Gricers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. People who keenly observe and log trains, buses, and other vehicles as a hobby, often noting numbers and models
2. Enthusiasts who collect sightings of transport vehicles, especially railway engines and buses, for their own pleasure
3. Hobbyists who travel to stations and roadsides to watch, photograph, and catalogue passing public transport

Etymology: Trainspotters have a name for themselves that is itself uncertain: "gricer" is the British slang term for a train enthusiast who watches and logs locomotives, and its origin is unsettled. The most repeated explanation is that it is a joke on "grouser", meaning someone who hunts grouse, with the word pronounced in a posh, clipped way. The idea is that train-watching looks to outsiders like the grouse-shooting of country gentlemen, since both involve patient waiting with a notebook or gun in hand. Other speculative theories have been offered, including one that treats the word as a humorous plural "grice" of "grouse" with the suffix "-er" added. Because the sources for these ideas are weak and no early written evidence settles the matter, the grouse-shooting joke remains the most popular account rather than a proven one.

Synonyms: train spotters, enthusiasts