Ever since the debut of VRE's Quiet Cars, we've intended for them to be restful, peaceful and quiet, but not necessarily tombs of complete silence. We urge everyone who plans to ride in a Quiet Car to please review the guidelines and respect your fellow quiet-seeking passengers.

Please do:

1. Set your cell phone to vibrate, or turn it off. (And, kindly move to another car if you must make or take an incoming call.)
2. Whisper—briefly—to your neighbor.
3. Send text messages from your PDA or cell phone.
4. Listen to music using headphones (but quietly enough that your seatmate doesn't have to hear it).
5. Type on your computer quietly.

Please don't:

1. Converse with your neighbor.
2. Talk on your cell phone, even at low volume.
3. Set the volume so high that others can hear what you're listening to through your headphones.
4. Use electronic games or other devices that cannot be silenced.

The Quiet Car is the car located closest to the locomotive, normally, the southernmost car on the train. It can be easily identified by Quiet Car signs.

Seating in this car is provided on a first-come, first-served basis.

Should a passenger have an issue with another rider's noise making, please see a conductor to have the issue resolved.

Below are some answers to a few of the most frequently asked questions about Quiet Cars:

Why the Car Behind the Engine?
We needed to choose an easily identifiable car. With this in mind, we decided that it either had to be the cab car or the car behind the engine. It was decided that the cab car is generally louder, so the car behind the locomotive was chosen. Because the bathroom is generally found in the cab car, the flow of passengers to and from this car in generally greater.

How is Quiet Enforced?
Those seated in the Quiet Car are expected to be polite at all times. Should there be a problem, please see a conductor.

What If I Need to Make or Receive a Call on My Cellphone?
Please don't use cellphones while in the Quiet Car. If you must leave your cellphone on, switch it to the vibrate function so that its ring won't disturb others. Kindly move to another car if you must make or take an incoming call.

What If My Seatmate's Music is Too Loud?
Quiet does not mean implicit silence. A certain amount of tolerance of noise is necessary. If needed, politely remind your seatmate that they are riding in a Quiet Car and ask that they monitor the volume of their music. We have experienced instances when passengers are more aggressive in confronting their fellow riders. Certainly, we do not condone this behavior.

Can I Chat with Fellow Riders If I Whisper?
If you must communicate with a seatmate, please whisper quietly. If you find yourself needing to whisper the entire ride, it might make more sense to ride in the non-quiet cars.

There is a bathroom on the Quiet Car, doesn't this defeat the purpose of quiet?
We place bathrooms on board the train so that riders never have to walk more than 2 or 3 cars. Unfortunately, we cannot always guarantee where the exact placement of a car with a restroom will be since cars often get switched out for maintenance. This will only be a temporary change and the Quiet Car will eventually go back to being bathroom free, but only after these periodic maintenance checks are completed.

Can the Conductor Turn Off His Radio When in the Quiet Car?
We want to preserve a quiet atmosphere for the comfort of our riders. However, we cannot request that our conductors silence their radios while in this car. Instead, we ask our crews to temporarily lower the volume of their radios as they walk through this car and to station themselves in another car. This helps to reduce the disruption of quiet for our passengers.

What Should I do If a Fellow Rider Continues to Cough or Sneeze? Obviously your seatmate is not intending to be discourteous. So, if those around you have to cough or sneeze, there's no need to glare or complain. Offer them a throat lozenge or cough drop.

Again the Quiet Car is meant to be relaxing but not necessarily completely silent. If the occasional ruffle of a paper is still too much noise for you then you may wish to invest in noise cancelling head phones. Otherwise, we hope you enjoy the Quiet Car.