Highball
Know exactly when the next train is coming
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Highball - Know exactly when the next train is coming

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Track every Amtrak train nationwide plus Metrolink and Caltrain on a live map with countdowns to the next arrival. Approach alerts, Apple Watch + Live Activities, and a spot log with badges. No accounts, no ads, zero data collected. $1.99 once.

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Maker
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Hey PH 👋 I built Highball because my kid loves trains and we kept missing them. We live near the tracks in Southern California... we'd walk down, wait, give up, and hear the horn two minutes after we left. Rail agencies publish real-time train positions (GTFS-RT), but that data mostly lives in developer feeds. Highball turns it into something you can use standing trackside — or waiting on a platform: 🚂 Live map of every Amtrak train in the country, plus Metrolink and Caltrain with directional arrows (we infer bearing when feeds don't provide it) ⏱️ Hero countdown to your next train 🔔 Notification when a train is 15 minutes out ⌚ Apple Watch app + Live Activities on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island 📓 One-tap spot log with haptic feedback, badges, and CSV export Decisions I feel strongly about: • $1.99 one-time. No subscription. No ads. • Zero data collection — no accounts, no analytics. The App Store privacy label reads "Data Not Collected." • The whole app is 12.7 MB. Which agency should be next? Tell me and I'll build the list. Ask me anything about GTFS-RT, bearing inference, Live Activities, or designing an app a kid can operate.

Love the no-accounts and one-time price approach, that alone sold me. One idea if you're up for it: let users pin specific trains or routes to their home screen so I can see my usual commute without scrolling. Would make the watch experience way more useful for daily riders like me.

Maker

 Will add this to the roadmap, great idea. Thank you!

Finally an Amtrak tracker that just works without making me sign up for anything. Love that it shows Caltrain too since I'm down in the Bay a lot.

Maker

 Thank you! Enjoy the app.

Love the privacy-first approach and the live map looks super clean. One thing that would make it perfect for me: add the option to set a favorite station so the Live Activity on my watch shows the next train from where I actually am instead of me having to tap in each time. Would also be great if the badges in the spot log had a way to share them as a little image.