Why would a Chicago route/routes be worth the investment. Because Chicago is unique in railroading in that multiple roads interconnect in Chicago as well as all the passenger services available. Metra which partners with BNSF offers intricate and scenic passenger routes to the greater Chicagoland area. Here is the map. Along with Metra, Chicago is the hub for many different Amtrak routes. Here is a look at the regional stuff let alone the long distance routes which exist to San Francisco, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Miami and Washington DC. Don't forge the CTA which offers both above ground and subway routes throughout Chicago itself and to nearby suburbs such as Oak Park and Evanston. Finally Chicago is the epicenter of American Freight as every single major road has a yard in the Chicagoland Area. Union Pacific, CSX, Canadian National, Norfolk and Southern, BNSF as well as smaller and more local roads all convene in Chicago. It's a major hub for intermodal transport. I can think of no better way to grow the already existing infrastructure that DoveTails has than to give Chicago some excitement and routes in this wonderful game. There are so many options available. Just an opinion.
The problem is the Metra license. DTG was denied a Metra license for TS. I’m not gonna say it’s impossible that that will change given that there’s finally a BNSF license in play, but as it stands Chicago is a no-go.
I remember that. But ya having the BNSF license now is huge. Plus. Even without Metra there is Amtrak which goes to Milwaukee with the Hiawatha as well as a ton of different freight which can be run in and around the area with every major road in America 4 of which have a license already in CSX, UP, CN and BNSF.
I feel like excluding Metra would not be a good idea, especially for routes like the racetrack since they are the predominant traffic on the route
This is why I feel like both Chicago and the Pacific Surfliner around LA should not be included in TSW2, unless the licensing issues are resolved with Metra/Metrolink. They make up too much of the commute traffic on each line to be excluded.
