AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Parks Foundation (APF) is continuing to monitor the Zilker Eagle train track after an Austin reddit post joked about existing conditions beneath the route.
The reddit post sarcastically asked if the Zilker train is going to “fall off into the ocean” and included pictures depicting the exposed dirt and tree growth beneath the tracks. The mini-train — now dubbed the Zilker Eagle — returned to the park back in June more than five years after erosion under and surrounding the tracks caused its closure in May 2019.
The Austin Parks Foundation is continuing to monitor the Zilker Eagle train track after an Austin reddit post joked about existing conditions beneath the route. (KXAN Photo/Kelsey Thompson) The Austin Parks Foundation is continuing to monitor the Zilker Eagle train track after an Austin reddit post joked about existing conditions beneath the route. (KXAN Photo/Kelsey Thompson) 
The Austin Parks Foundation is continuing to monitor the Zilker Eagle train track after an Austin reddit post joked about existing conditions beneath the route. (KXAN Photo/Kelsey Thompson) The Austin Parks Foundation is continuing to monitor the Zilker Eagle train track after an Austin reddit post joked about existing conditions beneath the route. (KXAN Photo/Kelsey Thompson)
Zilker Park first welcomed home a mini-train in 1961, operating originally as the Zilker Eagle until community members renamed it the Zilker Zephyr in 1997. The Austin Parks Foundation took over operations of the train and tracks in 2020.
Austin Parks Foundation officials told KXAN this week they are watching conditions as part of continuous safety measures taken, adding “effective stabilization efforts” were made prior to the newest train iteration opening to the public.
“We implemented effective stabilization efforts prior to opening the train. We are monitoring the current conditions closely as part of our standard safety protocols and will continue to do so,” an APF representative said in a statement.
