Remember the Smoking Car on Trains?

[Derby]

When I was a kid, I'd ride the commuter train with my dad to his work place in the city on holidays, and we'd ride in the smoking car so he could smoke his pipe and we'd read the newspaper. The cars were pre-World-War-II with velvet like upholstery and dark wood trim, very 1930's. There would usually be a smokey card game going on in one of the four-place seating areas, and before a.c., the windows slid open. Does anyone remember the days of smoking cars? I think I probably got the equivalent of a small cigar of nicotine just riding along in that earlier time. Nostalgia. My trips to his office were one of the treats of the winter holidays, and I'd take adventures around the big office building and down to the newsstand, and lunch was a big deal in a downtown restaurant, sometimes Berghoff's, a German place with gruff middle-aged male waiters and white tablecloths.

Great memories .

 

[smudgersmissingleg]

Here in England in the 1990's I used to smoke cigarettes on both the bus and the train. On the bus you had to smoke on the top deck and the train had an entire carriage. The train was brilliant because even if it was packed the smoking carriage would be empty so you were always guaranteed a seat! I loved being able to smoke on trains. These days you can't even smoke on the open air platforms.

 

[smudgersmissingleg]

Of course we could also smoke on the London Underground (Subway) in those days too - I remember seeing all the cigarette stubs stuck between the slatted wooden floor panels ?

The Kings Cross fire on The London Underground in 1987 was caused by a smoker. Smoking had been banned a couple of years before but People would light up their cigarettes as they went up the escalator and that's how they think the fire started. Someone discarded a match after lighting a cigarette and because there was an accumulation of rubbish and grease under the escalator the whole lot went up in flames.
The place turned into an inferno and 31 people died with another 100 injured?.

There's a good documentary about the tragedy on YouTube:

 

[captpat]

When I was in the Navy I served on submarines, in the 80’s smoking was unrestricted and I remember the overhead in the chiefs quarters was stained a dull yellow from folks smoking. Later smoking became restricted to a single area on the ship, and usually only 2-3 people at a time. This was about the same time that sea store cigarettes were phased out. I recall folks would get desperate when oxygen was low and lighters wouldn’t fire up. A couple times we were extended and folks ran out of cigarettes, one could really make out if you had cigarettes to barter. Eventually many smokers transitioned to smokeless tobacco and then we had to deal with spit cups.

 

[instymp]

When I was in the Navy I served on submarines, in the 80’s smoking was unrestricted and I remember the overhead in the chiefs quarters was stained a dull yellow from folks smoking. Later smoking became restricted to a single area on the ship, and usually only 2-3 people at a time. This was about the same time that sea store cigarettes were phased out. I recall folks would get desperate when oxygen was low and lighters wouldn’t fire up. A couple times we were extended and folks ran out of cigarettes, one could really make out if you had cigarettes to barter. Eventually many smokers transitioned to smokeless tobacco and then we had to deal with spit cups.

Submariners are a special breed.
Thanks.

 

[GlidingGonzo]

The smoking car wasn't just a standard passenger car where you could smoke. They were a lounge, often with a bar and food service:
View attachment 120460

Luxurious comfortable and sophisticated.

View attachment 120461

View attachment 120462

A long train ride through scenic terrain with good food and drink being served, smoking allowed... oh if only. Being born in '98 this is basically inconceivable. Although I think I heard they still smoke on train cars in parts of Russia, but I don't know if that's true or not. If it is, that would also be a good sales pitch for a multi-day sightseeing train line.

 

[Sweet Home Alabama]

I am very glad that I do not have to breathe secondhand smoke anymore unless I choose to and outside only.

 

[OverMountain]

I can’t believe smoking was ever allowed on submarines, especially when in a low oxygen state. For “dining ins”, part of the program always stated when the “smoking lamp” was lit….not sure if that came over from one of the sea services.

 

[mikecronis]

When I was a kid, I'd ride the commuter train with my dad to his work place in the city on holidays, and we'd ride in the smoking car so he could smoke his pipe and we'd read the newspaper. The cars were pre-World-War-II with velvet like upholstery and dark wood trim, very 1930's. There would usually be a smokey card game going on in one of the four-place seating areas, and before a.c., the windows slid open. Does anyone remember the days of smoking cars? I think I probably got the equivalent of a small cigar of nicotine just riding along in that earlier time. Nostalgia. My trips to his office were one of the treats of the winter holidays, and I'd take adventures around the big office building and down to the newsstand, and lunch was a big deal in a downtown restaurant, sometimes Berghoff's, a German place with gruff middle-aged male waiters and white tablecloths.

Trains but also in theaters, cars, and planes. The "non-smoking section" of a plane was just a small curtain.

 

[Kooky]

I don't think I've ever ridden a train that wasn't at an amusement park. I would ride a train everywhere if I could.

I prefer walking, and being on a train from what I can tell.

 

[Hillcrest]

When I was a kid, I'd ride the commuter train with my dad to his work place in the city on holidays, and we'd ride in the smoking car so he could smoke his pipe and we'd read the newspaper. The cars were pre-World-War-II with velvet like upholstery and dark wood trim, very 1930's. There would usually be a smokey card game going on in one of the four-place seating areas, and before a.c., the windows slid open. Does anyone remember the days of smoking cars? I think I probably got the equivalent of a small cigar of nicotine just riding along in that earlier time. Nostalgia. My trips to his office were one of the treats of the winter holidays, and I'd take adventures around the big office building and down to the newsstand, and lunch was a big deal in a downtown restaurant, sometimes Berghoff's, a German place with gruff middle-aged male waiters and white tablecloths.

I remember the smoking cars and riding in them several times to N.Y.C. I also remember from when I was very young, the WWII vets smoking lucky strikes in church waiting for services and stubbing the buts out on the marble floor. Janitors would sweep between services! The pastor would light up a cigar in the foyer after the mass when greeting people !

 

[jpmcwjr]

I took the train from Chicago-New Haven in the 60's. Sleeper cars, dining car, club car, all great for teenagers on the loose before starting school. It was glorious!

 

[DanWil84]

For my education I applied for a abroad internship. My German language grades where outstanding compared to the average (so still mediocre I think haha), last minute I got a internship assigned in Austria. At that time I was a cigarette smoker. The first stint from Utrecht to Frankfurt I traveled via a highspeed train. Quite an experience, the tracks next to highways the cars stood still compared to the train, at that time in Germany there were a lot of highways without speed limits so a lot drive 100+ miles or 160+ km's an hour. If I remember correctly the high speed train was all non smoking. The last stint to Austria I traveled via "regular" train and couldn't book a "normal" seat anymore, so I sad in the smoking area of the train. I have never sat in a more reeking place, for my nose it was the most awefull place it had visited. The gentleman next to me was smoking Camel cigarettes, lighting the next cigarette with the ember of the previous one. Somehow I didn't light a cigarette the 5 hours in that train, never had the need to I think. I also traveled by air when smoking was allowed in the back part of the plane, but I was only about 10 years old, so can't remember.

When now smoking a pipe or a cigar a distinguished smoking lounge like Jesse posted would be awesome, but in today's society (next to rail companies thinking it's a waste, look how much "normal" chairs would fit into it!) in most countries it would be a no go. I love traveling by train, a acquaintance of mine has traveled a lot of long distance train rides like the Trans Siberia Express several times (connected from Beijing to Hanoi) and The Ghan (Australia) and that's something I want to do when my sons grow up.

 

[warren99]

The last time I sat in a smoking car on Amtrak was in 1990 when I took the train from New York to Philadelphia.

 

[Hillcrest]

The Kings Cross fire on The London Underground in 1987 was caused by a smoker. Smoking had been banned a couple of years before but People would light up their cigarettes as they went up the escalator and that's how they think the fire started. Someone discarded a match after lighting a cigarette and because there was an accumulation of rubbish and grease under the escalator the whole lot went up in flames.
The place turned into an inferno and 31 people died with another 100 injured?.

There's a good documentary about the tragedy on YouTube:

Is smoking still allowed in pubs in England and Ireland ? Asking from America ... they always depict smokers on t.v. curious to know if thats still allowed ... maybe in remote areas ???

 

[mso489]

I think Irish pubs have banned smoking, maybe in UK too.

Someone was reminiscing about cribbage. That used to be popular shipboard in the Navy, at least among some of the older enlisted men. The younger guys were always kept busy, so there wasn't much time to learn it.

A full meal on a train was always a special treat. The food was amazingly good. They had white table clothes. It was truly "uptown."

 

[smudgersmissingleg]

Is smoking still allowed in pubs in England and Ireland ? Asking from America ... they always depict smokers on t.v. curious to know if thats still allowed ... maybe in remote areas ???

Definitely not allowed in pubs or any enclosed public spaces.

 

[Pipeoff]

There are no pass. trains in my rural area, but every town has a nice old depot. I think in the near future the cost of cars will result in return to mass trans great for relax and safety. MaryJane focus may help bring back the smoking area.

 

[Warlee]

When I was 17 I took a train out west to visit a friend. Amtrak still had a smoking lounge in one of the cars. I hung out there for a good part of the trip as there was a great group of people there and great conversation.

Traveling alone most folks assumed I was older. Met many interesting people and got away with more than I should have at that age. Great memories.

 

[Sam Gamgee]

I've never traveled by train but would like to try it out someday.

I was a kid in the 80s and remember the ubiquitous smoking in malls, stores, etc. (everyone in my family was a cigarette smoker), and remember well those tin McD's ashtrays. Dairy Queen had thick, red ones made of plastic. We'd spin them on tabletops as we waited for the grownups to get done "talking" (that's all grownups did or still do, it seems).

Around here in North Texas there were smoking sections in restaurants till well into the 2000s. I stopped smoking cigarettes in 2000 and still remember how odd it was to opt for the non-smoking section. That was a big change and was one of the things that helped me stay a non-smoker, the contrast and the conscious choice that came with it.

It has been a strange thing to witness the culture's attitude about smoking change so drastically (all provided by experts doing our thinking for us). Going from being able to smoke almost everywhere indoors, and now one can hardly even smoke outdoors. Absolute insanity.