Hi all, after a long while it's time for another route suggestion, and a Dutch one nonetheless. This is a truly beautiful route that I'm lucky enough to travel frequently myself. It features large amounts of Intercity and Regional trains, providing the southern Dutch province of Limburg with a good long distance connection aswell as a tightly knit local network used by commuters and students alike. Especially the section between Roermond and Sittard provides a vital link to the south, as there are no alternative national routes connecting the south of Limburg to the Netherlands. This route has a lot to offer, from double deck intercities to often stopping local trains, and from rolling hills to enormous industrial areas with huge amounts of shunting potential. Both countryside villages and internationally important cities with historic city centers. Two Arriva Limburg Flirts cruising through the beautiful Limburg. Not a very Dutch sight at all, except for the functioning and frequent public transit that is. Contents Route General description Cab views Services Rolling Stock What comes with the route? NS VIRM(m) Arriva Limburg Stadler Flirt 3 II DLC Arriva Limburg Stadler GTW EMU ex-NS 6400 TRAXX F140 MS (BR 186) NMBS/Lineas HLR 77 Final Words Pictures Route General Description Weert - Maastricht-Randwyck The Weert - Maastricht-Randwyck section of the route forms the mainline, seeing most traffic. Weert itself isn't the most important place for Dutch railways, but provides a nice starting point lengthwise. From Weert to Roermond the line uses the tracks that once belonged to the 'Iron Rhine', a railway that connected the port of Antwerp to the German Ruhr area. At Roermond the river 'Roer' flows into the way larger Maas, which the line will follow from this point onwards. From Roermond southwards, the first big city we encounter is Sittard, which also is the junction where the line to Heerlen diverges, but more on that later. Just south of Sittard, adjacent to the station of Geleen-Lutterade there is a huge Chemical industrial area. This area also has extensive railway connections, with many trains leaving and arriving, and a lot of shunting happening in the area. Including this chemical plants large shunting yards (which are larger than the ones at Nünchritz on Riesa - Dresden) would allow for great gameplay oppertunities. Beyond the chemical plants we venture further south, before arriving at the historic and internationally important province capital of Maastricht, well known from the signing of the Maastricht Treaty, which started the EU as we know it. Just north of Maastricht Station there is a large maintenance facility which maintains mostly VIRM(m) and FLIRT EMUs. This facility has many tracks and sidings, that like in real life, can be used in game for depot runs, as these sidings are used to store trains inbetween services or overnight. Maastricht has a characteristic and unique station building, and is constructed as a semi-terminus station, with 3 platforms being a terminus and being used for the Intercity services which terminate at Maastricht, and the other 3 allowing through trains to continue south to Maastricht-Randwyck and into Belgium. Most local trains terminate at Maastricht-Randwyck, which is why this will form the end point of this part of the routes. The speeds on this section are mostly around 130 km/h, with the line between Weert and Roermond having a maximum speed of 140 km/h. Sittard - Heerlen The Sittard - Heerlen section of this suggestion forms one of the most important branches of this line. Being double tracked, and seeing an Intercity every 30 minutes (both directions) aswell as stopping trains every 30 minutes (again, both directions), this is far from a quiet branchline. The line diverges at Sittart, running southeast to the city of Heerlen, passing and serving many small towns on its way. Heerlen has just had a complete renovation, and as a result has a new and unique station building that is situated above and besides the platforms. Heerlen forms the terminus for Intercity services, but local services to Kerkrade aswell as international RE services to Aachen run even further. Together with the Weert - Maastricht-Randwyck section, the Sittard - Heerlen section gives us 88,7 km of route length. This branch has a top speed of around 100 km/h. Maastricht - Heerlen An additional option for extending this route is the Maastricht - Heerlen line, which sees both regional and international RE services. The line features many unique and pretty stations, and runs through some (for Dutch standards) impressively hilly landscapes. The line has many interesting features, such as Valkenburg station, situated in the middle of a historic and touristic city this stations has the oldest surviving station building in the Netherlands. At Schin op Geul it also connects to the tracks of the ZLSM heritage railway. This line would truly help this route to feel like a connected regional network, but the line would add 18,5 km to the route length, bringing the total to 107,2 km, which is a bit lengthy for TSW. However, this extension does run between two already included large stations, needing no new large terminus to be moddeled, only a few stations along the way. Like the Sittard - Heerlen section, this line has a top speed of around 100 km/h. Cab views This one runs from Heerlen to Weert and beyond on an Intercity service. Watch until 54.20. This one runs from Roermond to Maastricht-Randwyck on a RS 12 stopping service. Note the interesting way the trains pulls into the platform at Sittard at 17.20. It overtakes an Intercity coming the other direction, and then stops on the same platform. This one runs from Weert to Maastricht (watch from 1.29.00). Notice the way the train pulls into the platform at the station in the beginning. This way of putting two trains at the same platform at the same time is used on multiple places along the route. With the Intercity from Maastricht overtaking the RS service in sittard this way, aswell as the RS service leaving Roermond to the north (not included in this route, it uses a different line) waiting in the same platform as the RS service leaving Roermond to the south. Having these operations reflected in the timetable would really help making this route even more interesting. This cab view shows of the possible extension between Maastricht and Heerlen. It also shows of the Maastricht-Randwyck to Maastricht-Noord section of the mainline. Services In this section I'll list the most important passenger services. Due to the fact that freight in real life doesn't operate on a repeating timetable I won't be able to list these services here. However, for freight the large industrial connection at Chemelot (just south of Geleen-Lutterade) is a focal point, aswell as the sidings at the nearby Sittard station, where additional shunting is done. Besides traffic from and to the Chemelot industrial area there are also sidings usable for starting/ending freight services at Weert, Roermond, Heerlen, Sittard and Maastricht. But now it's time for the passenger services: Treinserie 800/2900 (Intercity) (from Eindhoven) - Weert - Roermond - Sittard - Maastricht Every 30 minutes* Rolling stock: NS VIRM(m) *Treinserie 800 doesn't drive in the early mornings and evenings, Treinserie 2900 only drives in evenings. This isn't important for this route, but changes the off-route destinations of these trains. Treinserie 3900 (Intercity) (from Eindhoven) - Weert - Roermond - Sittard - Heerlen Every 30 minutes* Rolling stock: NS VIRM(m) *Only operates once an hour and only between Sittard and Heerlen in the early mornings and evenings. RS 12 (treinserie 32400) Maastricht-Randwyck - Maastricht - Bunde - Beek-Elsloo - Geleen-Lutterade - Sittard - Susteren - Echt - Roermond Every 30 minutes Rolling stock: Arriva Limburg Flirt 3, Arriva Limburg Stadler GTW EMU RS 14 (treinserie 32500) Sittard - Geleen Oost - Spaubeek - Schinnen - Nuth - Hoensbroek - Heerlen - (onwards to Landgraaf) Every 30 minutes Rolling stock: Arriva Limburg Flirt 3, Arriva Limburg Stadler GTW EMU RS 18 (treinserie 32000) Maastricht-Randwyck - Maastricht - Maastricht-Noord - Meerssen - Houthem-St. Gerlach - Valkenburg - Schin op Geul - Klimmen-Ransdaal - Voerendaal - Heerlen-Woonboulevard Every 30 minutes Rolling stock: Arriva Limburg Flirt 3, Arriva Limburg Stadler GTW EMU RE 18 (treinserie 19800/20350) Maastricht-Randwyck - Maastricht - Meerssen - Valkenburg - Heerlen - (onwards to Landgraaf*) Every 30 minutes Rolling stock: Arriva Limburg Flirt 3 *only one train per hour goes onwards to Landgraaf and beyond (treinserie 20350) Rolling stock What comes with the route? As always, some rolling stock comes with the route as standard. The EMUs I've chosen in this case will provide a full passenger timetable for players from the get go. NS VIRM(m) The VIRM(m) (Verlengd InterRegioMaterieel) double deck EMU operates all IC services on this route. They were built by Talbot between 1994 and 1996, they were lengthened to 4 or 6 car sets in 2000. Originally they were intended for 'InterRegio' services, like we know from Germany and Switzerland, but this train type never came to be. The name of this stock is the only reminder to that long forgotten plan for a new train type. Like the ICMm 'Koploper', they are an important and easily recognisable element of the Dutch Intercity network. There is also a modernized version of them, which is soon to be the only one left as the last of the old sets are gradually being modernized. This modernized version is denoted by the lower case 'm' after the VIRM stock name (thus creating the VIRMm). The VIRM(m) has a max speed of 160 km/h, but is restricted to 140 km/h due to the safety systems on the Dutch railway network. VIRM(m) sets on this route usually consist of either one six-part set or two coupled four-part sets, both being equally frequent. The ratios between modernized VIRMm sets and non-modernized VIRM sets is also more or less equal, allowing DTG to choose to make whichever suits their capabilities best. More info on wikipedia. Arriva Limburg Stadler Flirt 3 II In 2016 Arriva took over the concession for local traffic in the Dutch province of Limburg. 15 two-part (denoted by the 'II' in the stock name) Flirt 3 EMUs were delivered by Stadler to be operated on these services by Arriva Limburg, painted in a special Blue/White colour scheme with yellow detailing and a red lion as a hint to the flag of the province of Limburg. A similar livery is used on Arriva's busses for local traffic in Limburg. These Stadler Flirt sets are completely accesible, having a floor that is 780 mm high, allowing for wheelchair acces at (most) Dutch platforms. They have no obstructions on the inside, only 1st and 2nd class are seperated by a glass door, allowing you to see from end to end, a decision made to increase the feeling of safety on these trains. These EMUs are, like the VIRM(m) capable of 160 km/h, but limited to 140 km/h due to the Dutch safety system. The Flirt IIs will operate all regional services, even though in real life the Flirt 3 IIImc (looking the same, but with an extra coach and extra pantographs), which is multisystem, operates the RE18 to Aachen in real life and the RS 14 line in real life sees predominantly Stadler GTWs. This is something I think is best because it provides players with all services on the line from the get go, instead of leaving parts of the route feeling dead. More info on Wikipedia (Stadler Flirt). DLC As always, there are some interesting DLC possibilities on this route. I won't touch on all of them, as especially on the freight roster there is a lot of variety in real life, but I'll list the most common and interesting. Arriva Limburg Stadler GTW EMU In the early 2000's the local traffic in Limburg was privatised, and written out as a concession. Veolia won this concession. Part of the concession stated that new rolling stock had to be operated on these lines, as the previously used rolling stock from NS was insufficient, partly due to the lack of accesability. To satisfy this demand, Veola purchased Stadler GTWs, 8 of which were electric, for operations in Limburg. When in 2016 Arriva won the concession, they took over the trains. The Stadler GTWs are unique do to their extremely modular design, using a power pack in the middle of the train instead of traditional under floor engines/equipment. This also allows it to be accesible to wheelchair users due to the resulting low-floor design. Arriva operates 8 GTWs at the moment, 5 of which are 2-part sets and 3 of which are 3-part sets. Usually DTG only provides us with either 2 or 3-part sets, however the modular nature of the GTWs should allow for a 2-part set being created by simply removing the middle coach, as demonstrated by the fact that a few of the 2-part diesel sets were lengthened by simply adding a middle coach. This would increase variety a lot, so I really hope it's possible. The sets would substitute on all local services except the RE 18, and they could potentially even replace the FLIRT 3s on the Sittard-Heerlen section of the line. More info on Wikipedia (Stadler GTW) ex-NS Serie 6400 The NS Serie 6400 is a class of medium diesel locomotives. They were built by MaK for NS, and later transferred to Railion when NS Cargo got sold off. They operate both services on mainlines, usually in double traction, or on secondary lines. The 6400 would provide both mainline freight services and shunting at the vast Chemelot industrial area, and is a common sight on the line in real life. To make this DLC complete, some chemical tank wagons should be included with this loco. Only 6461 is still painted in its original NS yellow and grey livery, most have been painted in DB traffic red. Most have also been given a Dutch name. The class has a maximum speed of 120 km/h, which is more than sufficient for mainline freight trains. More info on wikipedia. TRAXX F140 MS(2E) (BR 186) The TRAXX F140 MS2E is a further developement of the TRAXX currently in game. Its main development goal was to lessen the differences between the electric and diesel versions of the TRAXX locomotives, so they could use the same body shell. The TRAXX F140 MS2E also has some improvements to its engine suspension, allowing for a top speed of 160 km/h (making the F140 designation a bit illogical). Many different operators and leasing companies, such as Lineas, Alphatrains and Railpool own the version of this locomotive type that is capable of operating in the Netherlands. This means that DTG has quite a broad choice in what operator/livery they give this DLC, giving them some wiggle room in getting licensing. This train would provide freight services, both A-B ones as ones that do some drop-offs/pick-ups and even shunting near Chemelot in Sittard, where this happens in real life aswell. More info on wikipedia (TRAXX). NMBS/Lineas HLR 77 The HLR 77 was purchased by NMBS (the national belgian operator) in the early 2000s to replace multiple aging classes of diesel mainline and shunting locomotives. The class is capable of operating at speeds of up to 100 km/h and can operate in multiple (up to three locomotives). When the Belgian Railways split up its sectors, all HLR 77 locomotives went to its cargo division, which was then privatised and renamed Lineas. Most locomotives still maintain their Grey/Yellow NMBS livery though. A number of these locomotives are outfitted with the Dutch safety system ATB and the German PZB (numbers 7771-7790 and 7866–7870), and used on freight trains on this route. The fact that these are also outfitted with PZB would technically also allow them to layer onto German routes such as Köln - Aachen, which is close to the German/Belgian border. In the Netherlands the HLR 77s are only allowed to operate in pairs of two, with the long hoods coupled to eachother, due to concerns about visibility. These concerns are caused by the fact that in Belgium the signals, and thus the driver are on the other side of the cab, aswell as Dutch shunting signals being placed closer to the ground. More info on wikipedia. Final Words I hope all of you enjoyed reading through this suggestion and are interested in it after reading about it. I also hope you share my enthousiasm for Dutch railways and my wish for them to come to the game. Please let me know your thoughts about the suggestion below . Pictures Maastricht Station The large Chemelot area from the air A VIRMm at Sittard A FLIRT 3 at Maastricht VIRMs inside of the maintenance depot at Maastricht. Station Valkenburg, voted 2nd prettiest station of the Netherlands. the new station at Heerlen from the air Two Flirts rolling into Beek-Elsloo An unmodernized VIRM, somewhere in the south of Limburg A Flirt in Valkenburg during a cold winters day Another view at Chemelot, the largest of the shunting yards can be seen on the forground, with the mainline running in front of that. Multiple ex-NS 6400 locomotives operated by DB Cargo at the Chemelot plant.
Bring it on and this route is going to affect Schnellfahrstrecke Köln-Aachen on the Aachen side because you have NMBS HLD77 7771-7871 going to Rothe Erde to end there then have DB BR187 take the freight train all the way to Rangierbahnhof Köln Gremberg or Köln Kalk. Flirt EMU AI ECS move to Aachen Hbf
Fantastically presented. Well done mate! Definitely gets my vote. Looks a stunning route, with a good mix of traction, also has new signalling, infrastructure and it’s another country; I’d love to see this in game.
Yes, I'm a firm supporter of any new country, but the Netherlands in particular. I really think the new signalling and safety systems would add something new to the game without being inaccesable (they're not that difficult to learn, PZB is harder). Besides that the new types of rolling stock, paint schemes, scenery and operations would all be great things for TSW, added further to by the quite extremely packed Dutch timetable (we are one of Europe's most densely packed railway systems, only behind Switzerland as far as I know).
What do you mean PIS is not working? PIS clearly says it's the 16:16 Intercity service to Maastricht.
Yeah, the PIS is just a bit vague because of the sunlight. If needed I could provide DTG with videos of PIS on the route by the way, but that would require a Dutch route to be made first, and the chances of that feel slim, even though there is demand.
So, this weekend I had the joy of getting to travel the southern leg of the route (Maastricht - Sittard, Sittard - Heerlen, Heerlen - Maastricht) in some nice weather and I decided to take some pictures (that aren't all the best) to share here. The upper deck, second class interior of an unmodernized VIRM double deck EMU. Another interior shot, this time out the window into the beautiful landscape of Limburg A picture of some hills with trees on them between Sittard and Heerlen. Another hill, this time only half covered in trees, again between Sittard and Heerlen. Passing a parked VIRM and the quite recognisable mining museum on the entrance into Heerlen station. One of the stairwells at Heerlen. My next train, a 3-part Stadler FLIRT 3 operated by Arriva. This one is similar to the two-part one included in the suggestion, but has fewer doors per coach and a more comfortable interior as it is intended to operate the fast services between Maastricht, Heerlen en Aachen (and one day even Liège). The interior of my quite empty FLIRT 3. A shot of some of Heerlen station's unique architecture with the VIRM I arrived in in the front of the shot. Some, for Dutch standards quite hilly, countryside between Heerlen and Maastricht. Another shot of basically the same countryside, but this time with a tree and a bird. A farmhouse and orchard between Heerlen and Maastricht. A shot to the other side of the Arriva FLIRT, showing off some more hills and green pastures. Another really picturesque building, this time with a water mill. Meerssen station. I also noticed some interesting scheduling between Sittard and Heerlen. There the Intercity is stuck behind a slow local train and has to constantly adapt to changing signals (a good driver, like mine maintains a constant speed that makes it more comfortable for the passengers). This is also one of the first sections of track in the Netherlands where there was a very visible (non artificial) incline in the tracks, truly mesmerizing to see that from the train in a curve. The section between Heerlen and Maastricht has way more to show than what I've shown here, but I was kind of situated on the wrong side of the train to take pictures of all the pretty things. I do hope you guys enjoy these pictures, and if anyone (especially someone planning on developing the route , though that still seems unlikely for now) needs or wants me to take some more pictures of the area I'll see what I can do. I also hope that it moves some of the people more hesitant about what would be to see on a Dutch route to support this route suggestion, as it truly is a very interesting and beautiful route with tons of trains operating unique services on it.
Yes if only because “Dutch” and “hills” is a contradiction in terms and this proves The Netherlands is not all flat polder and canals!
Combining "Dutch" and "hills" also makes this route feature a pretty atypical landscape for the Netherlands. I don't know how I feel about it. Normally driving through hilly scenery is something I like, but I think I'd prefer the first Dutch route to be flat, just to give it a typical Dutch feel. Same with the trains. Any Dutch route without the iconic NS trains just wouldn't feel Dutch to me.
It's a compromise of a route. I too would love an all Dutch route with ICMm 'koplopers' and SGMm 'sprinters', but previously I got comments about Dutch scenery being too flat and therefore boring (not neccesarily something I agree on, and many parts of the Netherlands like the Veluwe, Utrechtse Heuvelrug, Sallandse Heuvelrug and of course Limburg aren't flat as a pancake). Therefore I also wanted to provide an option for a very, very scenic Dutch route. The rolling stock also is a compromise in a way. As far as iconic Dutch stock goes it only has the VIRM. That doesn't mean the rolling stock is boring of course (in fact all the suggested rolling stock from this post would be unique to the game in it's very own way), but does understandably take away from the full Dutch feeling. However, the rolling stock like the FLIRT (and potentially something like the not listed BR 189 or 193) will provide more players with a familiar and therefore interesting loco, opening up the route to a broader playerbase. I do still have to agree with you that perhaps it would not be the best first Dutch route in terms of satisfying the demand from Dutch players (though I'd take any Dutch route to be honest), it provides an interesting route in many other ways. My personal preference would be to see this as a second or third (or even fourth of later) Dutch route in game. That's all fantasizing though, as one Dutch route, let alone multiple, seems unlikely in the current TSW climate. Perhaps in the future from a 3rd party, but definetely not for a while.
Which is why I suggested Amsterdam-Amersfoort, which, despite being flat, offers various landscapes (meadows, lakes, forests) as well as quite a bit of urban scenery in a relatively short drive. Probably won't even notice it's flat. I mean, it's not like GWE is particularly scenic... I never really understood the appeal of that route, but apparently it's popular enough. So why couldn't a flat Dutch route be? Hills aren't required to be popular.
