Over a year ago, I suggested a route for BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) which runs around the San Francisco Bay Area. With the Caltrain routes apparently going away, this would be a nice substitute.
I'm really hoping for something out of the other end of Köln, so maybe a remake of the Köln-Koblenz route from TSC?
I would think there are other routes already that are somewhat automated, aren't there? Maybe someone from DTG can chime in.
There are no automated routes in TSW. There's one in TSC, The Glasgow Subway. And to be honest, it's the sort of DLC you play a couple of times. It's very well made but it's just not very interesting, even if you over-ride the ATO and drive it yourself.
An automated route would still be cool. I'm not saying I want this, but the Elizabeth Line is ATO (CBTC) between Abbey Wood > Paddington, and then traditionally driven from Paddington all the way up to Reading. Same goes for the Great Eastern route. And I believe Thameslink is also automated within its core section.
Best thing about that route was the excellent traction sounds on the stock. But as you say, it was a push button bore fest when it came to driving.
A partially automated route would be OK, as enabling and disabling it would be part of the experience. But you'd want it to be a small section.
An ATO section in a route where you'd otherwise drive manually is fine. Adds diversity in driving styles. The Elizabeth Line and Thameslink both operated at GoA level 2, so only the actual driving is automated. But everything with GoA level 3 and 4, like the DLR, is nothing for TSW. Anybody who wants the DLR in TSW should just buy an Oyster card and ride on it; no point in recreating that experience in the game.
Maybe if the passengers and guard mode were perfected, like flawless, the entire DLR network would be fun.
I can't imagine a class 345 is that interesting to drive anyway, even in non-ATO territory IMO Hopefully. A likely candidate is Preston to Crewe, which I wasn't too fussed about initially, but could be interesting with the prospect of a slam-door EMU, which would be an new experience in the game.
I like LU 1996 Stock... And at one point it in time it was manually driven. But I don't think it would not make sense doing a backdated route for that type of thing, driving through tunnels. However, I do think there's potential in a backdated sub-surface Metropolitan Line with A60/A62 Stock. I think a product like that would be in JTs territory. It could feature the transition between A60/A62 Stock and S Stock... At the time (2010 - 2012) S Stock could be driven manually. I believe the Metropolitan Line currently is in the process of being ATO'd, or has gone over to ATO. The Piccadilly Line could be another potential route with 1973 Stock.