Awesome Tsw Service Mode Runs

I thought I would start a thread where people can recommend their favorite timetable runs. Please specify the route and the loco as well as the service number. Also, it would be nice to hear what makes driving the service awesome as well any tips you might have for completing it.

I will kick it off with a tip of the hat to 7orenz who pointed this one out in the "About the Signaler" thread.

The service is DB 80209 in RSN. It is a mixed freight from Hagen to Finnentrop that I ran with the 182. It starts at 11:10am and the whole character of the run depends on whether you beat the 11:15 regional out of Hagan to the the signal at Boele yard. It's about 4 km away and the regional arrives there at around 11:20 and 30 seconds.

If you get the red at Boele yard, you can watch the 363 actively switching the yard and then chase the regional up the hill. You will encounter plenty of AI along the way, including the notorious 1 car train.

Know your M mode limits well and have your PZB finger ready for either the acknowledge button or a salute to the safety system as appropriate. If PZB nabs you, it's a slow restart, but you can still catch up with the regional.

Edit:
LeadCatcher began compiling our suggestions into a spreadsheet with Service Number, Route, and Loco information. With an assist from Callum B. we have a spreadsheet for:

Recommended TSW Compatible Service Mode Runs:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet..._wzt7qTCooxSTBW8pGAwYLs_ohsdDOcQOuZ4A/pubhtml

Also in this thread are recommendations for Chaos Runs where you deliberately create delays in the schedule. Typically, you start in one service and allow delays to accumulate by not moving. Then, you walk to another service, take it over, and deal with the issues you created. For some runs, you can just stay put in the chosen service and then start moving after a wait. If you are inclined to drive through a little chaos, those runs are compiled here:

Chaos Runs:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...yCTbHVZrwBSBUUkPiiJGlTWfRXexfPn7kBVDw/pubhtml

For TSW3 routes, there is a new spreadsheet found here:

TSW3 Recommended Service Runs:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...4lUuBrw-k2_y7FxuzH6mZ1m3Qu4YTfLViTfxQ/pubhtml

For those who prefer the direct link to the spreadsheets rather than the Google "Published" Version:
TSW3 Recommended Service Runs
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...ouid=108028767534258522758&rtpof=true&sd=true

TSW Compatible Recommended Service Runs
https://drive.google.com/file/d/14YgilvnKZFc7TJXyqftRJ0I5yTMlMf81/view?usp=sharing

Chaos Runs
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cMKrwNA2OmZz8tVEQo1_FZnRZXpNT463/view?usp=sharing

Spreadsheets last updated 1/15/23.

 

all sand patch grades.

Nope - was a joke

 

I recommend UP1 on Peninsula Corridor.
You have a freight train with three UP Gp38-2 and you are heading north. You will catch up to the passenger train in front of you and really need to watch out for signal changes.
Halfway through you decouple some of your wagons at a yard and then proceed north to the south San Francisco yard. At first you can go freely since the passenger train gains time ahead of you due to your decoupling step, but closer to the end you will once again catch up to it.

It was engaging and fun, because of the extra stop in between and because you have to be on the lookout for signal changes.

 

One of my favourite runs I've done recently is with the Class 66 on GWE. The train starts at 15:57 at Acton Yard and all the way down to Reading it sits behind a Class 166, so you have to be very careful to signals and try not to stop completely in order not to lose all the momentum.

Very very nice.

 

All freight trains are limited to 60 mph. So no matter what is the line speed limit you should never exceed speed of about 55 mph with freight wagons attached.

 

I thought the UK had fast freights like Germany? Depending the wagon's design limit they can do 70mph?

 

Yes freight train which is classified with number 4 can run up to 75 mph, but I think that it is rare. If someone could confirm? All freight trains which are class 6 can run up to 60 mph. Class 7 up to 45 mph and class 8 - 35 mph.

 

If this is referred to my message, in order not to stop completely you never reach those speeds.

 

Thanks -- nice run with a lot of reds. Helpful to know your train and the route. A fun trip

 

Great idea!!
One of my favorites is the 10:30 am service from Lohr to Gemünden (MSB). First halted by a red light waiting for another RE service to pass, then you follow behind it till Gemünden. Tons of adverse signals and lots of PZB action!
Another one is the 11:15 am freight service on RRO. Where you encounter a Ne 1 board and have to use PZB override, (Befehl 40).
Also the SKA 422 service behind the 10:17 am Sinsdorf-Köln service is good fun. Just spawn on Sinsdorf at 10:15 and hijack the second 422 stopping at the station.

EDIT = MSB service starts at 10:09 not 10:30

 

I just ran this with the DB 766 Cab Car with a 10:09 Lohr departure scheduled at Gemünden at 10:30. It was excellent. Tons of traffic and a 25 minute tutorial on PZB use. Thanks for the recommendation!

 

Passenger service S8 Wuppertal-Steinbeck > Hagen (19:19) does wrong line(?) operation (PZB Befehl/permission required to continue) through Wuppertal. I could not find any other passenger services that do this on RRO (haven't done all the timetable, though). There are multiple freight services that do this also.

 

SH04 & SH05 on the RSN start times are 12:20 and 13:15 see you sorting and delivering cement wagons to and from Boele with a run on the mainline to and from the cement works. In the second service, you get to deliver a rather hefty load to the cement works, and that slight gradient and the number of wagons you have make that little shunter work very very hard, get the PZB on too but not Sifa as that little bugger has no visual or audible warnings! (Must be a bug?)

 

And on the ‘slow’ lines on GWE the line limit is 60 for loco hauled trains for most of the way, although the lower speed limits don’t show in the HUD, just the MU speed limits. They are on the line-side speed signs though.

 

Yes lower speed should be indicated on the HUD. So HUD should show the speed limit for the locomotive and the maximum alowed speed for the freight wagons.

 

Cool thread!

 

Ah. I was already confused about the line speed difference not showing up, so I just ignored it. That makes sense.

 

If you‘re a fan of North American heavy freight and have got the C40-8W, I‘d recommend doing the U877-A to U877-D service series. You take an empty coal train up the grade with 4 locos, load the train up, run the locos around and head bach down to Cumberland.
There‘s nothing quite like controlling a 7000t train with 4 locos at the front in the rain. If you can, I‘d recommend doing these 4 services in a single sitting which will take you about 4-5 hours, but believe me, it‘s worth it

 

I have another one:

RE1 Duisburg to Bochum on HRR, starting time 15:38 and 17:38 (other hours might work aswell, but I can confirm these two)

Did each once with the BR 143 and the 146.2. It is really fun. A S-Bahn service starts about 30 seconds before you and here shines HRR due to the huge amount of tracks, because the S-Bahn goes on a track left to yours and never blocks you. When driving the 146.2 you will see the S-Bahn in front of you until it has to stop, where you overtake. In Oberhausen you will meet up again and depart almost at the same time which looked really amazing. After that you cross tracks with the S-Bahn line and then the S-Bahn is on your right side, where you overtake them again due to a stop that you don't have to serve.
When going with the 143 it is a bit different, as it is a slower train. you will not see the S-Bahn until their first stop, but are too slow to actually overtake them. This ends in you following the S-Bahn quite closely, like just 100-200 meters distance if I had to guess until Oberhausen. There the S-Bahn will depart way earlier. You see it again after crossing tracks, where you overtake it as it leaves a stop.

After Essen both services are the same and quite standard. You do get some traffic on the whole length of the run though.
If you can endure the horrible sounds of the 146.2 or the slower top speed of the 143 I believe you will quite enjoy this!

 

Yep there is a lot of parallel running in HRR in general, especially with the faster services (DoStos and 425 ones). HRR is the route that feels the most alive togheter with RRO near Wuppertal, both routes are amazing if you like seeing other trains around you

 

Exactly, a fact that I like to point out whenever someone asks about which route to get! Sadly the route is relatively short though.

 

This was fun! How did you ever find it? First, you get the viscerally satisfying experience of booting the AI driver out of the seat and then you get some PZB action on the way to Koln. I was pumped to just be two minutes late.

Red light action as advertised:

 

1A05 Didcot Parkway to London Paddington (Class 43 HST) 07:49

Starts with a yellow aspect and a lot of the service will be following another service (another HST leaves Reading before yours and has a stop at Maidenhead). Go too fast and you'll have to stop at a red at some point. Given the Class 43 brakes take a while to release, I ended up stopping from overbraking.

I recommended doing this through journey (chapter 4) as the weather will be preset to rainy and it's very dark. It's on the timetable but there could be fewer services running affecting it (journey enables more services in GWE for console). You get an 8 car Class 43 on journey. Quite easy in terms of punctuality even if you stop a few times.

 

Re the OP, I'm assuming you have to hang back for a few minutes at the start in order to follow the stopper? I tried by just running at very slow speed until you join the main line but assume I got in front as just getting greens all the way?

 

Thank you!
Yeah, I was searching for a more engaging service on SKA as pretty much all have very few adverse signals.
I used this site to find that particular service = https://smtimetables.herokuapp.com (all timetables for all routes, it's absolutely fantastic! )

 

Thanks for the link, that's a brilliant site!

 

TSW 2 - XBOX - 10:09 service "Lohr Bahnhof - Gemünden - All Stops" with the 767.2 and 766.2 DABpbzfa (both hauled by a BR146), didn't get any restriction out of Lohr Bahnhof (except the speed restriction for passing over the junctions) so I ended up in front of the RE, arrived 7 minutes early at Langenprozelten.

Also the second trip I respected the -5 km/h rule on the 150 section but the result didn't change.

Video and screenshot uploading really curious as what I did differently for you...

RE service arriving behind me at Langenprozelten maybe I should try with the slower BR143?


Just consider the part before the first stop, which is the stop at Langenprozelten the rest is just me not focusing at the entrance of Gemunden

This moment never happened to me

 

In Rurh-Sieg Nord there are 3 interesting ones, where you drop/collect wagons along the way, so they require some shunting. Those are available for BR143, BR155, BR182 and BR185. The hours are the following:

- 6:15h
- 12:15h
- 17:25h

It´s a pity that we only have three of them, as this is the type of services that add variety to the gameplay. On the other hand, as services do not have any type of symbol or way to identify their difficulty as in the previous editions, it´s hard to locate the ones which are singular or different to the rest in each of the routes unless you have already played them. Also the search function only works for the titles, not for the descriptions.

Cheers

 

No, it was a 146... saw it when it arrived after me in Gemünden also did the trip twice with both cab cars, platform specific bug maybe? As soon as it's uploaded I'll link a clip of the whole trip from Lohr to Langenprozelten

If anyone can tell me if they did something different please let me know
https://gameclips.io/FD1003/94fdb59b-b744-49d9-a723-296f1433c8b6

 

Right I remember, almost have forgotten about these! Yes this is exactly what freight services need more to spice up the experience. As said early on here, that's why I liked the UP1 so much.
Oh and the boost in Action points that you get makes the end screen look more rewarding, I hate going 40 to 60 minutes with a freight train and only getting around 2000 points. Passenger services get so much more... Then again I often heard here that alot of people don't really care about them points, so it might not be an issue really.

 

I suspect the regional got ahead of you. It blows through Boele yard a little before 11:21am. When I have PZB on and stay under the limits, I am just getting into the yard as the regional passes.

Even when the first thing I do at the start is come off the brake and try to get rolling before I have fully set up the cab, it is hard to get to the Boele signal first.

Give it another go if you get the chance; it is fun being just behind it and trying to complete the run without any PZB “timeouts.”

 

What platform are you on? Maybe some services can differ, look at my posts above for example this should be the "25 minutes long PZB tutorial"...

Many RSN freight "work" for me I always either beat the regional by a small margin or get behind it, more often then not I end up behind

 

Forgot to add SH06 in that suggestion too! Nice bit of trainspotting as you await the road.

 

I’ll add that on most freight services for me, on PS4, a regional will pass me quite early on, then several minutes later I’ll overtake it as it’s been held at the signal. On several occasions when I’m driving the regional service, I get held at the signal for a very long time and a freight service will pass me and I end up being late for every stop because the freight slows me down. It’s like the freight always has priority and is cleared through the signal at Boele very early on. It’s always struck me as odd that this should be the case.

 

I think they just hard coded the fact that the freight should stay behind not sure why, funnily enough I was never held with the RBs on RSN (but TBF I did most of my services with the loco going from Finnentrop to Hagen), I'll try some RE services now.

Interestingly on MSB I usually find the Lohr-Gemunden services stopped at the red signal to let me pass when I'm doing the RE services, but doesn't work the same way if I'm doing the Lohr-Gemunden services

 

I love the 363 services that dart between the main line runs. I feel like a squirrel trying to cross a busy street. There is some serious SPAD potential if you are not careful; don't ask me how I know that! Haven't tried it with PZB yet, but I bet that adds a whole new level.

 

I'm playing on PC if that has some bearing on how it works out. It's the service DB 80209 as described. Guess I'll try again and delay my departure by a few minutes.

 

Don’t delay too long or it will be gone. Be at Boele yard (the first waypoint) no later than 11:21 if you want to chase it up the hill, a little earlier if you want to see it go by. Let us know how it goes. Have fun!

Edit: I spawned on foot at Boele Lumbar Yard, explored around (including a ride on the footboard of the 363) until it was almost time for the meet. Near 11:15, I walked to the key signals labelled N302 and N303.

The 80209 service arrived first just before 11:20 and had a red. The RE 16 passed through at the time of the photo, just before 11:21. I climbed into the cab of the 80209 service. It left when the red cleared at 11:22. It hit a yellow on the main at 11:24.

I can't imagine driving 80209 to that signal in time to get the green while staying at speed.

 

For me some of the best services are included in Tees Valley route. For the class 20 in tandem you have lots of them involving shunting + hauling or loading/unloading + hauling, so you can get most of the freight operations in one go. As they involve change of cabs you also need to setup the locomotives in accordance (brakes, lights, etc). They are very interesting, quite complete and due to the nature of that route with a reasonable duration that allows you to freely jump from one to the other without leaving the gameplay. And the horns from this engine are some of the best ones implemented in game

You can even combine passenger and freight to stay playing during hours if you want, which is one of the best features this game has in service mode. The freight services are also available with the other engines such as the class 37.

Cheers

 

That could be it, then. I waited two or three minutes then trickled through the yard and by the time I came out the other side I still had greens all the way to Finnentrop.

 

Great fun. I was enjoying it so much I forget to stop at the first station until it was way to late and had to start again.

 

What a great suggestion especially the 12:15 and the 17:15 thanks

 

This is a brilliant thread.

this 10:09 service makes me wait for a freight to pass as well. It’s quite the adventure.

Absolutely brilliant. Did this with poor visibility and signal indicator off, got the adrenaline rushing to see a signal move from red to yellow just in time! Plenty of yellows grading up to double yellow or green as you approach them. And slowing down for the hst ahead had me gliding gracefully past a 166 with a bit of parallel running.
If you swap to the other hst on arriving at Paddington and wait for it’s empty stock move, you can parallel run the train you came in on which also does an empty stock run 1 minutes before.

 

Wow we have some wildly different results here! How is that possible?

 

I’m not sure, but I waited for the regional to move off and it just stayed red. I knew there was a freight due from in front which passed as the regional left, but was then held for a freight coming from behind. However end result was the same with plenty of green/yellows and pzb alerts.

 

Did a quick all day today search on https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/ for Tring today and it shows over 30 4xxx freight codes for today, so not so rare for some routes perhaps, but overall I would agree that 6xxx codes are much more prevalent nationwide
(also did Cardiff Central - 10; Southampton - 28; Carlisle - 21; Berwick Upon Tweed - 4)

 

The dispatcher is a little bit dynamic.

 

At the first signal you encounter for the same service with same train?

This is what happens if I wait for the regional... completely different result.

However I'm now doing the 8:09 service and is working correctly... incredible

 

Glad to hear you liked it!

 

Thank you for suggesting these. I really enjoyed all three of these runs! DB 80502 at 17:25 is spectacular.

You start off switching with traffic waiting on you:


... and then it’s you turn to wait on traffic:



After that the run to Finnentrop is a PZB workout. More yellows and reds than greens.

Truly one of the 5 or 6 runs in my all time top 3!

Edit: the usual grammar