Timetable spreading order vs depot leaving order

[lilbear]

Hello everyone!

Is there a way to control the start date order when I use automatic timetable spreading (Ctrl+Click when setting a start date on timetable)? I'm having the following problem. If I have several trains (all sharing the same timetable) in a depot and click the green dot to start them all, then they will usually leave the depot in ascending train number order. If I use automatic timetable spreading, the start dates will be distributed such that the trains should arrive at the first station in descendening train number order. So, I either have to set all start dates manually, or I have to start each each train in the depot only after the previous train left the depot. In my current situation (just built a new large maglev network and several new tram networks), each of the these solutions is quite some pain in the ass. The former is very error-prone and the later consumes 1.5 ingame years just clicking trains and trams in the right order.

(I also expected that clicking the red cross in front of each train in the depot would make them leave the depot in the corresponing order. But they would just leave the depot in some completely unrelated order.)

[Transportman]

I always have problems with all those orders, so what I do is, I start them all and after the last vehicle has arrived at the first stop (so all vehicles are on a timetable) I separate them. Still takes some time, but works for me.

[lilbear]

I start them all and after the last vehicle has arrived at the first stop (so all vehicles are on a timetable) I separate them.

Hm, looks like this way you have to touch each train's timetable manually and the whole process needs quite some ingame time (depending on how large your network is and thus how many trains you want to share one timetable, of course). I think, I prefer then starting the trains individually in the depot, so that they leave it in the right order.

I was just wondering if there is some good reason why the timetable spreading is implemented the way it is. It seemed to me more useful if it was just the other way round (early start date for train with small train number, and late start date for train with large train number).

[Transportman]

I start them all and after the last vehicle has arrived at the first stop (so all vehicles are on a timetable) I separate them.

Hm, looks like this way you have to touch each train's timetable manually

No, I use the auto-separate feature as it is in the game. But you are right that it takes quite some ingame time.

[lilbear]

I start them all and after the last vehicle has arrived at the first stop (so all vehicles are on a timetable) I separate them.

Hm, looks like this way you have to touch each train's timetable manually

No, I use the auto-separate feature as it is in the game. But you are right that it takes quite some ingame time.

Oh, I didn't expect that the auto-separate feature would take into account already active timetables. Very useful if one wants to add a few new trains to an already running network. Still, it would be nice to have some more convenient "default beavior". Maybe I should suggest something like this as a new feature.

Thanks for your replies, which helped me to understand the game mechanisms a bit better.

[audigex]

I find the easiest thing is to send out the first train with autofill on, then approximately separate the rest of the trains myself (take a look at the route before you start, and you can have a good guess at the separation)

Once the first train is nearly back at the start, adjust the station wait times to add in some slack (especially important on new routes, as the auto-fill will be 1 day on each station), then when it completes, grab the SECOND train and initiate separation from that train. The rest sorts itself out.

[lilbear]

I find the easiest thing is to send out the first train with autofill on, then approximately separate the rest of the trains myself (take a look at the route before you start, and you can have a good guess at the separation)

Sorry, but I'm not sure if I understand. Do you suggest not to use the auto-separate at all? Of course that would circumvent any unconvenient behavior of that feature. But then I have to set 417 start dates manually, which is a time consuming, boring, error-prone and thus quite frustrating task. I would like to avoid it. However, I know about only 2 workarounds:

• Set the start date (with auto-seperation) of the last train in the depot to something in the near future and then start the trains in the depot one by one in descending order. This means 1.5 ingame years of just clicking vehicles in the right order. I prefer this to setting all start dates manually, but it's far from perfect.
• Start all trains in the depot and wait until they have all visited the first stop, so that all timetables are active. Then set the start date (with auto-seperation) of the train which is the next to visit the first stop. This means that some parts of my network will be severly congested in the beginning and it will literally take decades of ingame time until everything sorts out (including again a lot of manual intervention). It's just no fun to build highly optimized networks this way.

Once the first train is nearly back at the start, adjust the station wait times to add in some slack (especially important on new routes, as the auto-fill will be 1 day on each station), then when it completes, grab the SECOND train and initiate separation from that train. The rest sorts itself out.

Well, if I do this (with auto-seperation) while some trains with inactive timetable are still in the depot, then these trains get wrong start dates (see http://www.tt-forums.net/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=72783 and/or http://www.tt-forums.net/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=72794).