There are still a lot of older diesel locomotives from the 1950s-60s around the US. I've seen many in museums here and even got to operate one in real life (UP #844 GP30!). The 1950s-60s were the golden age of passenger travel in the US. Trains were the way to travel, and many of the trains were luxurious and sleek. Here are some great suggestions for vintage 1950s-60s-era routes and locomotives for a new vintage TSW expansion. We could also get some of the existing routes backdated to the golden age of American railroading. As for locomotives, some of the biggest and most powerful diesel locos in the US were built in this era, and we'd be able to experience operating old Alcos, Baldwins, or Fairbanks-Morse diesels, as well as older EMDs and early GEs. -Vintage Route #1: Western Pacific Feather River Canyon: Oroville-Portola, CA: -Time period: 1960s -Locomotives: GE U30B, EMD GP35, EMD GP20, EMD SW7, EMD F7 or FP7A and F7B -Rolling stock: Same as Train Sim Classic version of route; include California Zephyr passenger train -Route: Tunnels, bridges, Keddie Wye, Williams Loop (similar to Tehachapi Loop), Clio Trestle, mountain scenery, 1% grades -Vintage Route #2: Pennsylvania Railroad Horseshoe Curve, PA: -Time period: 1950s -Locomotives: Alco FA-2/FB-2, FM H-24-66 Trainmaster, Baldwin RF-16 Sharknose, Baldwin Centipede, EMD GP7 or GP9, EMD F3 or F7 A/B, EMD NW2, EMD SD7 or SD9 "Cadillac -Rolling stock: PRR passenger cars, freight cars, and caboose(s) -Route: 4 tracks over HSC, Gallitzin Tunnels, Altoona Shops and station -Vintage Route #3: Union Pacific Sherman Hill: Cheyenne-Laramie, WY: -Time period: 1960s -Locomotives: EMD GP30/GP30B, EMD GP35, EMD GP7 or GP9/GP9B, EMD DD35/DD35A, GE/Alco Gas Turbines (all versions!), FM H-20-44, Alco C855 A-B-A, EMD F3A/B, EMD SD24/SD24B, EMD E8 or E9A/B, Alco FA-1/FB-1, EMD NW2 -Rolling stock: UP streamlined passenger cars, UP freight cars and cabooses -Route: Updated with Harriman Line and 3rd track -Vintage Route #4: Santa Fe Cajon Pass: Barstow-San Bernardino, CA: -Time period: 1950s-60s -Locomotives: EMD F3 or F7 A/B (both freight and passenger versions; we do have ATSF Warbonnet F7s in game already), EMD GP7 or GP9, Alco RSD-15 "Alligator," EMD SD24, EMD GP20, Baldwin VO-1000, EMD NW2, GE U25B, EMD GP30, EMD GP35 -Rolling stock: Santa Fe passenger trains: Super Chief or El Capitan w/ Bi-Level Coaches, freight equipment and cabooses -Route: Pre-Palmdale Cutoff (built by SP in 1966), upgraded in later years with 3 tracks over pass and widened curves for better operation -Vintage Route #5: CB&Q Chicago Racetrack: Chicago-Aurora. Ill: -Time period: 1950s-60s -Locomotives: EMD E8 or E9, EMD F3 or F7 A/B (both freight and passenger liveries), EMD GP20, EMD SD7 or SD9, EMD SD24, EMD GP7 or GP9, EMD NW2 -Rolling stock: California Zephyr, CB&Q Bi-Level commuter coaches, freight equipment and cabooses -Route: 37.5 miles long, commuter, freight, and long-distance passenger operations, yard duties in Burlington Route yards; pre-BN merger Of course, we should get US steam locomotives, especially restored steam and big articulated steam in game. While that would be amazing, it probably won't happen any time soon. Anyone have any other vintage US routes they'd like to add to my list? Let me know in the comments. Let's go back to the golden age of US railroading with a new expansion to TSW.
Here's another cool route that is actually a mix between modern and vintage: the Delaware-Lackawanna RR Shortline that runs out of Scranton, PA. The route is 88 miles long, which is doable in game. While the route is a modern-era route, the locomotive roster is not. The DLRR runs a large number (over 30 locomotives) of 60-70+-year-old Alco and MLW (Alco's Canadian subsidiary) diesel locomotives, many which have been rebuilt. The roster even includes some special-liveried locos: 2 ex-EL Alco C425s that wear heritage EL livery (#2452 and #2461), an ex-D&H Alco RS-3 #4068 that wears a D&H heritage livery, and Doyle McCormick's famous ex-ATSF/D&H, now NKP, Alco PA-4 #190. They also have #1776, an MLW M630 painted in a D&H-inspired US 250th Anniversary livery. These special-liveried Alco locos should definitely be included with a Delaware-Lackawanna RR route. The line even does some special passenger trains with some of their restored passenger coaches, so that could be cool. The DLRR also does interchange operations with the NS.
