Rio De Janeiro’s Poor Get Into Training--From Outside a Speeding Railroad Car

The commuter train zips along at 50 miles an hour. On top of a car a young man stands up and waves his arms like a bird in flight.

The slightest slip could mean a fatal fall; the slightest jolt could mean contact with a 3,000-volt electrical wire overhead.

Nevertheless, Paulo Evaristo, 15, and hundreds of other youths from Rio de Janeiro’s poor suburbs risk their lives every day showing off their skills in what is known as train surfing.

About 150 train surfers were killed last year, and 40 died in the first five months of this year.

$700,000 in Claims

The government company that runs the commuter trains has had to pay the equivalent of $700,000 in claims filed by the survivors of youths killed or injured. More than 400 young men were injured in 1987, some permanently paralyzed.

“These people are seeking new thrills, but in my opinion they’re suicidal,” said Helio Barros, spokesman for the railroad. He added that efforts to discourage the train surfers have failed.

“With the money we spent on claims, we could have repaired 10 trains,” he said. He added that the railroad is trying to persuade judges not to validate claims in cases of train-surfing accidents.

“I’ve been doing this since I was 13,” Paulo Evaristo said. “You get a feeling of freedom that is greater than any fear.”

Emulating Real Surfers

Train surfers come from poor neighborhoods, and some Brazilian newspapers have speculated that the young people are trying to emulate the sea surfers at wealthy beachfront districts, such as Copacabana and Ipanema. The newspaper accounts also have suggested that the surfers ride train roofs because they can’t afford the 15-cruzado (8-cent) fare, or that there’s no room in the crowded trains, which transport 1.2 million passengers daily.

But Barros, the railroad spokesman, dismissed all these arguments.

“It’s strictly for the fun,” he said. “In the first place, you have to pay the fare to get inside the train stations. And even when it’s not rush hour and there are plenty of seats, you still see these kids on top of the cars.”

200 Guards on Trains

The train company has assigned 200 guards a day to try to stop train surfers. But the guards are not enough to cover the commuter system’s 450 miles of track and 110 stations.

When they do arrest a train surfer, the penalty is a fine equivalent to $1 and a lecture from a government psychologist.

“The purpose is not to jail these people,” Barros said. “It is to save their lives.”

Chief Fernando Rodrigues de Almeida of the police precinct of the Engenho Novo neighborhood ordered 11 train surfers jailed without bail on charges of obstructing railroad traffic.

Ruled ‘Self-Injury’

But a judge ruled that train surfing was not a crime but rather an act of “self-injury,” similar to attempted suicide, and not dealt with in the Brazilian legal code.

The judge reprimanded the chief for abuse of authority.

“We’re not crazy, and we’re not bums either,” said train surfer Luiz Claudio, 18, an apprentice lathe operator who makes $70 a month, slightly more than the minimum wage. “We’re just looking for a little fun, to pass the time during the train ride.”

Elizabeth, 19, a maid, said she sometimes rides on top of the commuter trains because the atmosphere inside the cars is “violent,” with frequent muggings. But she added, “It’s a lot of fun too.”

Problem at Peak

Barros, the railroad spokesman, said that train surfers have always been a problem, but the practice reached an all-time high last year.

He added that the suburb of Nilopolis has a Train Surfers Assn.