[OTTD] Some screenshots by Dr. B. Ching (2.0)

[kamnet]

I most enjoy that big long bridge! Your building style is rather languid and without all the flapping about stupid four way junctions and “maximum throughput” and I rather like it that way. Lovely.

It is nice, and it all just fits together so naturally.

[Dr. B. Ching]

You would be correct to assume that the majority of junctions are rather basic. For one, all the capacity of a fully grade-separated four-way junction is simply unnecessary with daylength 50, long headways and all. And should a train have to wait for a couple of seconds or take a slightly longer route to get somewhere, it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things (plus there's sufficient timetable padding). Again taking inspiration from RL, even on a very important and busy rail corridor such as Berlin's Aussenring, there are multiple junctions with bi-directional single-track or missing connectors altogether.

That said, complex layouts aren't out of the question and I do occasionally implement them when the situation warrants it. The to-be busiest lines in and out of Highland Park for example have four-way junctions, partial grade-separation and double-track for the most relevant relations. Ideally, I'd like to scale these down even further, but compromises have to be made for the limitations of OpenTTD: lack of centralized traffic control and need for safe waiting positions for the longest train(s) on the line. Programmable signals are quite helpful in this regard, though!

[acs121]

That's still a very nicely made junction though, but...
In terms of junctions between mainlines and ring lines, I have seen much more complicated.

[Dave]

You would be correct to assume that the majority of junctions are rather basic. For one, all the capacity of a fully grade-separated four-way junction is simply unnecessary with daylength 50, long headways and all. And should a train have to wait for a couple of seconds or take a slightly longer route to get somewhere, it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things (plus there's sufficient timetable padding). Again taking inspiration from RL, even on a very important and busy rail corridor such as Berlin's Aussenring, there are multiple junctions with bi-directional single-track or missing connectors altogether.

That said, complex layouts aren't out of the question and I do occasionally implement them when the situation warrants it. The to-be busiest lines in and out of Highland Park for example have four-way junctions, partial grade-separation and double-track for the most relevant relations. Ideally, I'd like to scale these down even further, but compromises have to be made for the limitations of OpenTTD: lack of centralized traffic control and need for safe waiting positions for the longest train(s) on the line. Programmable signals are quite helpful in this regard, though!

Even so - the scale is good. It’s not a weird cut and paste cloverleaf thing... it still seems to evolve naturally, and it still feels... real.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Nothing special, but here's something rural for a change of scenery. Intercity buses are rather more appealing to me when one doesn't need convoys of them to keep up with demand. Still, 40 PAX each @ 120 kph only gets you so far as far as busier lines are concerned. Case in point: pictured railway had to be extended here because the buses were unable to adequately serve the ferry terminal, cargodist and all.

[ForeverForgotten]

All of Fortune Bay City's network is now up and running! New Town is somewhat smaller in comparison, but regardless there was ample opportunity for new, extended and above all not completely-out-of-scale lines. For those wondering about the impact of daylength 50 on passenger transportation: yes, for individual routes in low-density suburbs, the level of ridership is low, however numbers do add up with transfers and cargodist. In a large city like this, or even express train connections between them, a sufficient number of high-capacity vehicles is still very much needed. The key difference I've found is the fact that the infrastructure required can be much more reasonably sized with regard to real life, and as a result gameplay tends to be more about building a manageable web of lines and accompanying vehicles as opposed to four-track super rail highways and bus convoys everywhere to move all those people in vanilla OpenTTD. And long single-track routes with tiny DMUs do work as well. Just the right balance for me!

By the way, savegame is available on request in case anybody wants to tinker with the scenario posted in my other thread.

Could we have the savegame download? I love your building style, and it would be nice to see the whole thing from the top-down to get a sense of the variety that these screenshots always tease at. Cheers in advance.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Certainly! You're going to need JGRpp 0.28.0 and probably the not-on-BANANAS newGRF package from my scenario thread, though. Don't expect too much; I've been focusing almost exclusively on completing the PAX network, so there isn't any freight infrastructure to speak of yet.

[Dr. B. Ching]

For the last major city, I went with a light metro approach for trams and implemented ordinary street-running in the suburbs, accompanied by EL/tunnel/separate right-of-way (depending on terrain) in Downtown. As for commuter trains, which connect the surrounding communities with Highland Park, they for the most part adhere to the Stadtbahn concept: overhead electrification, tightly spaced stations in Highland Park itself, short trains (two tiles) running at frequent intervals, and tunnels underneath the central city area. Since freight trains will not be a factor for these lines, most distant resp. rural sections are single track.

This completes the passenger network, by the way. I've hooked up every single settlement, hotel and farmstead on the map. What's next? Mail!

[Dr. B. Ching]

Well, I was in the mood to implement a number of air lines for once and I do have to admit, a busy airport does have a certain charm. Perhaps I should tinker with airplanes more often in the future! FBC Airport on the outskirts of town works flawlessly thanks to cargodist and has it all: Metro extension, commuter rail, modern low-floor trams, regional buses, mail distribution, Boring 737s alongside oddball aircraft such as new-age Zeppelins and ridiculously small (10 PAX + 5 MAIL) passenger planes.

Freight trains (and trams and trucks...) are also go. Mostly mail at this point in time, but it's a start.

[STD]

You have beautiful screenshots . Attaboy .

Regards, STD.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Cheers! I haven't had much time to play OpenTTD lately, so a couple of quick screenshots are all I can offer right now.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Another trio of snapshots.

1.) FBC Harbour has gotten a little busier. Since there's no way to make room for a station serving the stockyard off-screen to the northwest, I bought a pair of Dynamo freight trams (from HEQS) to feed processed meat products to this transfer hub. From here, food is distributed across the Bay area by truck, tram, rail and ship. The station also doubles as the local mail hub.

2.) Population growth of Diamond City has created enough demand for a better transport option than regional buses, so a modern light rail line for PAX and cargo now connects to Port Victoria. Those Dynamos can do 80 kph as well, which is nice.

3.) La Palma main station with local and express services.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Just some snapshots from Dino Juice Valley Railway.

[Dr. B. Ching]

Airport integration in five different flavours.

[Dr. B. Ching]

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