Man Builds Full-Size Railroad Handcar, Commutes to Work on Abandoned Track

Software developer Marcus Lever has built a functioning railroad handcar and has been using it to commute to work along 3.7 miles of abandoned rail corridor, a journey that takes approximately 45 minutes each way and requires continuous pumping of the handcar's lever mechanism. 'I drive a desk for eight hours a day,' Lever said, pumping rhythmically as the handcar rolled along rusted rails through a tunnel of overgrown vegetation. 'The handcar gives me exercise, fresh air, and a commute that nobody else in my industry can claim. When my colleagues ask how I got to work, I say I pumped. They think I mean I'm excited. I mean I literally pumped.' The handcar, constructed from steel tubing and salvaged railroad hardware over eighteen months, weighs approximately 400 pounds and operates on the principles of 19th-century rail technology. Lever pushes the handle down; the gearing converts the motion to wheel rotation; the handcar moves forward at approximately 5 miles per hour. 'The abandoned line runs from my neighborhood to within a quarter mile of my office,' Lever explained. 'The rails are still in place. They're rusty but functional. I cleared the vegetation from the right-of-way with a machete. The railroad company technically owns the corridor but they haven't used it since 1997 and they haven't asked me to stop.' The railroad company, when contacted, said it was 'unaware of unauthorized handcar operations on the abandoned corridor' and that the situation 'presents liability concerns that are being reviewed.' Lever's colleagues have developed a system for tracking his progress. 'We can hear him coming from about a quarter mile away,' said coworker Sandra Desktop. 'The handcar makes a rhythmic clanking sound. We call it the Marcus alarm. When we hear it, we know he'll be in the office in about five minutes, covered in sweat and usually with a leaf in his hair.' Lever arrives at work 'physically exhausted but mentally sharp,' a trade-off he considers ideal. 'Cars are boring,' he said. 'Trains are great but someone else drives them. The handcar is the perfect middle ground. You are the engine. You are the fuel. You are the railroad.'