Overview: The BNSF Hi-Line is a 260 mile long route running between Havre, Montana, and Whitefish, Montana. It was the northernmost section on the transcontinental railroad, giving it its name. 260 miles is quite extreme for TSW, however, a good portion of the route is plains, so it shouldn’t be too hard to pull off. But if it’s still too much, it would be best to pick the section from Shelby to Whitefish, which is by far the most scenic section. Rolling Stock: Obviously pre existing BNSF rolling stock can all sub in, however, it would be nice to have some new stuff as well. One of the locomotives should be the GE Dash 9 C44-9W in H2 livery. It’s probably the most common locomotive on BNSF’s fleet, and considering it looks almost identical to the ES44C4, it shouldn’t be too hard to implement. Another locomotive that could be added is the SW1500 for yards. As far as I know, quite a few of these units are still in Burlington Northern green, so we could get them in both BNSF and BN liveries. Dash 9 Timetable: Research on this topic is limited, but according to online forums, there are usually 40-50 trains a day. I can imagine there is plenty of switching, which could bring the number up to 50-50. There is also daily Amtrak services in each direction on the Empire Builder. However, none of the correct rolling stock is in the game, and it wouldn’t make much sense to add it in for 2 services. It could work as a possible dlc for multiple routes, like the Vectron. Conclusion: Although it’s not the busiest line, it’s absolutely beautiful and has plenty of different services to be driven. It’s also got plenty of opportunities for future dlcs, and route expansions. Extra photos:
The BNSF C44-9W is a perfect new loco for this route (and Cajon Pass as well). I'd love a GP60, GP50, GP39-3, or GP28-2 for local and switching services would be great to see. I still want a Siemens ALC-42 Charger or P42DC Genesis with the Empire Builder. As for Cajon, we could use the SD40-2 and ES44C4 too. DLCs could include GN or BN power such as an SD40-2, SD45, or F45, a Baldwin VO1000, a GP30 or GP35 (or rebuilt BN GP39E/M/V units), and/or an SW1500.
Those would all be great dlcs, I just wanted too keep it reasonable and not include too many locomotives in the base route
Oh yeah, It’s also worth mentioning that the line is already on TS Classic. Meaning all the research is done, it just has to be remodeled and upgraded for TSW
