Show HN: Follow London Trains in 3D

A solo maker dropped Ridealong, a slick little site that lets you watch London trains move around a 3D city map in real time, powered by public transport data. On paper, this is the kind of thing internet people usually adore: tiny trains, a famous skyline, and the oddly soothing joy of dragging around London while waiting for something to move. And yes, the first reaction was basically: this is really cool.

But this is the internet, so the applause was instantly followed by the classic comments-section sport of extremely specific criticism. One user politely demanded better zoom controls, saying the mouse wheel should zoom where your cursor points, not just the middle of the screen — a very nerdy complaint, but also the kind of thing people get weirdly passionate about. Another commenter went straight for the accuracy police, saying the map looks out of line with the trains and buildings. Ouch.

Then came the skyline shade. One person zeroed in on London’s famous Gherkin tower and declared it looked “kinda weird,” which is exactly the kind of niche architectural roast that makes these threads sparkle. Someone else noticed planes and seemed delightfully blindsided by the surprise flyby. And in the most London gripe imaginable, another commenter claimed the High Barnet branch of the Northern line was missing — because no transport project is complete until someone asks where their train went. In other words: people loved it, then immediately turned into armchair transit detectives.