it with an elevation map.

We can almost make out the contours of the mountain ranges. For example if you look at France, there is like a big hole in the middle of the southern half of the country, that all train lines seem to avoid. That's the Massif Central mountain range, the largest of the country and a sparsely populated area. Same idea with the Apennines in Italy.

Compare to relatively flat countries like Germany and Poland where it is much more uniform.

You could use a population density map too, but if a low population area is flat, express trains tend to go straight through them instead of avoiding them, which give some spotty coverage rather than none at all as it is the case in mountainous areas.

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shermantanktop 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

For commute visualization, this is great but of course real commutes require more time at either end. The train part of the commute is usually the least awful part - it’s the unreliable transit and pedestrian-unfriendly terrain that grinds your soul to a nub.

	▲	xnx 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Also doesn't account for time waiting for the train, which could be hours late at night.

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elcapitan 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I find the new version of the site more practical, as you can enter stations: https://www.chronotrains.com

I always thought of this visualization type as kind of a gimmick, but recently used this site for planning a vacation. I was visiting one place in the middle of the country and wanted to find some time efficient way to travel to "some coast" as the second part of that journey, inside the UK. The travel time was very much dependent on the specific main lines rather than geographical distance, so that was very helpful.

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pil0u 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Past discussions:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42530332 8 months ago - 648 points - 412 comments

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32537382 Aug 21, 2022 - 80 points - 42 comments

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pil0u 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

This submission's link is https://old.chronotrains.com/

There is now with a search feature https://www.chronotrains.com/

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ajd555 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Any idea why Spain and Portugal have such small isometric zones? An obvious factor is the mountains in the North, but I'm surprised there isn't easier access between the Iberian peninsula and France

	▲	Anduia 11 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Yes, it is the mountains. Tunnels are very expensive. The French TGV lines only reach the Spanish border at Hendaye on the west coast and Perpignan on the east. The fast line to Barcelona is quite recent. In northern Spain, there is a slow train line that connects Barcelona with Galicia called the "tren estrella," but it stops everywhere and uses old infrastructure, so it is slow. Traveling to Madrid is always fast with the newer AVE lines, and more are being built. No idea about Portugal. I guess that it is the same situation, and those routes are covered by buses.
	▲	yokaze 10 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		Well, Spain is fairly sparsely populated in the interior compared to France or Germany: https://maps-spain.com/maps-spain-geography/spain-population... Then you have the Pyrenees between the Iberian peninsula and France. Aside from being mountainous, also fairly low population density, and rather poorer regions to the point that you'll find abandoned villages. So, the only sensible connections are along the Mediterranean (Catalonia) or the Atlantic coast (Basque Country). Another reason is that Spain has high-speed rails only since the nineties. IRC, just in the recent years, there was a high-speed connection built to the Basque Country (from Madrid). From the Basque Country you can go to France with a light rail. So, the only high-speed connection is along the Mediterranean. In a way, it's a center/periphery problem. France is prioritising connections from/to Paris, Spain from/to Madrid. Unless either side improves the network at their side of the border, it also makes limited sense to improve yours. The EU is funding that.
	▲	tiagod 11 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		Severe lack of investment. While Spain was building one of the largest high-speed train networks in the world, we were closing down existing lines and building enormous highways.
	▲	KK7NIL 11 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		The Iberian peninsula uses its own track gauge.

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silvestrov 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Ireland does not seem to work.

Interesting that Spain and Portugal seems so disconnected.

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TheChaplain 10 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It's _very_ optimistic.

It states 6:01 for going from my parents to my home, in reality it's over 8 because switching trains is rarely within 10 minutes.

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xnx 11 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It's a little hidden, but Google Maps (web version) has a walking or driving travel time feature under: Layers -> More -> Travel time

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shindeyash28 11 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

This is great! Now I can find out how many countries I can visit in a day by train efficiently

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NitpickLawyer 11 hours ago | parent | next [-]

The most has to be something like minmaxing borders between benelux + de + fr + ch + it and then head east / north-east as much as possible, right?

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amelius 11 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

I just wish they made the range 8h instead of 5h.

(Maybe someone can find the point where it can be changed in the Javascript code.)

	▲	JoshTriplett 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Likewise. Or 12h, even.