Is There Demand For An Uk Freight Focused Route?

One of the things that I've pondered about is if there would be any demand for an UK route where the freight operations are the main focus rather than the passenger workings. Something like a route that centers around Westbury with its vast yard and the quarries at Whatley and Merehead not too far away, which would provide the opportunity for a new Class 59 or Class 70.

Class 59/0


Colas 66 & 70 at Westbury.

 

100% this would be amazing to see

 

I only really do freight runs nowadays, personally I prefer older freight but I would love to have the class 70 in game

 

No Class 66 if they do… Needs a new freight train.

 

I have previously suggested something like a Knottingley Hub, when the Yorkshire Coal and Power House was in full swing. For those familiar with the SIAM Aire Valley traffic game set in 1990, you will know what I mean. Class 56 and Class 60 hauled heavy coal trains thundering day and night through Sudforth Lane en route to and from Drax, Eggborough and Ferrybridge power stations. Greta might not approve but it would be magnificent.

 

Hopefully JT’s Preston - Crewe will cover a lot of this. Fingers crossed we’ll get a class 56!

 

Ipswich to Felixstowe (there's a short route) with the traverser, containers all over the place, working cranes and loadable ships

 

Yes I would definitely like more freight focused routes. Although I wouldn't want a pick up a loaded train from point A and drop it off at point B type of route. There would need to be more activities than just that or yard marshalling.
New animations like intermodal loading and unloading and loading steel or nuclear flasks etc are a must have.
I wouldn't mind a modern ish route but would prefer something in a time when the railways focused more on freight than passenger trains.

 

Whilst I'd probably still buy a frieght focused UK route, I'd probably only do so in a sale, since I personally much prefer passenger runs.
Even on TVL I mostly stick to driving the 101 and the Class 31 hauled 101 services.

 

Yes, a freight only route would be cool, but then players who want passenger services will not be happy?

 

Heavily agree with this

 

No, the class 66 is written into the TSW game code, they can't take it out, it will break the game

 

I'd love a UK route that has a bit more focus on freight, and a new freight loco.

Not the Class 59 though, looks too much like the 66.

 

In the case of my Knottingley suggestion, if the route expanded to include Leeds and Selby you would get (in 1990) the hourly service from Leeds to Knottingley with two or three trains a day extending on to Selby. Usually worked by Pacers.

 

What? Those who like passenger routes would be unhappy to see a single freight route? That would be rather selfish, don't you think?

A full 5 years ago we got the Heavy Freight Pack for NTP. Hasn't been much UK freight from DTG since then. Come to think of it, not much freight from anyplace.

 

To be fair are passenger services fans ever happy?, I don’t think I’ve personally seen one truly happy after a new release

 

The upcoming WCML Crewe - Preston Seems to have a major freight focus with the MGR services, new variants/remasters for two diesel classes plus the freight 86 variant, and new wagons. I would say there is a demand for it, the main reason it likely hasn't happened yet is that there aren't many lines in the UK that are that sizeable which are freight focused, plus licensing limitations. I personally wouldn't have a problem with it, but I can imagine for example a lot of people wouldn't want the east GEML's Harwich and Felixstowe connections to be entirely DB/EWS when in reality it is heavy Freightliner territory.

 

Well JT are kind of doing that with their new route which is coal orientated, albeit retro. As for modern UK freight isn’t that what the freight gaming packs are about?
Having said that we desperately need a new UK freight loco, it’s getting beyond a joke and embarrassing now, what must foreign players think of a UK company that ignores its own player base to build an endless stream of German and US freight locos?

 

Well hopefully when the 93 and 99 start to enter regular service we might get one of those locos

 

Maybe in 3 years

 

What endless stream of US freight locos?

We haven't had a new one since TSW3.

 

Still better than the one modern uk freight train in game, too be fair I don’t really care about modern stuff too much but would really enjoy another modern uk freight train that wasn’t the annoying class 66

 

I would certainly be up for it, maybe a 58 to work the mgr services with the 56s or the national power 59/2 again could be used on mgrs

 

I think shunting is one of TSW's strengths, I like that you can walk around and operate handbrakes on unfitted wagons and fit tail lamps etc. I put in a suggestion for something like Cornish China Clay from TSC but set during the transition from Hydraulics to Diesel Electrics which would be quite interesting from a freight perspective, but with the option to run the Newquay branch passenger service should you wish to.

 

That could be quite interesting. I'm fairly local to the routes covered and I've thought it would be quite a good network for TSW. Maybe you could even squeeze in part of the South Yorkshire Joint line and Hatfield colliery.

 

A rebuilt TVL with all the various industries & docks connected up and accessible to the player. Now that would be quite a freight network.
Add the Boulby line too and maybe even go across the water to Billingham? (It would take days to complete that network).

 

Plus the Class 56… Day One. Take my money.

 

The thing is, there isn't really a freight only route in the UK that is a decent enough length to warrant a DLC, it'd have to be part of something bigger. Then there's the whole rolling stock side of things, if it is modern they'll throw in yet another 66 which will probably by that point be enough to cause mass rioting and protesting outside DTG headquarters... Now, they could try and put in something else but they'd have to get the licenses from the operators and to be honest, they'd need the assistance of them in order to get the sounds and running data.

Yes, I'd love to see more UK freight in the game, ideally in the 80s or 90s - so of course the new JT route is a big one for me. There are still ample opportunities however for a developer to come in and add something to existing routes through a game pack, the same way that Skyhook have done with the freight packs. I'd say a big one for that would be NTP, it's in dire need of 56s on MGRs as well as speedlink and engineers trains, same applies to TVL though it is a shorter route.

 

Personally, love freight-focused routes! Small/medium-sized, set in late 70s/early 00s . Feel truly fulfilled when I can take heavy convoys up steepy gradients. You know, pushing machines to their limit! Really hoping for something that involves heavy freight operations, using "Grids," "Tugs"... Anything, even a 58!
This also applies to US and DE, of course!

 

I enjoy doing freight runs, but I think it’s safer for DTG to make a route with a combination of freight and passenger focused. I like a steady mix of seeing passenger trains when I drive a freight service, that’s what feels more realistic to me.

 

Hopefully JT are monitoring these forums

 

I've always liked the idea of the collieries around Shirebrook and the power stations at Cottam, West Burton and High Marnham. 20s, 56s, 58s.

 

How many US freight locos are there v modern UK ones? Do the maths. I didn’t give any dates either.

 

I’ll always hold on to Skyhooks MML as a missed opportunity for freight - even despite the fact it has more variety than a lot of routes already.

Mountsorrel is a great little place to start a shift, but further up the line you’ve got a restricted Radcliffe Power Station (coal) and then just a little further is the massive yards of Toton - which could easily be a hub for more unusual stuff!

The latest intermodal pack not adding anything new between Syston and Leicester is also criminal.

I don’t think a new update will appear any time soon though, they’re busy with American Lawn Mowing Simulator now..

 

I saw that and did a double take. Plus you can already do that in Farming Simulator on your own land where you have planted grass (to sell or use as animal fodder/TMR ingredient) or as a contract job. Seems very niche to me, for a company that previously stated they saw no business case for extending MML to Sheffield or Bedford, or a Class 56.

 

As many as 3. ES44C4, SD40-2, SD70-ACE. AC4400, ES44AC, C8-40, MP15DC, GP38 и GP7 quite old, have a lot of errors and non-functional switches in the cabin. Even the version SD40-2 for SPG feels very dated compared to the BNSF livery version.

 

I think the best approach would be something like TVL, a line with a lot of industry and plenty of freight, but with a passenger service too. There aren't many freight-only routes in the UK anyway.

There are a lot of older UK locos that we have that could be repainted into modern liveries to provide variety from the 66 on freight services: the 08, 20, 37, 86 etc.

 

The best major uk freight route (with some passenger traffic too) would be Woodhead, and yes, I know ‘you wouldn't be able to use the EM1 and EM2 on other routes’ but with the depth of play on this route if done properly, why would you need that requirement?

 

South Humberside Mainline, anyone?

 

The other thing to bear in mind with freight, in reality they spend a lot of time in Goods Loops or recessed on Reception Roads. Loading or unloading takes far longer than where we already have it depicted in game. Not many players are going to want to babysit a MGR unloading for 90 minutes moving forward 4 MPH at a time. So it does need to be cleverly done.

In some ways a steam or early diesel route would be better for freight as you can have the pick up goods working various stations and yards en route.

 

Any thing pre beeching would be good for freight. Why not do the best of both, in the eras where you could run mixed trains hauling passengers and freight.

 

As already mentioned in this thread, I think JTs new route will have a freight focus with end to end MGR services... Hopefully it leaves a door open for a Class 56 as DLC later down the line too!

 

How about this?

 

Would buy

 

From the sublime to the corkickle incline

 

Day One.

 

There is absolutely demand for a UK based freight route.. in fact other than some part of the Scottish West Highland Line, a dedicated UK freight route would be my number one wish.

i actually suggested something just like this a while ago:

https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/uk-freight-route-yorkshire-and-nottinghamshire.81457/

essentially a UK freight route connecting 2 coal pits (Harworth and Maltby) on their own dedicated, freight only branch, that join the Sheffield - Lincoln passenger line passing through Retford, before delivering coal down either the dedicated, freight only branch line to Cottam Power Station, or further up to West Burton Power Station

So alongside a passenger run between Sheffield and Lincoln (or part thereof), the main focus would be connecting two different collieries to two different power stations, creating 4 possible different combinations so it wouldn't get repetitive (Harworth - Cottam; Harworth - West Burton; Maltby - Cottam; Maltby - West Burton)

now that would be my absolute number one route wish, and even though highly unlikely to ever come to TSW, i hope it does show that demand for a dedicated, freight-focused UK route is absolutely out there.

 

I'd love that route for... reasons, but location scouting would be pretty difficult being there's not much left of either mine,

 

There's actually a few routes on tsw already that could be freight focused if dtg or a third party were to add the paths and services. Maybe some extensions. As mentioned tvl is one. Ntp is another. Peak forest etc... I think anything modern is a waste of time as the UK just don't seem to see the potential in rail freight these days. Then there's not really industry left in this country.

 

Yep