After growing to about 185,000, Verville's freight trains jam the single-track network so badly that passenger trains and even the industry stall. Tunnels and an alternative route help a little; in the end almost all tracks are deleted and rebuilt so freight runs on its own lines — partly through the mountain — while commuter trains get separate tracks and new stations. Magnolia Mining reaches five stars.
What happens in this episode
Episode 14 passed 150,000, and the city has grown by another 35,000 to 40,000 since then. But the trains are piling up. With only one track in places and two big warehouses nearby, freight trains block everything. Only passenger trains got through, barely.
How it was built
Quick fixes first
I’d never done this before, but I tried moving some tracks underground, with two tracks, to take freight off the main line. An alternative route followed. It helped a little, but so many trains were stuck that it would take a long time to clear. A distribution centre and a cargo connection went in, and tree belts were brushed in between the tracks and homes.
Trucks and trains
Trucks were piling up near the mines too. Tracks were lowered, a small bridge lets cars pass over, and the busiest industry buildings were paused temporarily to reduce new freight. More incinerators fix a waste problem. Some freight trains were simply deleted. At one point thousands of pedestrians crowded a junction and the game slowed down. I’d never seen that before. Magnolia Mining reached five stars.
The decision
Lane rules on the roads only go so far. Could you do lane management for trains? I made a decision: separate all industrial traffic from commuter traffic. Almost all tracks are deleted, the stations stay, and freight gets its own lines, some of them through the mountain, between the outside connection, cargo terminals and industry. Passenger trains run on separate tracks. The distribution centres were switched back on.
Afterwards
Nothing piled up anymore. A few roads got parking bans, crossing rules, no left turns and no traffic lights so the trams flow again. Three buildings were abandoned for lack of water, which I fixed. New commuter stations went in and connected to the line. I didn’t gain many citizens this episode, but the network finally makes sense. I also planned a live vanilla build on Twitch, aiming for 100,000 citizens in two or three hours, announced via Discord.
Video chapters
- 00:00Trains blocking everything
- 05:13A first tunnel and an alternative route
- 10:47A distribution centre and tree belts
- 16:16Trucks piling up, tracks lowered
- 21:49Pausing industry, more incinerators
- 27:08Deleting stuck trains, crowds on foot
- 32:21Five-star Magnolia Mining
- 37:30The decision: separate freight and passengers
- 43:51Tracks through the mountain
- 48:55Parking bans and tram traffic
- 1:00:13New commuter stations
Clicking a chapter starts the video above at that point.
FAQ
How do you fix freight trains blocking passenger trains?
Separate them. Give freight its own tracks between the outside connection, cargo terminals and industry, and run commuter trains on separate lines and stations.
Can you delete stuck trains?
Yes, select a train and remove it. Pausing busy industrial buildings temporarily also reduces the number of new freight trains while you rebuild.
Why do intercity trains stop at all stations?
New stations allow intercity stops by default. Allow them only at one or two main stations and switch the rest off.