Trolley on the line: ScotRail tracks go viral

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ScotRail trainImage source, Getty Images
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Scotrail said it was pleased the train announcements had been enjoyed by so many

ScotRail's automated station announcements have become an unexpected viral hit, after the recordings were released to the public.

Following one of the operator's more bizarre Freedom of Information Requests (FOIs), more than 2,000 audio tracks were published, all featuring voice artist Alison Mckay.

Software enthusiasts and amateur DJs have turned them into quirky tunes.

ScotRail joked about "releasing its first album".

Since it came into public ownership, ScotRail, like other public bodies, is now subject to the requests to disclose information in the public interest, usually within 28 days.

As a result of one of those, it released the two-hour audio file containing all announcements it had access to.

Daily Record, external reporter Jon Brady first discovered the file after it was released in June and tweeted about it.

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"It's just been bizarre," he told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme.

"I thought it might have had a couple of people come back to me about it but the response has just been phenomenal."

Designer and developer Matt Eason saw his tweet when it had already gone viral and decided to make a remix.

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His song Ambient Scotrail Beats, external was made by layering a track from YouTube artist Lofi Girl, external with the ScotRail announcements.

It includes the line - "There is a supermarket trolley on the line" - which Mr Eason says is his favourite.

"It's so specific that was the object they choose," he said.

"You get trampolines blown onto the line sometimes, you get helium balloons blown into overhead wires but for some reason they chose shopping trolleys as the one that they would have a special announcement for."

Other remixes made by Twitter users include a version of the Grammy-nominated song, Barbra Streisand by Duck Sauce.

The words "Barbra Streisand" have been replaced with the announcement "Glasgow Central".

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One version, "Gettin' ScotRailed", placed a heavy beat underneath the announcements.

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Another Twitter user made the announcements into a jazz remix.

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One version was even accompanied by a psychedelic video.

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And a whole album of remixes, external has been made by @eclatcrewberlin.

They tweeted: "Thank you for this wonderful gift! Our collective spent tonight making two minute tracks in two hours using these samples and had a blast."

The ScotRail remixes also caught the attention of BBC Radio 1 DJ Greg James.

On his breakfast show on Monday, he called the original audio track "soothing" but said the potential for remixes was "dangerous".

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BBC Radio 1's Greg James listened to some of the announcements and remixes on his breakfast show

Mr Eason has split the original audio track up into separate announcements.

He also created a Google Drive link for people to download the separate announcements and put a spreadsheet up for people to transcribe them.

'Nerd catnip'

"Putting it up and asking Twitter to transcribe it was like nerd catnip," he said.

"There's a lot of sub-groups on Twitter and train enthusiasts are one of them."

He added that he did not count himself as a rail fanatic but he enjoyed taking the train when it was on time.

In a statement, a ScotRail spokesman said: "Our train announcements ensure our customers are kept informed throughout their journey and are an important part of the customer experience. 

"We are pleased that our train announcements have been enjoyed by many following the release of our long-awaited debut album, and we think this would be a great addition to your favourite playlist.

"We have enjoyed listening to the many remixes and it is our dream to collaborate with some of our talented customers for our next album."