With the beautiful and mighty Semmering Railway soon to be available for TS2016, I take a look back at 4 days in September when I went out to capture what makes the route so iconic

Day 1

After a short flight out from the UK to Vienna it wasn't long into the day before I had collected the hire car and was driving down the A2 motorway on my way to the Austrian Alps. A railway line connecting Wien and Triste over the Alps had been discussed as early as 1837 but such a hugely mountainous route was never thought possible.

It wasn't long before the open plains gave way to towering mountains and the now S6 road began weaving its way through steep valleys. Semmering is a town in the district of Neunkirchen in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. With a population of only 600, the town is most famous for the railway pass and its skiing facilities. Despite being of small size, the town records over 100,000 tourists each season.

My hotel for the next few days was to be found perched overlooking the central station of the route - Semmering, and I was eager to unpack and get to work. Walking down to the town gave a stark reminder that I was in a ski resort during summer. Dry slopes, ghostly chair lifts and every shop geared towards winter clothing without a customer in sight.

Heading straight for the station, the constant sound of heavy trains rumbling through the mountains was a clear indication I would be capturing a busy freight corridor, not a sleepy scenic railway operated by tourist trains. The Semmeringbahn is also recognised as a World Heritage site and I would come to find markers and signage all throughout the route acknowledging its uniqueness and grandeur. During my first capturing session on the line, I noted no less than a dozen trains rattling through the station, at a ratio of at least 5:1 freight verses passenger stock.

As the light quickly faded with the sun passing over the mountains behind the station, it was time to retreat back to the hotel and map out my plans for the next few days.

Day 2

It was an eager start at 07:00 for breakfast and to stock up on snacks for the day. There would be no stopping for lunch as I had a railway to capture. First up would be the western half of the pass between Mürzzuschlag and the summit tunnel. This portion runs up the side of a single valley, through stations at Spital and Steinhaus. Capturing lineside detail and surrounding environments was in full swing as the clock passed 09:00 and I began to appreciate that the small back roads I had chosen to navigate might not be the most appropriate for my hire car. Nonetheless pressing on, I simply enjoyed the adventure as I passed from point to point, stopping at bridges, underpasses and of course viaducts.

By midday I was back in Semmering at the summit station located 896m above sea level. From Mürzzuschlag the line has risen 215m over 16km. That might not seem high, but it's steep for a railway. However, the descent from here down to Gloggnitz and the flat plains out to Wien would prove far more challenging, both for the trains and my hire car!

In seemingly stark contrast to the open valley on the western side, heading for Wolfsbergkogel and beyond, the route now consists near solely of tall dense pine forest, steep sided canyons and winding intricate valleys. Construction began in 1848 and saw the creation of 22 major bridges, 16 viaducts and 14 tunnels. Over 15,000 workers were involved on the 42km section from Gloggnitz to Mürzzuschlag. In the mid-1800s though there was no tunnelling machinery or mechanical assistance. The entire line and all its structures were built by hand in just over 6 years. Sadly this rate of progress cost the lives of over 700 men and women.

Each viaduct reached became taller and more impressive and presented by an informative sign and historic artifact (such as replica living conditions or left over equipment). By mid-afternoon I had reached one of the centrepiece attractions - the Kalte-Rhine viaduct and accompanying Polleroswand tunnel. By this point, very little was becoming accessible by car meaning much trekking on foot was now taking place. It was good that my efforts were always rewarded with breathtaking views and stunning environments to capture, combined with the ever present freight trains and their clattering cargo.

Day 3

Another 07:00 start as I head straight back to the Polleroswand tunnel and Krausel-Klause viaducts in order to continue tracing the line east. The target area for today would be Breitenstein through to Schlöglmühl. Working my way through the twisting mountain roads I reach another landmark structure - The Grand Hotel Südbahn. Of beautiful Austrian architecture, the hotel is steeped in the nostalgia of the late 1900s luxury tourist trade. Built shortly after the route was completed, the Southern Railway quickly realised the potential for tourism to the area and capitalised on the access the railway gave.

This would ultimately prove to be by far the busiest day of the trip. The few short miles to Eichberg and then back along the neighbouring valley I see me covering 6 stations, 9 tunnels, and 9 of the routes famous viaducts. My camera and I were certainly tired as night fell.

Day 4

The final day of the trip was greeted once again by a beautiful clear sky and warm sun. Departing the hotel I set off for the northern end of the line and parked up at Gloggnitz station. Without taking a single shot I boarded the first available train and began the journey over the pass to experience the line from the railway. At Payerbach-Reichenau I switched to a local service in the form a highly nostalgic 3car EMU. This would bang and clatter me up the steepest but most beautiful and impressive portion to the summit at Semmering. From there I changed once again, but to a polar opposite of motive power. Covering the run down to Mürzzuschlag would be the sleek, modern and air conditioned Railjet train.

Arriving in Mürzzuschlag, it was clear to see where the operational base of the route lay. Encompassing 6 platforms, a sizable freight staging yard, a minor transhipment area, locomotive servicing and stabling, crew administration facilities and of course the Südbahn Museum on the opposite side of the tracks. I began snapping the camera as soon as I set foot on the platform.

No sooner had midday passed I was back on the train ascending the mountains. Once aboard the local service I made more effort to capture the magnificent views as we traversed tunnels and turns, viaducts and valleys.

Arriving at the bottom of the valley 457m below the summit, there was time enough to complete one final survey before my trip was complete. It was time to capture Gloggnitz.

To a similar size as Payerbach-Reichenau a short distance up the line, Gloggnitz features 3 platforms and a handful of sidings either side of the station to handle works trains and a logging business. The main purpose of Gloggnitz is to act as the outpost for pilot and banking locomotives operating from Mürzzuschlag. During my survey I was witness to many freight trains arriving in the various loops and attaching extra traction to aid transit over the mountain.

In just a few days my trip was over, but with 1000s of images, videos, notes and experience, I came away thoroughly inspired and ready to brief the production team back in Chatham. It was a great pleasure to get this opportunity and I hope that we have been successful in recreating the majesty and grandeur of this most beautiful of European routes within our software.

Semmeringbahn Coming Soon for Train Simulator 2016.

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The Great Western Railway truly stood out during the romantic British Steam era, with revolutionary locomotive designs that remained key components of locomotives for decades, locomotives that could even put LNER to shame on their own tracks. If you believe that Great Western Steam is the only way to go, then the TS2016 Single Route Pack: Riviera Line in the Fifties is for you! Featuring a plethora of classic Great Western steam locomotives including the beautiful Castle Class, heavy-working, heavy-hauling Modified Hall Class, the plentiful powerful Grange Class and last but by no means least, the almighty King Class. Reminisce to the days before the Class 143 and HST and put the regulator to the max in a real locomotive!

Discover the traction available with the Modern Day Riviera Line

Whilst looking back at the grand steam days of the Riviera Line, you might as well discover the variety of traction that has traversed the likes of the Dawlish Sea Wall since steam saw its regular end. Speed along in one of British Rail’s masterpieces of the 80s that still stands to this day, the time-honoured Class 43, High Speed Train. Perform a local stopper service in what is likely the most controversial unit to ever come out of a British factory, the make-do Class 143 ‘Pacer’. Delve into the cab of a unit so reliable it can operate the longest journey in the UK, the impressive Class 220 ‘Voyager’, or take the helm of a short-lived albeit iconic locomotive, the unique Class 52 ‘Western’. Alternatively you could control the more powerful variant of a multiple unit that has dominated the South West since the notorious Network SouthEast era, the NSE Class 159 ‘South Western Turbo’.

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Photograph copyright George Nydegger and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

I am proposing this route as a CSX route, this line has a history and an exciting one at that. 

This route was a part of the Clinchfield Railroad but in the mid-70s it became a part of the Family Lines System made up of the Clinchfield, SCL L&N and other smaller railroads. In 1986 the Chessie System and Seaboard merged becoming the Chessie Seaboard Merger, or CSM. Lawyers then replaced the M with an X, initially the X had no meaning until someone came up with Xpress and due to X appearing at the end of leasing companies marking. Finally a T was added and the new name was Chessie Seaboard Xpress Transportation or CSXT for short.

The CSXs main traffic was coal, manifest, grain and intermodal whereas larger Class 1s had a vast array of intermodal customers with the BN running from Chicago to Tacoma, Seattle and Santa Fe running for Long Beach, Oakland, Stockton to Chicago. UP was running from ports in Texas, Chicago west coast ports from Oakland to Chicago. Even the SP had an intermodal service and now the BNSF have some of the largest intermodal names on their trains. The NS had good intermodal service and by partnering up with UP/BNSF and KCS it could provide a one stop shop. The CSX on the other hand has a partnership with UP and has its own containers with UMAX and CSX containers but due to its roots they stuck with what they knew but now has caught up with them. 

After 1996/97, the railroad map changed and the SP had been consumed by the UP. With the SP now merged with the UP, it allowed them access to Tehachapi southern California and that opened more doors for them.

In 1997 the BN SF merger was a well suited merger with the BN being more of a manifest train/autorack/intermodal handle but more importantly it would have grain and coal merging that with Santa Fe's intermodal side although they handled coal & it wasn’t nowhere near that of the BN and with both railroads purchasing a lot of new power they went into the most successful merger and the railroad map changed with trackage rights changing the playing field. 

However the CSX lacked a lot of this traffic being stuck in Appalachians and coal is how they made their money, this line is a key factor with Spartanburg with South Carolina being a gateway to Florida it could run manifests across this route and it did but in 2012 when coal started dropping the CSX turned their had to more commodity train - ethanol and oil although this route didn’t ever these trains.

This route from Catlettsburg to Spartanburg mainly saw Coal grain and manifest traffic and a few steel trains, on a very rare occasion bare table trains. There is aloes manned helpers still on this route but DPU technology has taken over, but manned helpers are still needed.

The subdivisions on this route are:

• BIG Sand sub - Catlettsburg to Elkhorn City
• Kingsport Sub - Elkhorn city to Erwin Tennessee
• Erwin terminal sub is the yard and locomotive facility
• Blue Ridge Sub - Erwin to Spartanburg

Made of 3 subdivisions this route has plenty to offer from 90 car grain trains with 4 SD70MACs to a heavy 18,000 ton coal trains with 3 ACs in Notch 8 also with helpers to the rear, or being the helper crew pushing the train up the hill and uncoupling on the go or taking a heavy Q601 with 2 ACs front and manned helpers on the rear but doing 1.2 mph with the sanders on and the amp metre in the red.

This route offers the player many things to do from heavy underpowered manifest, coal trains or even taking one of the monster 130 or 220+ car coal trains up and over these subs with heavy ES44AH C44WH or the big 6,000 horsepower units. These trains would challenge everyone with 4 units 2x2 with mid train DPUs and 2 manned helpers on the rear with a total of 22000 horsepower, sanders on release the brakes and it’s show time as a 28,000 ton coal train begins a 2.2% climb.

However the sounds of hard working diesels will not be heard again on two of these subs the Kingsport and Blue Ridge subs are now closed.

On the 15th October 2015 CSX closed this route down (Elkhorn City to Spartanburg), the line had lived through many of its own troubles and got to see the golden age of railroading from steam, the transition to diesel and the many mergers and take overs. CSX owned the line from 1986 until 2015, 29 years of service and 300 that day where sadly told the news that their jobs where no more, a sad day all round.

Earlier in 2015 we saw the CSX trying out DPU technology and the result have been a bit overwhelming starting with coal trains to customers. In Florida, trains went from 110 cars to 165 -170 cars with two mid train units and in Georgia coal trains went from 90-100 cars to 130 cars 2x1 mid train DPU but the real monsters is the 219/220 car coal trains and Q606 is a mammoth of a train. Despite losing this line, CSXs future still looks bright with ethanol, grain, Tropicana and slowly more intermodal trains, some over 12,000 feet long with massive manifests.

Locomotives for this line are ET44AH, ES44AH C44WH, SD70MAC ES40DC C40-8 SD70ACe and TILX RD-LS and RD-4 hoppers.

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of p.csizmadia.

Photograph copyright Allan R. Willams Jr. and reproduced courtesy of RailPictures.Net.

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of RailfanVirginia.com.

Photograph copyright Thomas H. Parker and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright G Gerard and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright James Hough and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright Shawn Levy and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright Harold Hodnett and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright George Nydegger and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright Ant Davis and reproduced courtesy of RRPictureArchives.NET.

Photograph copyright Chris Starnes and reproduced courtesy of RailPictures.Net.

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Gerard J. Putz.

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Dive into the heart of the UK’s Capital with the stunning North London Line, this bustling commuter route winds through some of London’s most modern development sites such the Olympic Park in Stratford, to the beautifully scenic tracks in the South West, right the way though connecting major lines such as the Midland Mainline, West Coast Main Line, High Speed 1 and a whole lot more, providing a key link for the thousands of commuters every day. Do you have what it takes to pull off the tense timings, heavy traffic and complex nature of the North London Line in the city’s most reliable unit, the Class 378 ‘Captialstar’?

The North London Line is also home to the revolutionary Class 59/2, this DB Schenker powerhouse derived from the ever-popular EMD SD40-2 powers throughout Britain hauling incredibly heavy loads, which would not be possible without the vital links provided by the North London Line. Can you master this immense locomotive hauling hundreds of tons of coal while winding through the packed city of London?

Not only is the North London Line home to the likes of modern commuter traction and heavy-hauling powerhouses, a whole range of locomotives both passenger and freight can be seen working on and around the line every single day, so have you thought about adding Britain’s formidable Class 86? Available in classic BR Blue, unique RailFreight Sectors, Rail Express Systems and modern Freightliner liveries, the Class 86 has proven time and time again that the locos of the 1980s are going nowhere anytime soon by regularly working across the busy North London Line hauling container freight bound for lands near and far.

Deliver the country with its daily packages by adding the Class 325 EMU to your North London Line roster, operating day and night out of the impressive Royal Mail depot near Willesden Junction, the Class 325 is the most reliable way to get any parcel around the country featuring dual voltage capabilities allowing a near nationwide coverage, made possible by the connections of the North London Line.

Take the opportunity to fulfil the North London Line with routes such as the Great Eastern Main Line: London – Ipswich, Midland Mainline; London – Bedford and London – Faversham High Speed offering a fantastic array of scenario opportunities and journeys that add to the excitement of the North London Line, see the fastest domestic train in the UK crawl out of the High Speed 1 tunnels as you pass near Camden Road, take the heavy-hauling Class 59 northbound via the Great Eastern Main Line, passing the Siemens-built Class 360 ‘Desiro’s which provide the vital link for Essex and beyond with the Capital and traverse the Midland Mainline at West Hampstead, providing a link for passengers bound for Bedford or Brighton.

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A busy scene in Parker Street, Manchester.

Brief

Set in 2015 with a wide variety of Lines and Routes includes within the Manchester Metrolink day to day services and operations, it would be excellent to see a Dovetail Games' developed Light Rail/Tram route in TS2016. With such a wide area covered across the city of Manchester, the player could easily enjoy operating routes in and out of the Centre of Manchester to its suburbs of Bury, Altrincham and Rochdale for example.

Routes

There are a wide variety of routes operated as part of the Manchester Metrolink service, these are:

• Altrincham to Bury
• Altrincham to Piccadilly
• Bury to Abraham Moss
• Cornbrook to MediaCityUK
• East Didsbury to Rochdale Town Centre
• Eccles to Ashton Under Lyne
• Manchester Airport to Cornbrook

All of these routes the player could drive and operate, from just doing a short journey between Piccadilly and Altrincham, to operating a full length journey between Manchester Airport to Cornbrook, the choice is totally up to the player.

What would the player be able to do?

The player would be able to drive the trams from place to place, whether driving easy or competing with a tough rush hour timetable in adverse weather. Events, similar to real life could occur, such as cars on the line causing trains to Bury, for example, to be terminating at Prestwich, also for example. The amount of variety despite being confined to a single city and its suburbs is huge and the player will be able to experience real life timetables and try his/her hand at becoming a tram driver on the Manchester Metrolink and test their strengths when put under the pressure of a harsh monring or evening timetable.

The Trams

On the Manchester Metrolink, every day Bombardier M5000 Trams populate the route and operate in 2 to 4 car consists depending on the time and amount of passenger traffic. Although one might like to drive the old AnsaldoBreda T-68 Trams which used to operate the network, and some still do, I do not mind whether these get implemented or not. The route could be perfectly fine with being provided with the single Bombardier M5000 as these are most common in 2015.

Why put this into Train Simulator?

I do believe providing the player with a unique amount of scenarios and selection within the game would allow the game to expand even more into the light rail network. After the introduction of the first tram route, Frankfurt U-Bahn by Just Trains, I would love, and I'm sure the player would too, to see Dovetail Games develop a light rail route themselves and do believe the Manchester Metrolink is the perfect route for the introduction of light rail and tram networks to be added to Train Simulator.

Summary

Ultimately, the addition of the Manchester Metrolink network into Train Simulator could provide an entire new market to Dovetail Games, one for Tram Simulator enthusiasts who would love to see a light rail route implemented within the detailed game that is Train Simulator and would provide existing players with the ability to operate and drive trams on one of the UK's biggest light rail networks, if not the biggest. The wide variety of destinations and routes will provide the player with an everlasting amount of fun and joy and allow players to test themselves on real life Metrolink timetables, from an afternoon stroll to Manchester Airport, to a rush hour rush to Eccles.

Not to mention with Steam Workshop integration, players could make scenarios of their own, being able to create their own unique journeys for others to enjoy with a minimum amount of addons needed apart from the route itself. This is why I would pay £24.99 for this route and also why it should be implemeted for the joy of the players in Train Simulator 2016.

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East Coast’s Finest: LNER Pacifics

Peppercorn Class A1, 60163 ‘Tornado’

Despite the sad fate of the Peppercorn A1 Pacifics, with all 49 scrapped in the 1960s, the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust rekindled the flame for the A1 with a brand new locomotive, 60163 Tornado. Completed in 2008 to modern standards, Tornado is used for Rail Tour and excursion use around the UK, proudly representing the once ill-fated A1 Class. Take control of the most modern, yet classic locomotive running on British Rails today as a part of the Settle – Carlisle Steam Specials Pack, a perfect way to grow your collection featuring a number of locomotives beside 60163 Tornado.

Peppercorn Class A2, 60532 ‘Blue Peter’

With only 15 examples of Peppercorn’s A2 Pacific locomotive ever being produced, they were a rare sight across the ECML straight out of the production line in the late 1940s. The A2 Class was the push towards modern standards, featuring electric lighting and self-cleaning smokeboxes from the start and named after the country’s finest racehorses, they were yet another example of LNER’s grand pacific design. Luckily out of the 15, 1 locomotive, 60532 Blue Peter survived into preservation, and although is currently out of action on the real rails, there is no stopping this racehorse powering along the ECML in Train Simulator.

Class A3 Pacific, 4472 ‘Flying Scotsman’

Arguably one of the most famous locomotives in the world, 4472 Flying Scotsman defines the grandeur of the steam era, being the first locomotive officially recorded achieving 100 miles per hour, and famous for performing numerous Rail Tours across the globe, one record-breaker tour in Australia spanned a distance of 422 miles, the longest non-stop run ever performed by a steam locomotive. Capture this icon of the railways in a number of classic liveries worn throughout the decades, streak through the countryside in a variety of BR and LNER Greens, or alternatively take command of 4472 in the cost-effective yet undeniably beautiful Wartime Black livery.

Class A4 Pacifics

Nothing quite defines speed like an LNER A4 Pacific, developed upon the success of the A3 Class with inspiration from Germany’s innovative ‘Flying Hamburger’, the A4 Class was built on the prospect of achieving efficient, high speed running with steam traction, and Sir Nigel Gresley succeeded greatly. 35 Class A4 locomotives were built, but the class was made world-renowned by 4468 Mallard, which in July 1938 broke the world speed record for steam locomotives with an amazing 126 miles an hour, a record which it has held ever since. Why don’t you see how fast you can achieve in the 6 preserved examples available all in one pack, featuring Mallard herself in LNER’s wonderful Garter Blue.

LMS Coronation: ‘Duchess of Hamilton’

While you’re speeding along in the grand Class A4 Pacifics, why not add the streamlined beauty of the West Coast, one of the most powerful passenger steam locomotives ever made, the LMS Coronation Class, Duchess of Hamilton. Designed to compete with LNER’s A4 Pacifics, and a once proud owner of the world speed record achieving 114 miles per hour, with ease, the LMS Coronation Class steams into your collection as preserved at the National Railway Museum, York featuring Maroon Mk1s including all new kitchen and restaurant first coaches, perfect for Rail Tours along the Settle – Carlisle Line, advanced driving modes and features including an opening smoke box door and of course mastering this locomotive couldn’t be easier with the all new Driver Assist!

Heritage Potential: West Somerset Railway

There is no better place to show off your fantastic steam locomotive collection than in the heart of Somerset on the UK’s longest heritage railway. Situated off the Bristol – Exeter line, the West Somerset Railway traverses through some of the most picturesque locations in Somerset, including the coastline towards Minehead. The West Somerset Railway is home to a number of steam and diesel locomotives including SDJR 7F No. 88 and 6960 Raveningham Hall, the railway also sees various others visit for galas and Rail Tours throughout the year.

N15 King Arthur Class, ‘Sir Lamiel’

Built between 1919 and 1926 for the London & South West Railway as an express passenger locomotive designed for operation in the West Country, the N15 King Arthur Class were able to easily cope with the ever-increasing numbers of heavy express services, they were somewhat a very innovative class being the first locomotives to experiment with and use Smoke Deflectors in service in the UK. 30777 Sir Lamiel is the sole survivor of the class and frequently returns home to the South West operating Rail Tour and Excursion trains along the West Somerset Railway.

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The extraordinary bustle and drama of Union Pacific main line railroading comes alive on TS2016’s Sherman Hill route as UP trains converge on tracks 1, 2, at 3 at Dale Wyoming.

Train Simulator’s Sherman Hill route is now
available as a single route pack, and Gary Dolzall
tells the story of this historic Union Pacific line

Along the eastern rim of the great Rock Mountains, the Laramie Range rises up to challenge the transcontinental passage of Union Pacific’s daily armada of trains, and the result is one of the greatest shows in all of American railroading – Sherman Hill.

Between Cheyenne and Laramie, Wyoming, a direct distance of 56 miles, the Union Pacific of today – just as it has been for well more than a century – is an extraordinary steel conveyor of rail tonnage, a bustling and historic railroad that hosts upwards of 100 movements a day and that serves as one of America’s most dynamic and important transcontinental rail lines. Union Pacific’s original crossing of the Laramie Range was set down in 1868 and crested the high plateau at an elevation of 8.247 feet above sea level and at a remote, windswept place named Lone Tree Pass. Shortly after the railroad’s completion, though, the summit was renamed in honor of the accomplished United States Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman – and forever after, Union Pacific’s line became known as Sherman Hill.

Union Pacific’s original summit route had been both hastily and economically constructed and proved an operating bottleneck. As the twentieth century began, UP, under the reign of E. H. Harriman, relocated its main line a few miles to the south and constructed 1,800-foot Hermosa Tunnel. The new alignment allowed UP to reduce the line’s ruling gradients, lower its summit to 8,015-feet, and also replace the original spindly Dale Creek trestle with a massive earthen fill. Following the line’s relocation, UP, over the next two decades, double-tracked the route, including construction of a second bore for Hermosa Tunnel. Further change came to Sherman Hill in 1953 when Union Pacific opened a third track – called Track 3 or the Harriman Line – via a longer but lower-gradient alignment which allowed heavy westbound trains to work their way up a 0.8-percent grade rather than the direct route’s 1.5 percent grades (eastbound, the ruling grade from Laramie had been 0.8-percent dating back to the turn-of-the-century line relocation).

Throughout the decades, Union Pacific’s Sherman Hill has proven one of the continent’s great showcases of big-time railroading, both in the amount of traffic in carries and in the motive power it has hosted. In the late steam era it was home to UP’s trio of majestic and modern steam types, the stylish and fast FEF-class 4-8-4s, the dual-service 4-6-6-4 Challengers, and the biggest of the big, the Alco-built 4000-class 4-8-8-4 “Big Boys.” Following the demise of steam, Sherman Hill hosted UP’s remarkable and unique gas-turbine electrics, which culminated in the 8,500-horsepower General-Electric “Big Blows,” as well as a fascinating array of diesels ranging from the 6,600-horsepower EMD DDA40X “Centennial” diesels of 1969 and hundreds of workhorse SD40-2s to today’s ultra-efficient locomotives such as the GE “Evolution Series” and Electro-Motive SD70 family of locomotives.

Enhanced for the release of TS2016, Dovetail Games’ Sherman Hill route is now available as a single route pack that recreates all the operating challenges and drama of the UP famous route. Including the large yard and terminal complexes of both Cheyenne and Laramie, the Train Simulator route brings to life Sherman Hill’s primary two-track main line (Tracks 1 and 2) as well as the serpentine Track 3. And it also includes the connection at Speer, Wyoming between Track 3 and the UP’s line to and from Denver, as well as the “Borie Cutoff,” which provides direct access from Speer to Sherman Hill Tracks 1 and 2. All of which provides numerous and varied authentic operating opportunities and challenges.

Featured motive power for the TS2016 Sherman Hill single route pack is UP’s remarkable 8,500-horsepower “Big Blow” gas-turbine, and the route also includes a variety of modern diesel motive power such as the EMD SD40-2 and SD70M, General Electric’s ES44AC, and UP’s unique SW10 rebuilt yard switcher. Plus, a remarkable variety of additional motive power and rolling stock is available as DLC, including all three of UP’s great steam types (the 4-8-4, 4-6-6-4, and 4-8-8-4) and diesels such as the classic EMD GP20 and GP30, the giant DDA40X, and even Union Pacific’s fleets of EMD SD70ACe locomotives painted in “Heritage” liveries.

Union Pacific’s Sherman Hill represents North American railroading at its bustling, impressive, and dramatic best – and that grand experience awaits you in Train Simulator! – Gary Dolzall

Now available as a single route pack, TS2016’s enhanced edition of the Sherman Hill route features Union Pacific’s unique 8,500-horsepower “Big Blow” GE gas-turbine. UP’s “One Spot” is exiting Hermosa Tunnel with a westbound manifest. All screenshots by Gary Dolzall.

Cheyenne, Wyoming, its massive terminal and yard complex and stylish station, have long been landmarks along the Union Pacific. At Cheyenne, two generations of EMD power included with the TS2016 route are at work hauling tonnage (above). A variety of DLC available for the route, such as the superb and stylish FEF-3 4-8-4 and leviathan “Big Boy” (below) allows you to recreate various eras and operations.

Modern Union Pacific diesel power puts on a show at Cheyenne yard, as a set of GE ES44ACs bring a unit grain train into the yard complex while an EMD SD70M leads an eastbound intermodal train on the main line.
 

Big-time railroading 1960s and 1970s style is recreated as trains pass atop the huge earthen fill that crosses the valley of Dale Creek (above), and as a UP “Centennial” diesel approaches the summit of Sherman Hill westbound (below). Locomotives such as the classic Union Pacific GP30s and legendary DDA40X are available as DLC.

Standing at the west end of Train Simulator’s Sherman Hill route, Laramie is also home to a bustling terminal. On a snowy day, Union Pacific “Big Blow” turbine No. 13 makes it pull from the yard eastbound (above), while on a much more hospitable summer day, a westbound behind EMD SD70Ms arrives at the yard and passes one of UP’s unique SW10 switchers.

Back to the future: Union Pacific’s renowned and long-lived steam excursion program will soon include the return to service of Big Boy 4014, as this scene on TS2016’s Sherman Hill route envisions.

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Photograph copyright HeritageFreak8098 and reproduced courtesy of RailPictures.Net.

Photograph copyright colmat91 and reproduced courtesy of RailPictures.Net.

Norfolk Southern is one of the four main railroads in the USA, it holds some of the most amazing routes in the country and this route is one of the Norfolk Southern railfaning hot spots. Ok I do know that about 40 some miles or more of this is already in Train Simulator but this would be set in the modern day. We start in Harrisburg, PA where the Keystone Corridor ends, further on down the track is Altoona, PA which of is about five miles from the beloved Horseshoe Curve where many come to railfan the hundreds of trains that pass here each day. Later we have a few more towns then we pull into Pittsburgh where we pass by some of the old coal plants some of which still exist today. Not just freight trains run on the route, the Amtrak Pennsilvanan also does which runs from New York to Pittsburgh.

A Norfolk Southern freight train passes the Altoona Amtrak station shown in the background. Photograph copyright Brandon Fiume and reproduced courtesy of RailPictures.Net.

The locomotives I would like to see in this route would be the Amtrak P42DC the Norfolk Southern SD40-2 which is common on ends of coal trains to help it climb the mountains or on local trains, the Dash 9, the SD60-2, the ES44DC and the SD60MAC. For rolling stock: Norfolk Southern Grain Hopper, the Norfolk Southern Coal Hopper Piggy back intermodal cars, the single stack and double stack intermodal and the Amfleet Phase IV coach and cafe. If you have any more that you would like to see in the route just comment below.

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Following the TS2016 Thanksgiving sale, we're excited to see what you've added to your Train Simulator collection over the past week. Have you finally got that heavy-hauling American locomotive you've been desperate for, taken the leap and picked up something completely different than usual, or expanded into the incredible world of TS2016 with our Mega Collection featuring a plethora of content or Single Route Packs to personalise your collection? Capture a screenshot of your new favourite and send it to us at engine-driver@dovetailgames.com or why not share your story with us in the comments below or write an article about your ever-expanding roster of locomotives, with plenty of screenshots included of course!

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A lot of Western movies used trains...but this movie train is known by everyone.

On March 26th, 1891, a Legend was born. Prescott & Arizona Central Railway (P&AC) locomotive #3 was named W.N. Kelley after the company's treasurer. No. 3 was a 4-6-0 ten-wheeler, built by the Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey.

One of the few photos of Sierra No. 3 in its P&AC Colors.

The P&AC went bankrupt in 1893 and all the P&AC engines went to the newly formed Sierra Railway Company in 1897. No. 3 was re-christened Sierra No. 3 and began regular service on the Sierra. 

The Sierra Railroad was a key role of the building of Jamestown, Sonora and Tuolumne, California. No. 3 was the primary freight hauler on the Sierra and pulled logging, mining and dam-building trains untill 1906 when a Baldwin 2-8-0 was purchased (Sierra No. 18).

A fallen No. 3 in 1918, after this accident the original wood cab was replaced by a steel SP Cab.

Two years later, in 1920, Sierra No. 3, made her first known Hollywood film appearance, in a silent serial movie called The Terror, starring Tom Mix.

Sierra No. 3 was taken out of service in 1932, and sat on a siding in the Jamestown yard for 14 years. It was proposed to be filmed (and destroyed) when the producer of Duel in the Sun wanted No. 3. 

After a rebuild in 1948, Sierra No. 3 officially began her career as a movie/TV engine. A list of movies will be given near the end of this article. Sierra No. 3 was repainted and relettered for countless films. In 1995, old No. 3 was removed from service for a complete overhaul.

As part of the overhaul, the original boiler was replaced. This is the original movie boiler (as I call it) is now on display at Railtown 1897. Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Cullen328 (Jim Heaphy).

Final cost of the rebuild was US $1.6 million, and the locomotive officially returned to service on July 3, 2010. As of this article, the current configuration of the locomotive represents her appearance during the year 1929, when the movie The Virginian was filmed and provided the first known evidence of the presence of No. 3s steel cab.

A recently restored No. 3 debuts from the roundhouse not too long after the big overhaul.

Today, No. 3 is owned by Railtown 1897 State Historical Park alongside 4 other engines (2,7, 28, 34), of which only Shay No. 2 is operational. 

I remember first seeing No. 3 in Back to the Future P.3 as Central Pacific #131. It saddened my heart to see the engine fall into the ravine, but movie magic makes us believe anything. Here is the list for Movies and TV Shows No. 3 has been in.

Movies

According to Railtown 1897, these include the following:

• The Terror, 1920, starring Tom Mix
• The Virginian, 1929, starring Gary Cooper and Walter Huston. This was the first talkie filmed on location rather than on a studio sound stage.
• The Texan, 1930, starring Gary Cooper and Fay Wray
• Sierra Passage, 1950, starring Wayne Morris and Lola Albright
• Wyoming Mail, 1950, starring Stephen McNally, Howard Da Silva and Ed Begley
• High Noon, 1952, starring Gary Cooper, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role. The film won three additional Academy Awards.
• The Cimarron Kid, 1952, starring Audie Murphy and James Best
• Kansas Pacific, 1953, starring Sterling Hayden and Eve Miller
• The Moonlighter, 1953, starring Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray and Ward Bond
• Apache, 1954, starring Burt Lancaster, Jean Peters and Charles Bronson
• Rage at Dawn, 1955, starring Randolph Scott and Forrest Tucker
• The Return of Jack Slade, 1955, starring John Ericson, Neville Brand and Angie Dickinson
• Texas Lady, 1955, starring Claudette Colbert and Barry Sullivan
• The Big Land, 1957, starring Alan Ladd, Virginia Mayo and Edmund O'Brien
• Terror in a Texas Town, 1958, written under another name by blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, and starring Sterling Hayden and Sebastian Cabot
• Man of the West, 1958, starring Gary Cooper, Julie London and Lee J. Cobb
• Face of a Fugitive, 1959, starring Fred MacMurray, Dorothy Green and James Coburn
• The Outrage, 1964, a remake of Rashomon as a western, starring Edward G. Robinson, Paul Newman, Laurence Harvey, Claire Bloom and William Shatner
• The Rare Breed, 1966, starring James Stewart, Maureen O'Hara and Brian Keith
• The Great Race, 1966, starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis and Natalie Wood
• The Perils of Pauline, 1967, starring Pat Boone and Terry-Thomas
• Finian's Rainbow, 1968, starring Fred Astaire and Petula Clark
• A Man Called Gannon, 1968, starring Tony Franciosa and Michael Sarrazin
• The Great Bank Robbery, 1969, starring Zero Mostel and Kim Novak
• Joe Hill, 1971, a biopic about the IWW activist Joe Hill, starring Thommy Berggren. The film won the Jury Prize at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival.
• The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid, 1972, starring Cliff Robertson and Robert Duvall
• Oklahoma Crude, 1973, starring George C. Scott and Faye DunawayNickleodeon, 1976, starring Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds and Tatum O'Neal
• Bound for Glory, 1976, a biopic of Woody Guthrie, starring David Carradine and Randy Quaid. This was the first major film to use the Steadicam, and Haskell Wexler won the Academy ward for Best Cinematography for the film, and the film also won another Academy Award.
• The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, 1979, starring Tim Conway and Don Knotts
• The Long Riders, 1980, starring teams of brothers including James Keach and Stacy Keach, David Carradine and Keith Carradine, and Dennis Quaid and Randy Quaid
• Pale Rider, 1985, directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Eastwood and Richard Dysart
• Blood Red, 1986, starring Eric Roberts, Giancarlo Giannini, Dennis Hopper and Julia Roberts in her movie debut
• Back to the Future Part III, 1990, starring Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd and Mary Steenburgen
• Unforgiven, 1992, directed by Clint Eastwood, starring Eastwood and Gene Hackman and winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, Academy Award for Best Director and two other Academy Awards
• Bad Girls, 1994, starring Drew Barrymore, Andie MacDowell, Madeleine Stowe and Mary Stuart Masterson

No. 3 as CP #131 in BTTF P3.

TV Shows

According to Railtown 1897, these include the following:

• The Lone Ranger, 1956, starring Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels.
• Tales of Wells Fargo, 1957, starring Dale Robertson and William Demarest
• Casey Jones, 1958, starring Alan Hale, Jr..
• Rawhide, 1959-1966, starring Clint Eastwood and Eric Fleming.
• Overland Trail, 1960, starring William Bendix and Doug McClure.
• Lassie, 1961–1962, starring Jon Provost, June Lockhart and Hugh Reilly.
• Death Valley Days, 1962–1965, starring Ronald Reagan.
• The Raiders, 1963 TV movie, starring Brian Keith and Robert Culp.
• Petticoat Junction, 1963–1970, starring Bea Benaderet, Edgar Buchanan and Linda Kaye Henning. Sierra No. 3 pulled the Hooterville Cannonball passenger train.
• The Wild Wild West, 1964, starring Robert Conrad and Ross Martin.
• The Big Valley, 1964–1966, starring Barbara Stanwyck.
• The Legend of Jesse James, 1965–1966, starring Christopher Jones and Allen Case.
• Scalplock, 1966 TV movie, starring Dale Robertson and Diana Hyland.
• Iron Horse, 1966-1968, starring Dale Robertson & Gary Owens.
• Cimarron Strip, 1967, starring Stuart Whitman and Jill Townsend.
• Dundee and the Culhane, 1967, starring John Mills.
• The Man from U.N.C.L.E., 1967, starring Robert Vaughn and David McCallum.
• Ballad of the Iron Horse, 1967 documentary by John H. Secondari.
• Gunsmoke, 1971, starring James Arness, Amanda Blake and Milburn Stone.
• Bonanza, 1972, starring Lorne Greene and Michael Landon.
• The Great Man's Whiskers, 1972 TV movie, starring Dean Jones, Ann Sothern and Dennis Weaver, telling the story of why Abraham Lincoln grew his beard.
• Inventing of America, 1975 documentary by James Burke and Raymond Burr.
• Little House on the Prairie, 1975–1983, starring Michael Landon, Karen Grassle and Melissa Gilbert.
• Law of the Land, 1976 TV movie starring James Davis and Don Johnson.
• A Woman Called Moses, a 1978 biopic miniseries about Harriet Tubman, starring Cicely Tyson.
• Lacy and the Mississippi Queen, 1978 TV movie, starring Kathleen Lloyd and Debra Feuer.
• Kate Bliss and the Ticker Tape Kid, 1978 TV movie, starring Suzanne Pleshette.
• The Night Rider, 1979 TV movie, starring David Selby, Pernell Roberts and Kim Cattrall.
• The Last Ride of the Dalton Gang, 1979 TV movie, starring Randy Quaid, Cliff Potts and Larry Wilcox
• Belle Starr, 1980 TV movie, starring Elizabeth Montgomery and Cliff Potts.
• East of Eden, 1980 TV miniseries based on John Steinbeck's novel, starring Bruce Boxleitner, Lloyd Bridges, Warren Oates and Anne Baxter.
• Father Murphy, 1981, starring Merlin Olsen, Katherine Cannon and Moses Gunn.
• The A-Team, 1984, starring George Peppard and Mr. T.
• Bonanza: The Next Generation, 1988 TV movie, starring Michael Landon, Jr. and John Ireland.
• The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., 1993, starring Bruce Campbell.

No. 3 on Petticoat Junction.

Frisco (SLSF-1522)

2 NS GE unit lead NS 291 southbound through Locust Grove, Ga

Hello everyone, first let me introduce myself, I am Harrison, I railfan every time I get the chance and when I do railfan, I railfan the busy Norfolk Southern Atlanta South District. Note all Photos are taken by me.

The South District hosts about 25-35 trains per day and can see any type of freight, and power. One of the main attractions are the Powder River basin coal trains. These trains almost always have BNSF power. Not only is the foreign BNSF power a treat, these trains keep their DPU (distributed power units) the whole journey. These trains have also been seen with CITI rail units which are ONLY leased to BNSF.

The South district is also NSs main road to Macon and to Jacksonville, Fl. The line also hosts trains for Savannah and the busy port in Brunswick, Ga. The line sees a heafty bit of Hot Shot intermodal from Atlanta, Kansas City, and Chicago all for Jacksonville, and Savannah. The Grain trains go to the port of Brunswick, but that is not always true, Grain trains can go anywhere. My personal favorite are the many mixed manifest trains. All of these trains are bound for Macon, some come from Chattanooga, Tn, others from Knoxville, Tn, Linwood, NC and one even from Chicago. Sometimes these trains carry high and wide equipment loads for export.

The line runs through many small southern towns such as Rex, Stockbridge, McDonough, Locust Grove, Jackson, Flovilla, Juliette (Where the movie 'Fried Green Tomatoes' was filmed) and finally into Macon. It also has many mile post signals such as MP 178.6 a.k.a. Camp Creek or MP 186.2 a.k.a. Smead. The line has many grade crossings which the player should enjoy blowing the horn for.

The line also has a big industry city about half way, the town of McDonough, Ga. The town has a small spur track that leads to warehouses/factories and also the NS South East Training Center. Some industries are right off the main line, industries such as Whirlpool, Kens foods, and Toys R Us.

Some locomotives that would go good would be an SD70ACe, a Dash 9/Dash 8, Low Hood SD40-2 and an ES44DC GEVO. Some rolling stock would be Grain cars, Coal cars, Tanks, Boxcars, NS autoracks and Intermodal Double stacks.

I think the route would be a fantastic addon for Train Simulator and would be very fun to run.

I hope you enjoyed reading this! Have a Great Day,

~Harrison 

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Fastline Simulation, well known for their high quality wagons have released a whole range of packs onto the Steam Store, featuring BDO, BRV, HTO and HTV wagons, all of which are available now on the Steam Marketplace.

BDO 60t Bogie Bolster Wagon Pack

The BDO 60t Bogie Bolster Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

BRV BORAIL Wagon Pack

The BRV BORAIL Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

HTO 21t Hopper (Dia. 141) Wagon Pack

The HTO 21t Hopper (Dia. 141) Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

HTO 21t Hopper (Dia. 146) Wagon Pack

The HTO 21t Hopper (Dia. 146) Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

HTV 21t Hopper (Dia. 146) Wagon Pack

The HTV 21t Hopper (Dia. 146) Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

HTV 25t Hopper Wagon Pack

The HTV 25t Hopper Wagon Pack is available now on the Steam Marketplace.

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EE Type 3B included in Return to Maerdy.

Today we introduce Return to Maerdy, the return of a wonderful Welsh colliery mini-route featuring two very different forms of traction – the EE Type 3B Battery Loco and the J94 0-6-0

Those of you who have enjoyed the Memories of Maerdy add-on from third party developers Meshtools will appreciate the grimy industry of the colliery yard, with its stock of J94 Austerity tank locos in different states of repair. Now, Meshtools have fast-forwarded the Maerdy route to recreate the colliery how it would have appeared in its final operational years, largely neglected and with passenger services merely a fond memory. 

Lonely J94 stands cold in the wilderness in front of Maerdy's modest loco facility. 

The J94 tank loco, with advanced and HUD-compatible versions, makes a welcome return as a steam survivor soldiering on in uncertain times. However, in Return to Maerdy it is joined by the all-new and rather unusual EE Type 3B Battery Loco. The 3B is battery-powered, requiring no engine or external power source to operate, and offers a unique driving experience in Train Simulator. Like the J94, there are advanced and HUD-compatible versions provided, in a variety of colour schemes and with different external and in-cab features. Even when driving the simpler HUD-compatible versions of these locos, a read through the manual beforehand is advisable as the different versions included have their own unique features and some unconventional controls.

In contrast with the harsh surroundings, the Type 3B offers a surprisingly pleasant cab environment!

As well as the small Maerdy colliery route and the J94 and Type 3B locos, Return to Maerdy also includes 4 scenarios for you to tackle as you explore not only the route, but also the respective quirks and features of these two charming little workhorses. Return to Maerdy is an entirely separate add-on from Memories of Maerdy, both produced by developers Meshtools and giving different experiences of life as a colliery driver. 

A mere pin-prick in amongst the towering majesty of the colliery, the Type 3B works on as all around it grinds to a halt. 

There's plenty to get on with, despite the gradual decline of the yard, so let's make a start!

Return to Maerdy is available now on Steam.

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(Above) The railway reached Exeter in 1844, providing a vital link to Bristol and London and eventually to the once-small coastal towns of Devon via the Riviera Line.

The Riviera Line is situated in the South West of England and serves the coastal towns of Devon between Exeter St. David’s and Paignton with lines such as the Kingswear or Brixham branches, serving smaller towns throughout Devon.

Behind the scenery of this route lies the fascinating history of some of England’s most picturesque locations, from the classic architecture to the vast and unique terrain. Discover more about the Riviera Line in the Fifties route below, featuring 5 fantastic GWR steam locomotives and available now exclusively with Train Simulator 2016.

Exeter

Located on the River Exe in the heart of Devon, Exeter dates back as early as 250 BC where evidence shows possible trade connections with the Mediterranean, early settlements could have been based quite near the River Exe. Military forts used by the Romans were converted for civilian use around 75 AD, from which the foundation of civilisation were based on, expanding in a north-easterly direction. The area in and around Exeter showed evidence of an industry-heavy Roman settlement including pottery, livestock, crops, bronze and copper workings.

The industry side of Exeter continued right through the medieval times despite the attacks and takeovers from the Vikings and the Normans, with weekly markets beginning around the early 1200s to serve the locals and by the end of the century, Exeter enjoyed a tri-weekly market, the only one in the south west of England. One sign that Exeter was fairly developed early on was the impressive aqueducts that served the entire city with fresh drinking water, the water originated from springs in St. Sidwells and reached Exeter by means of subterranean passages, these remarkable water routes lasted into the early 1900s.

Producing products based on the agricultural nature of the area, and with a locally accessible, fast-flowing river to provide power, business boomed for Exeter during the early stages of the Industrial Revolution, this would not last however. When steam power was introduced in the 1800s, Exeter’s development ceased as its location was too far away from any reliable coal resources, the city became less and less important for industry, and avoided the expansion seen by almost every other major town and city in Europe.

Exeter was first reached by the railway in 1844 by the means of the Bristol and Exeter Railway, which not only connected these two cities, but gave them a direct link to London. The South Devon Railway was next to be constructed, extending southwest connecting Exeter to Plymouth via Newton Abbot. Both of these lines were built using Brunel’s preferred 7ft Broad Gauge, however this was eventually converted to standard gauge which is quite obviously, still in use today.

Dawlish

Where the town of Dawlish resides today, people like salt makers or fisherman may have regularly travelled from further inland to gather resources for their industries, in particular salt makers which would make and store their produce around the area. It is thought that these salt makers would eventually move their business to Teignmouth, as the Dawlish Water can be very unpredictable during flooding.

Early settlements started to grow around a mile away from the coast, however nothing really happened until the end of the 18th Century when the wealthy began to make the south coast their summer holiday destination, this transformed Dawlish from a quaint fishing village into an increasingly popular and growing holiday location. One of the more impressive developments for Dawlish was its landscaping performed in the early 19th Century, this included straightening the stream, which has remained in place to this day.

The original railway to pass through Dawlish was not only Broad Gauge, but the South Devon Railway was also designed without conventional locomotives in mind. Instead, the atmospheric railway design was used, this meant air pressure is used to propel a train rather than a locomotive, and it was thought this would prove beneficial in regards to operating along the hilly route, but in fact was teeming with problems and swapped for conventional stock a year after service.

Newton Abbot

Much like Exeter, the origins of Newton Abbot can be found sprouting from the area surrounding a military site, in this instance the village began to grow around Motte-and-bailey castle, built by the Normans, this castle would have most likely been used as a lookout post for the Teign estuary, another settlement was also developing around this time surrounding the River Lemon. The real growth of the town started was when the regular markets began around 1250, the lower settlement near the River Lemon was renamed to Newton Abbot around 1300, with the castle-bearing settlement taking the name of Newton Bushel.

By the mid-1600s, both markets were large enough that they were combined, with many more appearing in the following centuries, to make enough room for all of them, part of the River Lemon was covered over and now flows through a tunnel under Newton Abbot. There has been a continuous, thriving market in Newton Abbot for roughly 700 years, this has naturally seen development of a very industrial nature, produce such as clay, wool and leather, and a canal was built to connect Newton Abbot with Teignmouth port, where regular trade with Newfoundland occurred.

The railway played a vital role to Newton Abbot’s development when it arrived in 1846, in particular it rapidly grew the trade opportunities and the town was no longer bound by the likes of just wool and leather and quickly became an industrial hot zone, a branch line connected Newton Abbot and Torquay a couple of years later. The GWR managed to turn Newton Abbot into a job haven in 1876 when they decided to base their locomotive repair and maintenance sheds adjacent to the station, 600 jobs were initially created, with well over 1000 workers some decades later.

Paignton

Paignton started out as a small Anglo-Saxon Settlement known as Paega’s town, and was documented as Peyton in 1086’s Domesday Book. By 1294, the town became a borough with the introduction of a regular market and fair. Until the 19th Century, Paignton was, like many other coastal settlements in the area, a rather small fishing town, this was until a new Harbour was built in 1837 which saw a growth in the area.

The Dartmouth and Torbay Railway built a line that opened to passengers in 1859, providing a direct link from Paignton and Torquay into London, this would further increase the growth as fishing town, but also provide the wealthy from the Capital with another potential summer holiday destination. The railway followed suit with all the other lines at the time, being built as broad gauge but eventually seeing conversion to what locomotives run on today.

Notably one of the most famous icons of Paignton is the notorious Paignton Pudding. Originating from the 13th Century, the Paignton Pudding took a long time to produce as they were rather large in size, and were baked for several major events in Paignton for example, when the railway arrived in the town, thousands of people turned up to try and get a piece of the pudding that was made to celebrate this occasion, this abnormal turn-out of people resulted in a memorable, albeit chaotic experience for the residents of Paignton.

Kingswear

Located on the east bank of the River Dart, Kingswear is a small village that possibly dates back to the Anglo-Saxons, with a small village in place around the 12th Century. In 1170, pilgrims would use Kingswear as a landing zone on their journey to Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s tomb following his murder. Kingswear also became the sight of the church built in memory of Thomas, the church was rebuilt in 1847.

Kingswear is mainly known for its connections to Dartmouth on the opposite side of the river, residents frequently cross by the means of ferries which date back to the mid-1300s. One trip made by boat in the 1600s saw settlers depart from the westernmost point of Kingswear, known as Kittery Point that landed at the mouth of the Piscataqua River in North America, where they began a town now known as Kittery, Maine.

The railway reached Kingswear in 1864, it was built by the Dartmouth and Torbay Railway providing a link to Exeter and London and became part of the Riviera Line following the arrival of the Great Western Railway in 1876. Passengers destined for Dartmouth cross the River Dart by the means of a railway-owned ferry, as an extension of the railway that would cross the river was never built. The line became known as the Kingswear Branch following the nationalisation of Britain’s Railways in 1948, the Riviera Line now only covering Exeter to Paignton, however regular railway services still operate as normal.

(Top) Exeter St. David’s station was originally built to serve a few number of services, but was soon developed to cope with many more in decades to come, as can be seen with the multiple platforms now in place. (Above) Situated to the side of Exeter St David’s can be found the locomotive shed, carriage sidings and coal loading facilities designed to keep the GWR’s ready and near the line for service. (Below) Branching off to the left is the line to Exeter Central, this then itself branches off towards Exmouth and Salisbury, the Riviera Line continues on the right, heading south bound for Newton Abbot, Paignton and Kingswear. (Bottom) Almost immediately after leaving Exeter, the Riviera Line crosses the River Exe, of which the town of Exeter derives its name and origin from.

(Top) The line passes through a rather vacant site in Exeter, this is due to the fact that the River Exe is still very close by and could naturally cause significant problems to buildings should there be any flooding here. (Above) The residential area sees a rise again on the approach to Exeter St. Thomas station, the link between St. Thomas and St. David’s is very useful on the account of each station being of either sides of the River Exe. (Below) Exeter St. Thomas station was built by the South Devon Railway in 1846 to serve Plymouth and Torquay-bound services, the train shed was added the following year. The station originally had only 1 platform, this was extended to 2 in 1861. (Bottom) The Line sees another few branches span out in the outskirts of Exeter, in particular lines head towards Exeter’s City Basin, timber yard and the local Cattle market, naturally seeing regular freight traffic heading in either direction.

(Top) The area south of the various freight yards is populated by industry, with building after building dedicated to industries grown by the area around them, note the absence of buildings to the left, again due to the proximity of the River Exe. (Above) The line passes under the first of several road bridges found crossing the line, as the route is very rural and scenic, there aren’t many roads needing to cross the railway, also for many towns along the line sees the railway elevated even above the houses. (Below) The line now take a much more open countryside look as it leaves the city of Exeter behind and won’t pass right through the middle of a Town for some time, serving the outskirts in particular. (Bottom) A Great Western standard Semaphore Signal shines green denoting a clear line ahead, which on a summer’s day the driver could no doubt tell with visibility stretching right down the line.

(Top) Another signalling masterpiece can be seen between the tracks, the GWR-designed ATC or Automatic Train Control, this cab signalling allows the driver to be given warning on the signal ahead, and for the train to react if the driver does not do so. (Above) The line curves a little further south and heads towards Exminster station, which itself is situated away from the town, which is just out of sight behind the trees. (Below) The number of lines increases on the straight before the station, with many sets of points allowing for various operations to take place here, for example a local freight bypassing for an express passenger service. (Bottom) Much like Exeter St. David’s, Exminster station started out with a single track and platform, growing as time went on, due to the increased freight traffic around the area, 2 passing loops were also added for lower priority trains to be stabled in.

(Top) Exminster also has many sidings just south of the station, there are not only useful freight rolling stock, but are a good holding place for empty passenger services waiting to be needed on busier days. (Above) Heading further south, the line is met with a rather oddly designed notice board, this board is a Water Trough Warning board, alerting the driver and fireman to the approaching trough which they can quickly prepare for if necessary. (Below) In between the warning board and Water Trough, a distance less than half a mile, a level crossing is situated which serves as a method of reaching the River Exe from further inland. (Bottom) Here can be seen the start of the Water Troughs, these are used to fill up steam locomotives without the need to stop, this was a very useful method for long distance and express journeys throughout Britain.

(Top) Water Troughs tend to run for about 480 – 570 metres in length, allowing locomotives to pick up a reasonable amount of water in a fairly short amount of time, the only downside being the amount of spray produced at higher speeds. (Above) The line begins curving in correlation to the bank of the River Exe, and will only be following it for a few more miles before the river gives way to the sea, forcing the railway coastal bound. (Below) The River Exe can be seen once again from the railway, however it is a lot larger since it was last crossed back in Exeter, and apart from the main river itself a lot of it is very shallow, eliminating any large ocean vessels from heading inland. (Bottom) The Riviera Line now starts to edge closer and closer towards the bank of the River Exe, which it will follow all the way to the estuary. Note the footpath crossing with a very lengthy warning threatening a fine of 40 Shillings should someone trespass.

(Top) The River Exe’ estuary is a very busy one, with an increasing amount of traffic ever since the first trading villages began, in the distance can be seen Starcross station, which is situated right on the bank of the Exe. (Above) Starcross station serves the small namesake town from with the entire settlement quite obviously to the left of the station, the town’s heritage however lies from the river, being a popular sailing location and home to one of the oldest sailing clubs. (Below) The River Exe itself snakes away from the railway after Starcross and eventually ends in the English Channel, most of the land around here is unusable, consisting of a large sand pit that blocks a majority of the estuary. (Bottom) The next station on the line is Dawlish Warren, unlike the main station which serves the town, Dawlish Warren serves more as a tourist destination, with the local beaches being very popular with holiday makers brought in by steam.

(Top) The Riviera Line passes one of the most unique natural structures along the line, the lone-standing Red Rock, from which a lot of the local buildings are built with, giving them a unique reddish tone. (Above) The line now sees a dramatic shift in scenery as it follows the Devon coastline, open countryside gives way to a stunning red cliff face which the line now follows for miles. (Below) The famous Dawlish Sea Wall is a key location for any Railfan who enjoys watching steam locos power through Devon, however due to the proximity to the coast, maintenance practices for British Rail prove to be a constant and challenging struggle. (Bottom) Dawlish station was once a single platform halt constructed out of wood, like many other stations this was duplicated in following years, but being so close to the sea, the original station ironically burned down, and the rebuilt station survives to this day.

(Top) Slightly beyond Dawlish station allows for a peek of the unique layout of the town, with re-aligned stream just visible running through the streets and the obvious landscaping where the cliff edge has become an opening for housing. (Above) After winding in front of the impressive Dawlish cliffs, the line now has no option but to tunnel through several cliff faces that could not be bypassed, the line will go through no less than 5 tunnels in the next mile or so. (Below) Almost consistently in shadow due to the neighbouring cliffs, this grand natural structure is no match for the railway, with multiple tunnels in quick succession with coast just a stone’s throw away. (Bottom) After the final, and longest, tunnel is traversed, the cliff side recedes giving the beautiful tones of the rock a stark contrast with the sky and sea.

(Top) The line now turns inland, leaving the company of the English Channel and heading for the River Teign, the line passes through a deep cutting the cliffs with the next station of Teignmouth just around the corner. (Above) Once the short-lived terminus of the original South Devon Railway, Teignmouth station is situated near the town centre, and is unique thanks to the opposing cliff faces in that a lot of the nearby houses are towering above the railway. (Below) The unusual altitude of the town continues after the station, with several road bridges connecting the town together until the differing gradients equalise. (Bottom) For the first time in a while, a diverging branch leaves the Riviera Line and this time heads for Teignmouth Quay, explaining the more built up nature of the town when compared to neighbouring settlements.

(Top) Now running alongside the River Teign, the Riviera Line passes under a road bridge that connects the towns either side whilst bypassing Newton Abbot, the line now heads for more open countryside. (Above) The last hint of industry is passed, which is unusually placed on a small bank that stretches into the Teign, with road access being from a small bridge, any river town sees plenty of industry, and Teignmouth is no exception. (Below) The line now follows the Teign as close as it can possibly get, as when the line was constructed it was not only powered by the ill-fated atmospheric railway, it was also broad gauge and the amount of tunnelling required further inland would be excessive. (Bottom) There are several spurs of land that stretch out beyond the railway, being surrounded by water these banks are always a lush green which compliments the beautiful Brunswick green worn by the GWR locomotives.

(Top) Another extended bank is crossed by the Riviera Line, however this one is not only occupied by nature, but also a few small houses with farmland on the other side of the bridge. (Above) The expanse of the River Teign can be seen as the line snakes around the bank, with the river itself spanning some 700 metres, this will not last however, as the line nears Newton Abbot, the river rapidly decreases in size. (Below) After a few miles of scenic countryside, the hint of industry can be seen once again in the distance, the line also crosses the now much smaller River Teign, which itself begins to turn north. (Bottom) Just outside Newton Abbot station the evidence that the railway helped towards the growth of the town is prominent, there are also locomotive and freight yards here as a lot of trains need bankers or splitting up for the gradients beyond the station.

(Top) Newton Abbot Station started as 2, then 3 small platforms serving the various branch lines built in the 1840s and 60s. The station was rebuilt to its current form following the First World War, with a total of 4 platforms and 2 high speed bypass loops. (Above) The increased number of lines continues beyond the station, Newton Abbot sees a lot of passenger and freight traffic, which would be near impossible for only two tracks to cope with. (Below) The lines on the right now separate away from the Riviera Line and form the main line that continues down towards Plymouth, Truro and Penzance. (Bottom) The Riviera Line now sees a dramatic change from flat and scenic coastal running to long and punishing gradients which will continue in forms for the rest of the line.

(Top) Starting as a small village, Kingskerswell saw very little change until the arrival of the railway, with the station converting the village into an ideal commuter town which grew rapidly as a result. (Above) It will become apparent how much of a challenge the railway now becomes, with the line climbing at a different gradient to the surrounding hills, displaying how steep the track could be trying to climb. (Below) Torquay is another example of a town turned large by the railway, with the fishing industry growing there was a requirement for a small freight yard just outside the station to cope with the increasing goods traffic. (Bottom) Torre Station was one of the termini for the South Devon Railway which was originally named Torquay, however with the Dartmouth and Torbay Railway extending the line with a second station called Torquay, the name Torre was chosen instead.

(Top) After leaving Torre, the line begins a steep descent through the centre of the town, going from above the buildings to residing in a shallow cutting all within less than a mile. (Above) The railway not only aided the growth of the fishing industry in Torquay, it also grew as a very successful seaside resort, and as a result Torquay station sees a lot of passenger traffic, the station also has a passing loop between the two tracks. (Below) The line leaves Torquay Station and goes back up another gradient, it also within close proximity to the water once again, as the line re-joins the English Channel for about the next 4 miles. (Bottom) After climbing out of Torquay, the line now descends through the outskirts of Paignton, slowly turning away from the coast and into Paignton Station, where the Kingswear branch starts.

(Top) Located right in the centre of Tor Bay, Paignton Station is located about 400 metres away from the coast, making it an ideal seaside destination, it is the end of the conventional Riviera Line, and form here on the Kingswear branch heads further south. (Above) The platform for the Kingswear Branch at Paignton is just off to the side, however many services from Kingswear do not use this and continue towards Newton Abbot, Exeter and beyond. (Below) Goodrington Sands Halt is just over half a mile from Paignton Station, it was only built in 1928, making it the most recent addition to the line, adjacent to it are many carriage sidings, used to store coaches for use on summer Saturday services. (Bottom) After leaving Goodrington Sands, the Kingswear Branch immediately becomes a single line, with duplication only now occurring very infrequently for the next several miles.

(Top) The relentless Great Western topography is very apparent, with peaks and troughs in the landscape necessitating multiple viaducts within a fairly short distance, the visual trade-off however cannot be matched. (Above) As quickly as the Kingswear branch is traversing the landscape with viaducts, it then winding through a deep cutting, and begins slowly turning towards Churston, sadly the eye-catching red rock from before is long behind the tracks. (Below) Churston Station started as a single track, single platform halt, this was eventually duplicated within a couple of years in operation, there is however also a bay platform that serves the Brixham Branch, with several freight sidings were also added. (Bottom) The deep cuttings in the landscape continue as the Kingswear Branch heads on a near-constant down grade for the next 3 and a half miles, gradually heading towards the terminus.

(Top) Some hills just cannot be traversed by means of cuttings, therefore a 450 metre long tunnel burrows underneath the hill and appears with the Kingswear Branch heading towards the River Dart. (Above) Shortly after the tunnel, the Kingswear branch once again takes to the skies over a 150 metre long viaduct, at the end of the impressive structure the line will be running parallel to the river Dart, and begin descending towards Kingswear. (Below) Following a long and tough descent, the Kingswear Branch passes a rather unusual, and unbelievably short halt, this is used for the upper ferry link that connects Kingswear with the town of Dartmouth, these ferries can accommodate cars as well as pedestrians. (Bottom) The final easing downwards towards Kingswear allows for a fantastic view, with the towering hills that the railway has managed to master, and end up on the bank of the Dart, the main town of Kingswear is visible as the hill comes to an end.

(Above) Located in the centre of Kingswear, the termini of the Kingswear Branch features 2 platforms and various sidings for passenger and freight rolling stock, there is also a turntable as without it all locomotives would have to return in reverse. (Below) The lower Ferry link is vital for anything that needs to be transported to Dartmouth, as the small town has a station, but never received a railway, meaning the true end of Riviera Line in the 1950s, has ever been and will always be Dartmouth.

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Here is an Amtrak Viewliner II. This one is a sleeper. Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of ExactoCreation.

Amtrak has reached out to CAF USA in Elmira, New York, to build new baggage, baggage - dorm, diner, and sleeper cars in Viewliner design. These new cars are designed to replace the current viewliner sleepers, heritage baggage and diner cars. They are painted in Amtrak's "Phase III" scheme, with the old and new logos and "Amtrak America" written on them. During 2014 and 2015 Amtrak has been using the baggage cars and doing high speed testing on the NEC, since these cars will be used on eastern long-distance trains. The baggage cars will run on Superliner trains as well. The delivery of all 130 cars is set to be completed in the end of 2015. 

I think these new cars will be great for Train Simulator because they are the future of Amtrak and will be a must have to all Amtrak fans, like me.

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A photo of a Top Gon that BLMA took to make their model.

The NS Coal Distrcit says it all. The old Monongahela Line is a major coal hauling route that is now used by the great Norfolk Southern railroad. However, there is only one type of coal car that was made for this route. Even though the coal car contained in the NS Coal District is great, especially with the new TS2016 sound effects, there still needs to be more variety of coal hoppers to use in the route. I would like to propose three new coal hoppers that would add variety, and better yet, realism to the Coal District.

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Patrick Harris.

The first are these common black NS hoppers. There doesn't need to be much discription since it is only a coal car, but this coal car can be seen everywhere on Norfolk Southern. Especially in the backwoods territory like the Coal District. It is worth noting that these are years old and most (or all) are completely weathered. 

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Patrick Harris.

Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Scott Nodine.

The second coal car is a well known one. The classic dull red Conrail hopper. These cars are never found in a long string anymore, but it's very common to see several of these cars in a coal train on NS. As a matter of fact, its not uncommon to see a long coal train with each car being different. Another good reason for this proposal. Note that these cars are years old as well since Conrail merged with NS in 2001. 

I've saved the best for last. Probably the most recognizable coal car on Norfolk Southern is the black and white Top Gon hopper. Again, these cars are old, but can be seen in a long string. Just like in the photo above, most of these cars are weathered. 

This is a very short article but I hope that everyone will agree that the NS Coal District needs more variety in coal cars, and especially the Top Gons would be great for the route. What do yall think?

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The Class 375.

A popular Southeastern route is Ramsgate to Charing cross. They run some via Canterbury West and some via Dover Priory and that's what I want to come to life here. In a formation of 8 car Class 375s they have the power to go at fast speeds such as 70-100 miles an hour. You can choose if you want to go via Canterbury West or via Dover Priory. I think this will be an interesting route for people all over the world and would sell very well.

The route has a lot of stations across both lines.

Ramsgate to Ashford via Canterbury West:

• Ramsgate
• Minster
• Sturry
• Canterbury West
• Ashford International

Ramsgate to Ashford via Dover Priory:

• Ramsgate
• Sandwich
• Deal
• Walmer
• Martin Mill
• Dover Priory
• Folkestone Central
• Folkestone West
• Sanding
• Westernhanger
• Ashford International

Ashford to Charing Cross:

• Ashford International
• Puckley
• Headcorn
• Staplehurst
• Marden
• Paddock Wood
• Tonbridge
• Sevenoaks
• Orpington
• London Bridge
• London Waterloo East
• London Charing Cross

The route is long I know but it is still very nice and exciting.

Usually the trains going across different lines are different lengths, one being longer than the other.

I would love it to come with the Class 375.

Please do the route me and many other people would love it on Train Simulator 2016.

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A map of the Fort Wayne Subdivision. In this article I am only proposing half the route from Chicago to Fort Wayne.

Today I am proposing the very diverse Fort Wayne Subdivision from Chicago to Fort Wayne. This route was once the Pennsylvania Railroad's main corridor into Chicago, and possibly rivals Horseshoe Curve in terms of notable locations on the PRR. This route was once home to such trains as the Broadway Limited, and numerous high speed freights. Today many portions of the route are split up between two railroads, NS and a shortline known as the Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern. But I will be proposing this route during its hayday in WWII.

A Baldwin Sharknose stops at Ft. Wayne with an eastbound passenger run.

Operations on this route were extremely varied, from high speed freights to local and express passenger trains. This route also hosted trains continuing from Horseshoe Curve, meaning scenario makers can have a scenario start on Horseshoe Curve, and end in Chicago.

The T1.

In my opinion only 1 locomotive should be included with this route, but it is the perfect setting for it. The PRR T1 operated up and down the Fort Wayne Sub quite frequently (even after it gave way to diesels) and was reported to have operated even faster than England's Mallard, at over 140 mph. It would be perfect for fast passenger, and later in its life even operated freight on some occasions!

Anyway, that is my proposal for TS2016. I hope you folks over at DTG will consider it.

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No.1 outside NRM Shildon.

I am here to propose for Train Sim, the GNR Stirling 4-2-2. I would like this as it is one of my favourite locos ever! Let me tell you some info, the loco was built in 1870 at doncaster works, there were 53 built in total, but No.1 stood out from the rest, she was the first to be built and is the only survivor. She has a max boiler pressure of 170 psi and was designed by Patrick Stirling. These were the locos in charge of the 10am 'Flying Scotsman' express out of Kings Cross. 

No.1 at Locomotion Shildon, this is where she remains at the moment. Photograph copyright and reproduced courtesy of Paul Jones.

One of the most ellusive features of the GNR Stirling Single was the massive 8ft wheel to power this beast, it has an unusual wheelbase of 4-2-2. 

During the late 1950s, the perserved No.1 was called out on the tracks again around London for a GNR anniversary. She was originally built for the Glasgow South Western, but she was not equipped for the steep hills of the Scottish landscape, she and 13 others were moved to London where she proved much more efficient, another 40 were built for the 'Flying Scotsman' service where they operated until they were replaced in 1913 by faster, more efficent locomotives. 

Recently she has been used in The Railway Children at NRM York and at London Waterloo!

Thanks for reading, I hope that you agree with this article!

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In response to your important feedback on a variety of add-ons available for Train Simulator 2016, we have today released an update for the DB BR 155 and the Union Pacific Turbine.

Here's a list of what's been addressed:

DB BR 155

• Fixed an issue with the service door being incorrectly located
• Fixed an issue with stretchy couplings on the BR 155 rolling stock
• Fixed an issue with "A bonn-Bad Day for Freight" which could not be completed due to consist tilt
• Fixed an issue with "A Bonn-Bad Day for Freight" which would cause the AI to collide after completing task 14
• Fixed an issue with the consist formation in "Very Yard Work" which made the scenario impossible to complete
• Fixed an issue with message pop-ups in "Intro to 155" that displayed too quickly
• Fixed an issue with the PZB mode in "Koln to Bonn (Hard)" which was locked to freight instead of passenger

UNION PACIFIC TURBINE

• Fixed an issue where a Railfan Mode scenario ends before the Turbine has passed
• Fixed an issue with incorrect messaging in "Full Throttle Over Sherman"
• Fixed an issue where AI trains would not move in a Railfan Mode scenario

If you own the either the DB BR 155 and/or the Union Pacific Turbine, the updates will download automatically from Steam. If you have any problems/queries with regard to the update, leave a comment below or submit a ticket to our support site where we will be ready to help.

The DB BR 155 update will be approximately 27MB in size and the Union Pacific Turbine update will be approximately 22MB in size. Combined the updates will be 49MB in size.

No Updated Content? Steam File Verify

In the unlikely event that Steam fails to update the Add-Ons listed in the article, you'll need to perform a file verify and ensure Steam provisions your installation properly. Follow the instructions listed at this link to perform a file verify to reset your installation to default. Note that this process can take some time to complete and, if you have a high number of Add-Ons, we'd recommend you do this overnight.

If you find that after the file verify has completed, you are confident you have not received the update, please contact our Support Team by submitting a ticket to our support site where someone will assist you directly.

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