Question about optimal station layout

[NekoMaster]

Sorry for the second post but this post is totally unrelated to my last one.

I like to reuse as much rail as I can like how its done in real life (instead of building seperate lines for every industry) but I have a problem in making a station that allows for 2 trains to wait for cargo while another line would be open for supplies, with 2 lines on the sides to allow trains to pass by the station (so 5 lines in total), anyone got a station design that can handle this?

[Arie-]

Like this, using way points:

Purmengast Transport, 1950-03-24.png (32.32 KiB) Viewed 5691 times

[Bob_Mackenzie]

Possibly it could do with some signals...

Assuming the feeder tracks are one line up and one line down then

path signals before the first junction on the line going towards the station
block signals after the last junction on the line going away from the station

4 signals total

[Arie-]

Indeed, signals are required (I only wanted to illustrate the use of way points to force trains on a certain track). The only issue is the capacity of the main line passing the station: is it busy? how many trains are going in and out the station? What if there are more trains than tracks at the station? Trains from the outer lane will block the lines when crossing, so station capacity is important.

[planetmaker]

Could you please possibly discuss station design in the places and threads where it belongs? It's 100% off-topic here.

[Hyronymus]

Could you please possibly discuss station design in the places and threads where it belongs? It's 100% off-topic here.

Topic split and moved for that matter.

[Simons Mith]

Instead of waypoints, you can also use Ctrl-click to make each platform into a separate station. If you then need to expand capacity for one particular cargo, you can add a second platform for that specific cargo type later. So you might consider a setup like this. Sorry for ASCII art, OTTD's not installed on this machine.

Initial line layout for a hypothetical 3-platform quarry station might be

==========Stone out ==========
==========Sand out===========
==========ENSP in============
(space for expansion)
(space for expansion)
(space for expansion)
(space for expansion)
==========Through up==========
==========Through down========

and eventually something like

==========Stone out 1=========
==========Sand out 1==========
==========ENSP in============
==========Sand out 2========= (Ctrl-click to join to sand out 1 station)
==========Stone out 2========== (Ctrl-click to join to stone out 1 station)
==========Stone out 3========= (Ctrl-click to join to stone out 1&2 station)
(space for expansion)
==========Through up==========
==========Through down========


Things to watch out for:

1) The station spread limits may restrict where you can place new platforms.
2) If you try to place a new platform for a new cargo type too far away, it may fall outside the industry catchment area.
3) Always remember to Ctrl-click when you add new platforms or they may join to the wrong part of the station

Benefits:

1) You can expand capacity for part of a station without having to disturb the remainder.

2) Arriving sand or stone trains (in this example) get a choice of several platforms as you grow the station. That quickly gets really fiddly to deal with if you use the waypoint approach. You may end up needing a sort of branching waypoint tree. Complicated.

[maselbe]

@ Simons Mith

Maybe I understood your solution wrong but adding different stations adjent to another isn't possible in openttd.
You can not add a station with name "stone out" and a station with the name "sand out" right next to eacht other (with tiles "touching" one another).

The ctrl click is used for spreading station-tiles that aren't touching. (Bus station that is 3 tiles away from a trainstation for example)

[Simons Mith]

No, it does work, and these days I use the multi-station technique in preference to the waypoint trick - which I have also tried in the past. However, it may well require a configuration setting to be changed before it's possible. Something to do with 'join remote stations' or 'don't join adjacent stations'...? I can't check just at the moment, unfortunately.

[NekoMaster]

it does in fact work, sometimes I have to use CTRL click to lay down stations, stops, and way points so that they work or arent connected to another station.

Also, Im looking for a compact design that can handle at least 2-3, mybe 4 trains plus a supply train while letting traffic pass by/through/under without being disrupted too much by incoming and out going traffic to the station. Also, it needs a depot so that I can have my trains maintence themselves once in a while.

[maselbe]

No, it does work, and these days I use the multi-station technique in preference to the waypoint trick - which I have also tried in the past. However, it may well require a configuration setting to be changed before it's possible. Something to do with 'join remote stations' or 'don't join adjacent stations'...? I can't check just at the moment, unfortunately.

Oops sorry, didn't know that.

[ChillCore]

Something like this?
I often use that when available space is limited.

It has a few advantages over Arie-'s station.
- No crossing of the oppposite direction line.
- 1 extra platform while the total width is one tile less.

Disadvantage over Arie-'s station.
- Mine is 2 tiles longer (including line merges) as I have no waypoints on both sides and my station is 1 tile shorter.
- Through traffic has to wait for the tunnel to clear.

As for depots I'm sure that you can adjust a bit and add them yourself.
You could make the tunnels a bit longer to keep them close to the station but IMHO the best place is to add some before/after the tunnel lines split/merge from/with the mainline so that trains passing by can also use them and do not have to pass through the station to reach them.

[NekoMaster]

Any ideas to help maximise cpacity with the above layout? I usually have it so the entrance and exits of stations are seperated so trains can come in while a train leaves unless the station line it needs to enter is occupied

[Vinnie_nl]

The first station is a layout I made for the original post. The second lay-out is the Improved version of ChillCore his station. Improvement does mean more complex

Oh on the first station the depot (circeled) is an overflow depot and will make sure the station will not jam the mainline

I hope this helps,

Vinnie

[ChillCore]

It could be that Vinnie-nl's station has a bit more capacity as there is waiting space to keep the mainline free if all stations are occupied ... but I would go for something like this.

If you insert a tile after the bridges then you can put another signal there so the bridge can hold 1 train. You could also add some overflow depots on the crossings just outside the station with the risk that through traffic will go for them.

[Transportman]

Instead of waypoints, you can also use Ctrl-click to make each platform into a separate station. If you then need to expand capacity for one particular cargo, you can add a second platform for that specific cargo type later. So you might consider a setup like this. Sorry for ASCII art, OTTD's not installed on this machine.


Things to watch out for:

1) The station spread limits may restrict where you can place new platforms.
2) If you try to place a new platform for a new cargo type too far away, it may fall outside the industry catchment area.
3) Always remember to Ctrl-click when you add new platforms or they may join to the wrong part of the station

Benefits:

1) You can expand capacity for part of a station without having to disturb the remainder.

2) Arriving sand or stone trains (in this example) get a choice of several platforms as you grow the station. That quickly gets really fiddly to deal with if you use the waypoint approach. You may end up needing a sort of branching waypoint tree. Complicated.

Waypoints can also be joined to each other, so it doesn't really matter if you build seperate stations for every cargo or if you build waypoints to do that. Stations get less messy with signs and order lists of vehicles are kept a bit cleaner, but the waypoint-approach can be used to share some tracks if there are irregular delivery for some cargoes and you want some tracks to accept multiple trains. It is just own preferences, there is no best way to do it.

[mfb]

To get a drop and a pickup i.e. at a factory, different stations are no problem. But you can't use different stations if you want to use it as a transfer station.
Waypoints are the only way there which works every time and does not require seperate lines, massive amounts of logic or something like that.

[NekoMaster]

I kinda need a layout that incorperates a depot somewhere that I can use to build and maintain trains, i usually build them near the entrance of loading stations.