Railfan
Some cite the extensive use of styrofoam to create scenery and landscaping in model railroad building, while others trace its origins to the related term "Foamite" (which stands for "Far Out and Mentally Incompetent Train Enthusiast") or claim it refers to "the notion of foaming-at-the-mouth craziness".
An early trainspotter was 14-year-old Fanny Gordon, who in 1861 recorded the names of locomotives passing Westbourne Park station on the Great Western Main Line.
[26][27] Today, despite the majority of British trains being formed of multiple units, bashing still remains a popular pastime for railway enthusiasts.
[28] Many railway preservation groups run special trips for railfans using restored trains, often on "rare mileage" lines that do not see regular passenger service.
[35] Owing to their presence at stations and near other areas of rail infrastructure, railfans have sometimes been requested to aid railways and legal authorities alike in observing and reporting safety breaches and incidents of crime.
Railfans in the United States have been asked by BNSF to keep railroad areas safer by reporting crimes and suspicious activity.
[36] In the United Kingdom the British Transport Police have asked trainspotters to report any unusual behaviour and activities at stations.
[37] In the United States, concerns about terrorism have led to situations where railfans are followed or confronted by local law enforcement or transit police.
[40] BNSF instituted the "Citizens for Rail Security"[41] (CRS) program for the general public to report suspicious activities on their railways.
[42] In Japan, toritetsu have been frequently criticised for their behaviour when photographing trains, including incidents of vandalism and trespassing into restricted areas to set up cameras, destruction of lineside property and plants to clear a view of the track, stealing goods to sell on to fund expensive cameras,[43] theft of railway equipment, being rude towards station staff and train drivers,[44] physical assault,[45] and attempting to intimidate passengers and road users for inadvertently interfering with their activities.
