In general I would say BR diesel, although there are various routes I would like to see that aren't that. For example: A South East route in BR era - I would like to see some BR electric third rail trains Chiltern - I would prefer modern era so we can get modern loco hauled trains (class 68) C2C - I would prefer modern era because you would see HS1 (with the Rainham branch) ECML - either BR era with Deltics, or modern era with class 91 It would also be cool to see some more steam era routes
the BR routes are good but my go to is modern, as that’s what i’ve grown up with. i don’t have a set preference of high speed or commuter though, it changes month by month depending on what i feel like driving
No brainer for me - Classic BR Diesel (though classic electric is a close second). Mid to late 70’s ideal, but early to mid eighties at a pinch. Nothing finer than sitting in the front coach of a Waterloo to Exeter train, with a Class 50 (or 33) blasting through Semley then later up Honiton Bank. Or a Class 26 on the 0615 Inverness to Wick/Thurso, Load 8 including 4 BG’s stuffed to the gunwales with mail, newspapers and parcels. The simple pleasure of a Class 207 Thumper heading to or from Uckfield or a Class 120 DMU on the Central Wales line or heading across to Cambridge on the 1528 from New Street. Other than the main lines, most routes also still largely laid with jointed track, before the BR then Railtrack/NR obsession with putting CWR on every little branch line!
Definitely BR loco hauled diesel, with 1st and 2nd generation DMU's a close second. BR era slam door electrics are OK You just can't make a modern electric train noisy or dirty enough for me. And all those pretty colors? Ugh.
Absolutely love the BR era. Was before my time but I have spent many hours watching videos from the Diesel & Electrics of the 80's and 90's (thanks to those who had the foresight to capture such an amazing period). Preston/Carlisle is my favourite route in the game and I play it more than any other by some distance. Having watched a video recently on Exeter in the late 80's I would love it if they took the current Exeter/Plymouth route and took it back in time to the late 80's. Could have class 47/50s running cross country trains, and HST sets between Penzance and Paddington. Maybe even a little extension to Exeter central to quickly do a Class 50 Waterloo service. Mix of BR Blue, Intercity & NSE. But yeah, being set between the 70s and early 90s is my preference. Especially loco hauled passenger trains
It's a shame we can't choose multiple answers because I like modern routes whether it's diesel (you often have to pay attention to a stop, I like that) or electric (for speeeed)
Could have just have easily chosen BR Diesel, but with BR Electric you can have the best of both worlds often with some diesel workings. Plus, it offers an experience which is almost impossible now in real life, given how few BR era EMUs are in running condition now, and only a smattering of AC locos in running order.
In general I probably much prefer electric, though era is a bit more complicated. I'd love to see some slam-door EMUs but probably in an early privatisation setting (though NSE would be amazing). However I do love the electrostars and desiros which are more on the modern side. But then again, those ultra-modern units like the 710 and 720 I find quite boring.
Ones where the developers have given thought to Scenario Creation and have provided plenty of route markers, portals and paths. That way it is really easy to open up extra platforms and sidings and to use many items of rolling stock on each line. Unfortunately most choose not to do this. However once a route is 'improved / modded' then it is possible to have a lot of fun with all of them. So currently am enjoying Mildmay. (Which is, of course, an urban route) Scenarios - Proof Of Concept - Mildmay
As an older kid (12-15) I lived close to the Waterloo line in the early 70s so it was Warships, Westerns, Hymeks, Brush 4 and emus. Not the bird type. As a new TSW player the GWR routes are good.. but I really like the modern trains I ride on now ..
It's a shame the era and traction type are in the same poll as the scenery aspect. If that was a separate vote it would be for "mixture of urban and countryside" because there's nothing more liberating than opening up the throttle as you leave the busy urban part of the route behind. Likewise the thrill of driving on yellows as you approach the busier urban areas.
You can get to all passenger terminus in the timetable in the 101, but not with the 87, and while the 87 can go from Preston to Carlisle all the fun interesting off-piste freight stuff is with the 47, as well as going Preston to Carlisle.
Easily modern EMU and DMU for me, It’s what I’m familiar with, can relate to and enjoy the most. Routes relating to those. My go to for fast intercity services is using the Pendolino or the 805. For commuter, slower journey times I do love a desiro (Class 700 or 380) the sounds are great. For a louder thudding, deafening experience I use the 158, 165/166, 170 or the Voyager. There’s so many great locos to pick from in the game you can really be spoilt for choice most of the time.
I get that, but in reference to whether it's a BR Diesal or BR Electric route I'd call it electric. As its primary focus in the Electrified line and new Loco(s). Its also the only one that exists as far as I Know (until Preston Crewe)
As a general rule we tend to have a preference for the trains we grew-up with. Though I'd say I'm more of an area-specific rather than era-specific type of rail enthusiast.
For me it’s Rural Countryside routes. Scenery is huge for me. I also love diesels over modern electric trains that are too easy to drive. There’s no learning curve like old fashioned Diesels tend to have. I think this puts many younger people off. They just want to drive something easy and not have to sit and learn… To each their own though.
Modern electric, with a slight preference for the rural stuff (recently East Coastway and Medway Valley)
I'm gonna second.. or third.. or fourth? Whatever you call it. I agree that older diesels on rural routes are the best combo to me. Unfortunately, there was only rural OR diesel in the poll. I think they tend to go hand in hand (many rural routes would be diesel only in that era) so really you have an interesting 40/40 split between modern electric urban and diesel BR rural fans. I just find that interesting. We kind of see that in the game with the Shap/TVL/etc and the ECML/WCMLS, etc. Then of course there's the 20% overlap for say ECW. Sort of rural, sort of modern, sort of electric, sort of diesel.
We are way overdue a BR era third rail electric route with some nice old slam doors. Hard to say otherwise when the actual number of these routes in game is a big fat 0.
I dunno about third rail, but anything with Mk 1 or Mk 2 stock is "slam door" isn't it? I think you could include a lot of the DMU "slam doors" on existing routes. Weren't some even seen around until the late 2010s? So They'd even fit a couple of the modern routes too. Isn't the 101 a slam-door? The third-rail thing though.... that combo I don't see in game. Could you open a thread to get suggestions on what the first one in game should be?
I would say, sometimes it depends on what I feel in the mood to drive. Although I am working to complete UK timetables in release order, I can sometimes get to pick either diesel or electric, passenger or freight, nice to get a variety.
I’ve been playing Modern Electric and Diesel UK routes such as Riviera, WCML, and Manchester Airport. Would anyone recommend either Cathcart circle, ScotRail Express or London Overground? I’ve been eyeing these 3 for a little while as well as the Class 380 and Class 158. I would consider WCML: Birmingham - Crewe but i’ve heard it’s still in a rough state, atleast for consoles still.
Cathcart circle is nice, but you should get the 380 with it. That timetable is much better, especially with the AI layers which make a busy Glasgow Central.
seconding what foggy#2817 said, if you get cathcart then the 380 is also very beneficial, the default timetable isn’t that good and you can tell immediately that it’s from 2021. scotrail express is a bit meh, the route modelling is acceptable but there’s limited replay value and the 385 cab view is horrible, probably the worst in tsw. for the london overground, do you mean the GOBLIN (suffragette line) or north london line (mildmay line)? if mildmay, yes but be prepared for some blurry textures if you don’t disable some ai traffic, for the suffragette line then maybe wait for a sale, it’s not the most exciting route but it gives you the 710 which layers onto wcml south for the watford dc line. the 158 is probably a bit overpriced for what it is but if you’ve got the fife circle and want to freshen it up then it’s probably an alright addition. finally, birmingham crewe is a very fun, varied route which i’d recommend, there’s layers for the 170, TfW 150 and 153, 390, 323 and 220. the blurriness is still quite bad but that should be resolved, or at least significantly improved with a patch that’ll likely be in the next few weeks given that trent valley is imminent
Thanks for this. I honestly forget there’s 2 Overground routes but the Suffragette line was the one i was referring to. I’ve heard the Mildmay line is very short but getting an extension which is why it’s not really at the top of my mind. I’ve considered the 158 and ScotRail express mostly because it would give another layer on Manchester airport, which is the only layer i’m missing besides the Midland Main Line 158. I do want Birmingham - Crewe because i like Milton Keynes - London Euston but blurry textures and performance for Series X has kept me away.
the 158 for MAC might be best avoided at the moment, it’ll make the blurry textures worse and it’s got limited gameplay. mildmay is definitely worth picking up though, fun little route and the extension will complete it
To add: with Mildmay you have to be careful managing all the layers, as blurriness is an issue on there as well.
If you like MK to Euston, Suffragette line is a nice addition as it brings the 710 to EMK for the Watford DC services.
Electric Eastern Region, mixture of freight, metro, commuter and express traffic. Any era between 1960s and this week. Though ideally at a time when slam-door trains were still around so we can finally have an AC OHL slammer in TSW. They didn't even appear in TSC, so the gauntlet is thrown down for DTG, JT or someone else who wants to make something truly unique.
BR electric only if it utilises the tap-changer locos like the 86 and 87. That would cover GEML as well in its privatisation days. Otherwise to be honest not massively fussed. Would love to see a 455, be that BR or modern in the SW region. I'd also love to see a Class 81 or 85 at some point. They are even louder than the 86 and 87 (or so I hear).
Someone supplied some very good quality recordings of the essential sounds for an 85 in TSC, and someone at JT mentioned the sounds would be the main stumbling block for an 85. So not completely out of the question seeing one appear as a future DLC, provided whoever holds the recordings would give their blessing for commercial use of it. I'd very much like to see at least an 85 too, which would be very appropriate for the era depicted by JT.
The roarers were my favourites, definitely loud but to my young ears they were beautiful. It's such a shame the last 81 or 85 will never run again.
