[OTTD] Some screenshots by Dr. B. Ching

[Dr. B. Ching]

Hello,

I thought I might share a few ordinary screenshots of my OpenTTD game, which will not necessarily presented as part of a story, but not in a completely random order either. First things first: the style of construction is aimed to be somewhere between realism and efficiency, i. e. the infrastructure is as simple as reasonably possible without a huge focus on eye candy. Furthermore, the NewGRF list is kept short with good reason - although I realize that some might improve the looks significantly, I try to avoid a repeat of my SimCity 4 RH experience where the reliance on a lot of community content and obsession with detail ruined the game eventually. So please don't be upset if you won't find a suggested NewGRF in subsequent shots.

Configuration:

r22529 with patches (1, 2)
heightmap by Espee
realistic acceleration (RVs, trains)
slope steepness of 3 % (do.)
weight multiplier of one
plane speed factor of 1/1
breakdowns disabled



Introduction:

After finishing my previous temperate climate game, I was curious how a lengthy arctic one with lots of snow and mountainous terrain would be outside of the multiplayer environment. Espee's heightmap looked (and is) very nice and has already been a challenge even though most of the current network was build on one of the few flat sections of the map. Blackwood Transport is not that profit-minded, but rather aims to provide services to most towns and industries in its area of influence. Founded in 1903, the company has continuously expanded operations over the last eight years and now does quite well financially. Unfortunately, the older records seems to have vanished from the archives (I accidentally deleted them, oh well); not a disaster however, here is a plain and commented network map for a better understanding:

plain map (1271x608)

commented map (do.)

Now the screenshots:

As you can see, the first sections of rail were laid around Trondstow, more precisely to transport coal from the local mine to the steel mill near the southern tunnel exit. This was quite expensive and initially didn't allow Pax services to be set up beyond the simple Trondstow-Sunthwaite shuttle run by a single steam railmotor.



Said area in 1906. All was originally single track and then doubled for better Pax train performance; the switches worked quite well for overtaking, but were removed a few years later as traffic increased on the line. While the 0-6-0 Jinty struggles with those heavy coal wagons, the shorter train is about to transfer scrap metal at Trondstow and return to Codstow with some engineering supplies and alcohol. I guess the local store will have to bottle the liquid itself, since this seems to be the most practical option to haul both cargos after a refit. Incidentally, the company was also quick to employ electric trams here with higher capacity and lower running costs than the trucks of the era (five versus two crates of supplies!).



The extended platforms of the steel mill, the sole supplier of Trondstow's machine shop, to accommodate the additional scrap metal wagons are evident on this 1909 shot. The route down to the valley became busy enough to warrant a second bore to avoid this bottleneck and while I tried to design the climb as smooth as possible, especially the railmotors really have problems to go uphill thanks to an extra carriage and weak engine. (The semaphore in front is necessary due to interference with path signals.)



Rush hour at Codstow West! Some connections to neighbouring settlements have already been established, including the company's first petrol buses, and it is fair to say that the city has the potential to become the major hub in the area. A to-be-build express line will start here with a new central station and hopefully encourage more town growth. (Ironically, an industry opened in the space surrounded by company-owned land, so that I had to use the magic bulldozer!) The waiting freight train is a bit longer than in this older screenshot now, yet still returns with some mail after unloading the engineering supplies. As a FIRS newbie, I must say that the style of playing differs significantly from standard OpenTTD in that uniform as well as empty trains are a lot less common - the resulting flexibility is very satisfying.



The other end of the Suthwaite branch ends in Teswich, a fairly large town with its own tram service. Because of the lack of nearby industries, traffic is very light and it might take a decade or so before further investment will be justifiable. (The unsightly 2x 45° curve is acceptable at the moment, but will probably be replaced later. Perhaps with a diagonal bridge?)

More to follow when I've time.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Pilot]

Try some station sets like Industrial Stations, MB's New Station or Canadian Stations.
Other than that there Sound.

[Lordmwa]

Make the shots a little smaller please - Otherwise very nice

[Dr. B. Ching]

Thanks! I replaced the maps with two links, but as for the other pictures, think that too many details are lost at just 800x600.



Eventually, both Trondstow freight stations couldn't cope with the increased amount of trains anymore and had to be improved. The local authority was initially opposed to the project (aren't they all?), however they gave in after considering the possible economic benefits for the town and the promise to keep the environmental impact as low as possible and authorized Blackwood Transport to commence major earthworks. Indeed, over 100 employees with their families chose to settle down in the city over the course of two years and thus contributed to solid growth. In this 1909 shot, you can see the coal train, led by an 0-4-0 Industrial, leaving its own short platform towards the local mine to pick up new cargo, while the Codstow scrap metal one has gained a few more wagons since the previous pictures. Another Jinty is also underway with a load of fresh meat in covered wagons, which will soon be refitted to farm supplies for the last leg of the schedule.



Not much has changed one year later. It was originally envisioned to let the Bunley trains continue unchanged until the planned electrification of that line would be ready to leave the design stage (i. e. I waited for the NER EF1 to be introduced in 1914), but the increasing delays on uphill section forced the commissioning of three additional engines. Full use is now being made of the nearby farm, in that its production has become high enough to transport (the track branching off below Trondstow Machine) the previously ignored sugar beet over a longer distance economically.



This is the source of the new tram track in the screenshot above - as the Kreuzberg freight engines are cost-effective to haul a lot of bulk cargo on shorter journeys and can use surface streets (I wonder how Trondstow's inhabitants feel about this intrusion into the town core), a light rail line was constructed instead of a steam-powered solution. Latter is also the reason why Minburgh doesn't directly connect to the Suthwaite branch line I mentioned before, however AH Alpha passenger trams provide a frequent, if somewhat slow service for the time being. Furthermore, quite a bit of fish is regularly processed at the harbour and then shipped to customers; a Rockall freighter can be seen assigned to this task. (At this point, I should mention my guideline for naming freight stations:)

destination | type of cargo(s) | number of final, direct connection | number of subordinate feeder service



The significance of Sunthwaite's station perhaps outweighs the importance of the village itself as passengers can, in addition to previously mentioned routes, reach the small communities of Sulow and Pronninghill by transferring to the sole ferry operating here. Today, they are unlucky since the timetable is a bit out of sync and the tram left even before the delayed railmotor can pull into the terminus. The ferry is in any case not the only ship sailing in the bay and several vessels cross the waters to bring large quantities of stone ashore for further transportation. Steady supply of spare parts for the two dredging sites is ensured by petrol-powered box trucks using the road you may have spotted west of Trondstow's machine shop.

Until next time.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

Further transportation of the stone starts here near the small settlement of Pronninghill, population 97. Grain, livestock and sugar beet are also picked up from the surrounding farms and transported to largely local industries via road or rail.



While St. Lewisdown Castle is not much larger, it can perhaps be considered a future railway town because of this important junction, the currently third-busiest on the network: in total, 19 trains have to navigate it, including the one from above, with its partner visible, and the sugar beet delivery steaming back towards Trondstow. Grandma's shop has been criticized for offering a disproportional number of sweets, however popular they might be with the youth and few travellers waiting on the platforms (the refinery's low output really isn't worth shipping around the world).



Finthwaite Springs is the terminus for freight and pax, for the latter at least temporarily. Worryingly high construction costs due to the mountainous terrain means that the extension will be finished in several stages, of which the first is nearing completion and once operational, would more than double the distance covered by the railmotors between both ends of this route. It is nevertheless unlikely to cover the expenses in any reasonable amount of time, so the company hopes to set up more profitable freight services starting with chemicals and wood some years after that.



The challenging conditions and arguably scenic view of the extension is most evident in this sreenshot. Returning from Wrindingsay, a freshly delivered railmotor is test-running on the new track to ensure that all railway equipment is working properly. (In other words, it autofills the timetable in order to allow me to manually add the results to the existing tables later.)

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Emperor Jake]

Very nice screenshots! I like when they come with a good storyline
However, as Class 325 said, some station sets would greatly improve the appearance

[Dr. B. Ching]

Thanks, I'm glad you like them! Perhaps I should have a look at a station set after all.



Continuing the journey from the previous picture, most of the branch line has gained a second track (more on this later) and now also serves a handful of small communities beyond Wrindingsay. On its way there, the railmotor just crossed the very short channel near Banham for the Avonwood ferry - should passengers wish to transfer to that connection, they might meet the returning train here. As with many seaside villages in this county, the fishing industry is an important part of the otherwise quite underdeveloped economy (it seems the mountainous terrain offers only a handful of suitable spots for larger industries).



Breatown (more like a hamlet), the first stop, on a busy day. It's currently the smallest settlement served by rail and despite still holding that title, the number of inhabitants has doubled over the course of the last five years since the line was constructed. The harbour has most likely been the other contributing factor and is the destination of several fishing vessels, two of them underway in this screenshot. In any case, the investment in the infrastructure proved to be the area's growth engine and arguably improved the mobility plus quality of life of the locals to an extent that would be difficult to establish without modern means of transportation.



Two ships can be seen navigating the waterways near Breatown. They provide a convenient link for the ferry to reach Bardean docks, after which it will again call at Old Finndown Castle before heading for Avonwood.



Said village and the neighbour (with yet another fishing harbour) on a somewhat older shot. The ferry is not the only one operating here, but because that particular route is the only connection with the rest of the network, the communities nevertheless remain rural and relatively isolated. The company's preference for electric traction and frequent elevation changes mean that tram tracks and overhead wires can be found even in such remote locations (trams are simply superior to buses of this era).



Six additional settlements with populations ranging from 45 to 164 are also depending on mentioned route for the transport of passengers, mail and other supplies from and to the outside world. As the numbers imply, traffic volumes are low and so a pair of tiny Fitzroy vessels are entirely sufficient for this task. It is doubtful if they will ever receive railway services, as the challenging terrain, small ridership and lack of any nearby industries would be great obstacles for an at least reasonably profitable operation, let alone offset the high construction costs.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

The prefabricated stations from the Industrial Station Renewal Set 0.8.0 have replaced the default ones now and indeed work nicely.



Treberg Market may not receive a passenger station in the future, however freight trams have commenced operations and connect the docks to a not-so-distant stockyard. It remains to be seen if the benefits of this new service will overcome the accusations that the company has "disturbed the peace of our quiet village". Once again, the planning bureau indicated that it would have been uneconomical to lay a proper spur line run by heavy rail equipment, apart from the fact that street running saves a lot of space, and thus this low-cost option was agreed on (40 % leg profit for feeder systems severely limits the choice of vehicles anyway). While one of the two Fitzroys waits for the handful of passengers to come aboard, the other vessel is heading for the first of the lake's few communities above the snow line to supply them with food that has just been transferred here.



Another destination is Wrindingsay, which only in recent years has attracted a significant number of new citizens (no food, no growth). This was in part the reason to double the track and in addition to the previously seen links, the town now also sees a daily mixed freight train transporting mail, general commodities and materials for new buildings. On the downside, the local authority made the funding and construction of these two bridges a requirement for their approval, as they fear that the railway might be a barrier for further expansion - needless to say, the company and especially its CEO were less than thrilled about the expenses, furthermore no other mayor caused such problems before! The current relations are consequently quite strained as expected.



Over the last six years, changes to Finthwaite Springs' layout have of course been made as well. The freight station was relocated in order to allow trains traveling in both directions to bypass the new passenger platforms, with the old pair is still in place for a possible future shuttle. Incidentally, all scheduled routes using the line at this point meet in the screenshot: the familiar railmotors, previously mentioned mail/goods trains and one of the Jinty-headed stone transports from Pronninghill that I described in an earlier picture.



If, theoretically, one of them would then navigate a number of switches, it could terminate in the Treberg Market stockyard station that is also shared with the freight trams from above and numerous older 5 t trucks. Other visitors include a lengthened livestock shipment (see 1909 Trondstow) and its short companion (a prime candidate for replacement when more capable road vehicles become available). This factory will soon be of greater importance, as the company's network has now reached a plateau above the snow line where frequent delivery of food to every settlement is expected to be highly profitable (i. e. necessary!).

In case you like statistics (I do), here are the results of the latest inventory:

Rail vehicles

0-4-0 Industrial: 1
0-6-0 Jinty: 25 (one in storage)
2-6-2 Prarie: 3
0-8-0 Mineral: 3 (all in storage)
NE EF1: 6
Railmotor: 10
Metro Cammell EMU: 4
Passenger wagons: 18
Freight wagons: 410 (some in storage)

Road vehicles
5 t truck variations: 36
10 t truck variations: 23
Floss '22' Cargo Tram: 18
Kreuzberg Industrial Tram: 2
AH Alpha Passenger Tram: 17
TFB Mk 1 Bus: 4

Water vehicles
Fitzroy Utility Tug: 4
Banquereau Utility Vessel: 3
Rockall Freighter: 7
Tyskebukta Freighter: 3

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

The network has been extensively modernized in time for Blackwood Transport's 20th anniversary, and along with it, freight traffic has hit a new high. After a successful trial with the company's first batch of electric locomotives, nearly all main lines are now lined with overhead wires and modern electric signals - of course, that also means that a lot of steamers have either been reassigned or put into storage (I don't scrap rolling stock with remaining life time). So, I'd like to show some of this infrastructure which was essential for the network's growth before covering its current status and the new areas mentioned earlier.



This junction has perhaps been the most important part of track work right from the start (1904) and as money was scarce back then, it was constructed at-grade with the minimum amount of rails necessary. Still, it remained more or less sufficient until 1915 when vastly increasing traffic and delays prompted partial grade separation. As part of the project, the move to relocate the pax route between Trondstow and Codstow to its own embankment proved to be a popular one and the better on-time performance even attracted more passengers.



While some delays remain with this arrangement in 1925, the lower wear on equipment from start-stop traffic and improved overall efficiency most certainly offset the considerable funds spend. Furthermore, gradients have been eased wherever possible and some services replaced by road vehicles to reduce congestion. Thanks to the advances of technology and internal combustion engines in particular (now at 32 kph!), trucks have become a viable alternative on longer journeys as well, however can't beat freight trams regarding running costs and consequently there is a rather extensive tram system radiating from the Trondstow machine shop to service low-profit routes (in my opinion not too unrealistic given the advantages of electric traction over early ICE vehicles). As part of this effort, serpentines lead to a tunnel further south, as there was simply no room to build another one in the bottleneck that is the narrowest part of this mountain range.

(On a personal note, any attempted additional grade separation of this junction, while desirable, ended up looking decisively wrong in the face of what I'm trying to achieve in this game.)

Codstow did indeed became a major hub (please refer to my first post), and during the 20th anniversary ceremony both the mayor and CEO personally opened the section of the local museum dedicated to the great influence the railway had on the city. Though at times strained, the relationship between the company and town council is largely a positive and cooperative one that works to the benefit of the citizens. Shown here are selected aerial photographs from that exhibition.



In retrospect, it is certain to say that the opening of further freight services beginning in 1907 was the turning point in the development of the area. No longer would Codstow be a rather insignificant stop on a lightly used branch line, but rather the administrative centre of thriving industries and businesses - evident by the fact that growth between 1906 and 1911 easily surpassed the one of the longer- and up to that date arguably better-served city of Trondstow.



Four years later, one of the practically brand-new NE EF1 electric locomotives can be seen using the freight bypass while the bus to Bunley waits at the level crossing. It became too dangerous to route all freight trains along platforms full (well, sometimes) of passengers, and so it was decided to start construction of the bypass, which extra capacity was a beneficial side-effect. In a rather embarrassing planning mishap, unexpected expenditures elsewhere forced Codstow Station to be left unused for five years before rails for the rest of the new line could be finally laid (the graffiti epidemic is fortunately still some decades away!).



Taken on its opening day, this 1917 screenshot shows the new ramp (the signal patch is depended on the "build semaphores before: [date]" setting, hence the mismatch) providing the link with the rest of the network - still empty here, yet it will quite shortly be difficult to overestimate the importance of this connections for the company's revenues. Also visible is the southern end of the dedicated passenger tracks I mentioned earlier, operated by four- resp. six-car EMU sets. Though the railmotors were reliable until their withdrawal from this service, low power and capacity plus a lack of flexibility left something to be desired in the eyes of passengers and the company, in short unsuitable for this type of rapid transit. Commuters on Bardean-Codstow West trains, the second domain of railmotors, still frequently file complains and in response an upgrade to the same type of electric rolling stock is currently under review. By the way, the trams which replaced the buses from the previous picture have arrived on flatcars (not in reality of course, but this would be a nice OpenTTD feature) from Minburgh after they were in turn rendered redundant when the passenger line was extended to the town as part of the modernization program.



While the changes to the track work have been comparatively small, some grade separation and removal of unnecessary overhead wires because of mounting maintenance costs, the expansion of the city itself over the last eight years has been nothing short of remarkable. Many new vehicles have been put into service in an effort to keep up with the demand, including several express trains terminating at Codstow Central that were envisioned as early as 1906! With a top speed of 144 kph and luxurious coaches, these are the company's showcase and many passengers are willing to pay the price premium over the much slower locals to reach their destination in comfort. Furthermore, the daily mail train has been converted to trucks and the former platform renamed to Burns Road, where a shuttle now stops.

Updated inventory:

Rail vehicles

0-4-0 Industrial: 3
0-6-0 Jinty: 34 (sixteen in storage)
2-6-2 Prarie: 3 (one in storage)
0-8-0 Mineral: 7
4-6-0 King Arthur: 2
NE EF1: 58
Railmotor: 10
Metro Cammell EMU: 4
Passenger wagons: 38
Freight wagons: 1583 (some in storage)

Road vehicles
10 t truck variations: 230
Floss '22' Cargo Tram: 7
Stanley Cargo Tram: 88
Kreuzberg Industrial Tram: 3
AH Alpha Passenger Tram: 32
Floss '31' Passenger Tram: 8
TFB Mk 1 Bus: 10

Water vehicles
Fitzroy Utility Tug: 4 (one in storage)
Banquereau Utility Vessel: 4 (one in storage)
Rockall Freighter: 9
Tyskebukta Freighter: 5
Island Trader: 1

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

Perhaps I spoke to soon regarding the perspective of Dunport Beeches receiving rail services, but now that a coal mine, dredging site and a few other industries have opened in the vicinity, a small branch line also used by freight trains could be justified. I'd like to show some points of interest along this route.



Again, Codstow Central is the terminus at the northern end of the line. Heavy merging movements directly in front of the station greatly disturbed the increasing numbers of passenger trains including new third rail EMUs and thus all but one freight service (the electrified single track on the right) eventually join the main line via a junction further south. The old bridges became a convenient and grade-separated approach for the branch. It may also be noteworthy to mention that the station's tram stop is part of the recently extended light rail network, while relatively cheap in itself, attracted enough additional customers to necessitate the expansion of Codstow West and confinement of the river into an underground pipe in 1930, to the dismay of local environmentalists! While most rail vehicles in this picture are powered by electricity, it would be a false impression to think that the age of steam is over for Blackwood Transport - on the contrary, the amount of stored steamers has been reduced from 17 to five and eleven new railmotors put into operation.



After sharing some track with slow coal trains, the first stop is Treningworth. It wasn't possible to avoid a terminus station here, so reversing is required. This is fortunately not problematic from an operational point of view, all railmotors haul an autocoach with a second driving cab. Freight traffic, when inaugurated, will take a shortcut through the small valley and bypass the loop around Dunport Beeches.



The former ferry certainly proved to be beneficial for Windhill in terms of population, but with just 187 inhabitants, it is still a rather insignificant settlement. Dunport Beeches on the other hand suffered from a lack of available space and practically did not grow at all, a situation hopefully addressed by recent construction work undertaken in cooperation with the local representative.



The line continues to follow the shore on the opposite side of the lake for a while before it begins the climb to its second-longest tunnel. As I said before, railmotors with their meagre power and tractive effort are not well-suited to routes of this type, yet at the moment the only feasible option for such low ridership (circa €10.000 profit per year for one unit with a running cost of €2440 p. a. isn't enough for locomotive-hauled stock). More positively, most passengers would probably agree that stunning views can be found along almost the entire length of the branch even if the service might not be perfect - it is said to be a personal favourite of the CEO, who can sometimes be seen riding on a quiet evening train to find some peace of mind.



Nantgrove Rivers and Fort Tillyhill are the two most important stops, the former for the bus connection to the nearby village of Geathwaite, the latter for the transfer point to several ferries serving even smaller, remote communities. Because of the inlet's dimensions, only small vessels like Fitzroys can navigate these waterways.



One of them, Nanthleigh, can claim to hold the title of tiniest settlement as well as public transport station with the lowest ridership in the region (at least they have their own church). On average, less than one passenger per day (in OpenTTD terms: month) boards or unboards here!



Travelling on a Codstow-bound train, one can also catch a ferry at Whitbury, located in a loop around another snow-capped mountain range.



Tronddown Castle's station was constructed on top of an embankment to reduce the effort needed to reach (in this direction) the final tunnel before the branch line merges with previously existing passenger tracks. The passing loop has been designed with future freight trains in mind.



And finally, the railmotor pulls into the terminus platform at Senninghill. As the numerous tram routes stopping there are of course operated by the same company, tickets bought on local trains are valid on any kind of tram or bus for an additional hour after scheduled arrival. While the difference in top speed compared to the express trains is considerable (72 vs. 144 kph), it rarely causes serious delays because of the less-than-dense timetable and short amount of shared trackwork. (And please try to ignore the UKRS2+ graphics bug with a second engine for a tender.)

Updated inventory:

Rail vehicles

0-4-0 Industrial: 3
0-6-0 Jinty: 34 (five in storage)
2-6-2 Prarie: 3
0-8-0 Mineral: 7
4-6-0 King Arthur: 2
NE EF1: 71
Railmotor: 15
Metro Cammell EMU: 13
Passenger wagons: 59
Freight wagons: 1864 (some in storage)

Road vehicles
10 t truck variations: 239
Floss '22' Cargo Tram: 7
Stanley Cargo Tram: 109
Kreuzberg Industrial Tram: 3
Henningsdorf Industrial Tram: 8
AH Alpha Passenger Tram: 25
Floss '31' Passenger Tram: 18
Whitsharp Principal Bus: 9

Water vehicles
Fitzroy Utility Tug: 7
Banquereau Utility Vessel: 4 (one in storage)
Rockall Freighter: 9
Tyskebukta Freighter: 5
Island Trader: 1

----

At this point, it seems likely that I will start a new game in a few weeks or so and continue to post some photos of this current one in the meantime. It's not that I'm bored of it, but the amount of necessary trains and thus micromanagement has become excessive despite the usage of a daylength patch. While a vast improvement over standard OpenTTD, a factor of six doesn't seem to be quite enough for my liking in the long-run. This is also an obstacle for true branch lines with only one or two passing loops along the way - for example, eleven railmotors had to be employed on the route above to satisfy station ratings. Plus, a change in the trunk between r22529 and r22644 broke savegame compatibility (invalid chunk size), therefore unfortunate should future NewGRF updates require a higher revision. In any case, I see myself using fast forward much more often, as an ingame hour takes approximately 1h 20m in real time already!

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Ruskij]

Is this an automatically created map or did you use an existing one? The map looks very interesting, especially the fjords and the rivers make it look really realistic!

[Pilot]

You could use some station sets on your Passenger Stations too. That would make these shots even better.

[Dr. B. Ching]

I'm glad you like them! Well, the standard passenger stations are quite okay and the few NewGRFs I've had a look at seem to encourage piece-by-piece construction, i. e. one of the factors that led to the downfall of my SimCity 4 experience to be honest. As for the map, it's a randomly generated version (towns: low, industries: very low) using the heightmap linked to in my first post.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

I've decided not to invest too much time in this savegame anymore (for the reasons mentioned earlier), so please understand that the following pictures will feature rather short descriptions.



Their complains were eventually successful and Metro Cammell four-car EMU sets replaced the railmotors on the Codstow West-to-Bardean service. Avoiding the whole bottleneck situation in the middle, the single track with passing loops was routed around the mountains rather than through them. Plus, it was easier to connect both ends of the new alignment this way.



Trondstow Junction is very busy, though passenger trains only add a small number of movements to the pool - not unlike other (real-life) companies, Blackwood Transport's revenue is greatly dominated by freight traffic. The stopped EMU usually doesn't have to wait more than a couple a minutes (OpenTTD: seconds) for the passing and in the meantime the view should at least keep children aboard entertained.



A Bardean-bound train crosses a viaduct not far from the previous location.



St. Lewisdown Castle may not have become a railway town, but its junction remains important nevertheless, including vastly increased road traffic. From this point, the passenger route remains elevated all the way to Finthwaite Springs and is prepared for a second line of rails, should demand ever require this extension. (In case you are wondering, the seemingly unnecessary bridge in the top left corner is a relict of a discontinued spur.)



The western end of the new alignment, after which the track with expensive-to-maintain double electrification is shared with slower freight trains. Fortunately, their frequency is rather low and thus the difference in top speed (72 vs. 96 kph) is not as dramatic. The nearby aluminium plant and bauxite mine are major employers in the area and also field of activity for a number of industrial trams.



I posted no screenshot the last time Minburgh was mentioned, so this one is to make up for the mistake. The existing tram line to Sunthwaite Springs has not been dismantled however and is still operational for an insignificant mail service.



Certainly, Teswich has changed a lot since 1911 and is now the second-largest city of the region. Apart from the expanded inner-city transport network, a shuttle services links Bayside Road Station to Codstow Central.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

In preparation for the next proper game, I have been experimenting with different techniques, ranging from rural transportation to mass transit inside a city with over 1.000.000 inhabitants. The objective in the following screenshots was to find out the maximum capacity of a single track line in respect of timetables, station ratings and the daylength factor.



Unit number two of the original rolling stock just departed a countryside stop on the main interurban route. It connects 12 villages with the largest town in the area.



Within a few (fast-forwarded) years, rising passenger numbers necessitated the investment in new MU equipment, replacing the older wooden, arch-windowed trains typical of the early 20th century. Two steeplecab locomotives and some 10 t trucks were also bought to transport local agricultural products to consumers and improve the financial situation of the company at the same time.



The freight business eventually grew much more important, most evident by this long example and impressively capable General Electric engine. As soon as it clears this section of track, the company's first diesel locomotive (an ALCO S2) will proceed in the opposite direction.



Returning from its drop-off station, it passes another coal mine served by rail. I found that Unimog rail car movers (from HEQS), quite a step down from small industrial shunters in terms of power, top speed and flexibility, are really only useful in niches like this, i. e. short distances over existing infrastructure.



In contrast to interurbans, the railmotors proved to be inferior in just every aspect in the same type of service. Not unsurprisingly given my earlier experience, but there was no real alternative in that game given my chosen set of NewGRFs (besides, using third rail vehicles for every passenger branch line would be unreasonable).

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[Dr. B. Ching]

Discounting NARS2 steam engines and all wagons, I think that the set integrates reasonably well with UKRS2 visually. The sprites appear to be slightly brighter in some cases and drawn to a larger scale, but those differences are seldom noticeable without a direct comparison. Though the early electric locomotives are a very tempting addition to fill that particular gap in UKRS2 and UKRS2+, the long New Rail Vehicles menu (with lots of for me unnecessary entries) means that the next proper game will probably still be restricted to the latter NewGRFs.

The following screenshots are taken from the mentioned inner-city rapid transit system, where several types of construction and propulsion were tested. Eye candy was not a primary concern, nevertheless I think that a couple of pictures are worth posting.



Two trains pass a stone viaduct, one powered by third rail, the other by on-board diesel engines. Construction is straight-forward, but requires extensive demolition of houses and the space beneath it is essentially wasted due to obstructive supporting pillars.



Similar concept, but better execution: the right of way is shared with road transportation, interrupted only by stations. Though quite unrealistic, I found the modern suspension bridge to be the most aesthetically pleasing choice TBRS 1.12 offers for this application.



One such interruption on a single-track line, where buildings had to be cleared in these areas only. The downside of this relatively low-impact method (regarding the local authority) are the considerable construction costs of bridges in general.



Essentially comparable to the viaduct, but in this form cheaper to build and with the potential to recover land for urban development depending on the length of the tunnels.



The last argument is also valid for single-track sunken railways, which in my experience are a reasonable option to route branch lines into dense urban centres, as they are grade-separated and thus avoid the problem with path signals and level crossings.



The most important station in this test scenario. All trains with various means of propulsion are stopping here, including DMUs, EMUs (third rail and dual-current collection) as well as diesel and electric locomotives.

Kind Regards,
The Axe

[PikkaBird]

and drawn to a larger scale

Not at all; in fact, the major reason for UKRS2 sprites being drawn smaller is to make them better scaled against "normal" American and European train sets. The British loading gauge is tiny compared to the rolling stock of most of the world. The size difference isn't readily appreciable when comparing physical commercial models, btw, because they are different scales (British OO 1:76 vs US/EU HO 1:87 and British N 1:148 vs US/EU N 1:160).

[Dr. B. Ching]

Thanks for the correction, I'm not very familiar with the British railway system. During the alpine game, your set already got me interested to learn a bit about the included engines and BR vehicles in general, so it's not all lost!

Kind Regards,
The Axe