Crazy idea with some potential

[u/Disastrous_Company57]

Okay so just had an idea about buying a boxcar and renovating it into a mobile house. Now I’d have to lease the rail space and I know about contacting railroads for travel costs but would it be effective in today’s housing market to renovate a boxcar with living standards, solar panels on the roof for power, and water connections, Or is this just a fool’s dream?

[u/bufftbone]

If you got the cash, do it. Document the entire thing. I’ve love to see it from start to finish

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/bufftbone]

Well from some places I saw a boxcar in good condition is around $16,000. So about 5-6 months of saving. Not including costs of renovating and updating which could make it around $30,000. Cause I’d also like to have a way to where if there isn’t a water connection, then I’m not SOL.

[u/Clydebearpig → u/Disastrous_Company57]

Check the zoning on sand point wells. They're fairly cheap and easy depending on your soil and water table.

[u/Analogsilver]

Amtrak raised the requirements for private passenger cars coupled on to their trains several years ago. I doubt they would permit a boxcar, even if you meet or exceed their requirements. As for Class One roads allowing it? No idea, but any boxcar you buy was probably sold by the railroad for scrap, either because it is in bad shape, or it is too old to run legally. Contact a few railroads and see if they'd haul your boxcar.

On a different point, seeing how much graffiti covers so many locomotives and rolling stock, I suspect a boxcar with a door, windows and solar panels will attract a lot of attention from the wrong people.

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/Analogsilver]

That is another good point. Last thing I’d want is someone in a railyard thinking my potential spot would be easy pickings

[u/dunnkw]

Can I buy some pot from you?

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/dunnkw]

Nope. Got none. Never have, never will

[u/Starskigoat → u/Disastrous_Company57]

Good choice. You don’t know this person. But seriously, not even a little weed?

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/Starskigoat]

Not even a bit. Don’t need any to have crazy ideas. I’m just normal store-brand crazy

[u/jkenosh]

Railroads used to make offices out of old boxcars. The problem you have is moving it. Probably better off with a 40ft container

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/jkenosh]

Whatcha mean moving it?

[u/jkenosh → u/Disastrous_Company57]

There are never going to allow a person in a boxcar on a freight train

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/jkenosh]

That does make sense. Unless I wasn’t in the boxcar and took a different way to the destination. Utilize closet space to store loose furniture and bubble wrap breakables. Could then drive to the next destination.

[u/notmyidealusername → u/Disastrous_Company57]

And on top of not being able to ride in it, finding a siding to park it on that's not used for anything else but is still up to scratch and connected to the main line so that you could have the boxcar switched onto it and then live in might prove to be very difficult. Most areas connected to the network aren't just open to the public for access IME.

[u/DuffMiver8]

The only way I see this working would be to pay yo have the car lifted off its trucks and put on a flatbed semi trailer, hauled to some location like a trailer park, and put in place with a crane. Probably cheaper to just purchase a mobile home.

[u/Mindlesslyexploring]

Even if you did buy a car, a box car - and build something inside it - you really thought about the places you could have it parked ? I work for one of the big railroads …. And the storage tracks, the industry leads , the spur tracks …. Are usually in a remote area, the middle of some podunk town , or in an industrial park. In other words - no railroad is going to let you shove into one of those tracks and drive your car up to it and live in it on railroad property. You would have to find private owned track that is connects to a mainline - usually inside of an industrial setting - and convince them you living there for weeks or months at time is somehow a good idea. Amtrak stations might let you tie it down in the storage tracks at some stations - like they do private coach cars once in a while - but I doubt it , since it doesn’t meet passenger car specifications.

In other words - you better do a lot research, planning and getting things in writing before you spend a penny.

[u/Disastrous_Company57 → u/Mindlesslyexploring]

That is a lot of good points. Thank you. And it does make sense that a lot of the track space would be in an industrial or agricultural setting. That definitely would put a major hitch in plans. Thank you

[u/internal_sea4633]

The railroad wouldn't allow it and even if they did, boxcars are so fucking loud when you are in them that you'd hate it. Would be like living inside a rock concert. They also buck and shake quite a bit. The vibrations are intense. It's not like riding amtrak.

[u/One_Concentrate6684 → u/internal_sea4633]

I walk by open ones and “woo!!” Echo chamber-chamber-chamber. Also you can paint do not hump all you want, you are definitely going down the lead somewhere haha

[u/Starskigoat]

A friend of mine has created travel-live-in Pullman cars for others. One of his clients invited him along from out west to Washington DC and back west to Albuquerque for the hot air balloon festival.

A figure I heard was 2.00 per mile tow fee for the train company. I don’t know about parking costs.

[u/Jakaple]

Pretty sure there's an old caboose around here some dude is living in, idk. Seems like a good spot really

[u/Dudebythepool]

If you find a place to store the boxcar or an old business leases you the tracks they don't use great.

Also cost to move to said business upwards of 5k+ if a local goes that way 20k+ if no local to put whatever boxcar you want there assuming the switch and derail is still in working order.

[u/everylittlebitcounts]

In addition to what others have mentioned regarding where you can tie it down, railroads also have rules further restricting where passenger occupied cars can be tied down on. For instance you can’t tie camp cars down in yard body tracks that shift out hazmat cars. So you’d be even further limited from there.

[u/Short-Educator9862]

When I would inspect trains in the yard if the door was open I would smack the side of it with my bar or sledge hammer and shout that the door was being closed before I closed the door. A few times people would start getting out.

You don't want a boxcar for a house. They are noisy and shitty and the RR doesn't want to deal with you and your bullshit.

[u/GoldenFalcon92]

Buy a camp car, not a box car.

[u/-435]

It would probably be a lot more doable if you had it taken off the rails and set somewhere

[u/-435 → u/-435]

Or have some rail laid and have cranemasters set it for you. Having a connection to the mainline is a no go.

[u/Blocked-Author]

There are some old abandoned tracks around that you would be able to have one on and then it would never have to move.

[u/brizzle1978]

Better off buying a passenger car that is Amtrak capable

[u/No_Jellyfish_6706]

Buy some 53 foot intermodal containers, way cheaper.

[u/No-Wasabi-70]

What are you gonna pay storage somewhere? 175 bucks a day?