This route runs from the city of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire to the seaside and market town of Kings Lynn in Norfolk. Below I have stated what we could get from the route, what trains could be included (as well as those that are already out but can be used on it anyway) as well as potential extensions to the route and scenario possibilities. The stations: Cambridge Perhaps the busiest station on the route, Cambridge acts as both a terminus and through-station to a number of different services. The West Anglia Main Line from Liverpool St and Stansted and the line from the ECML from the south and to the north is the Fen Line as well as another line heading off towards Bury St Edmund's and Ipswich. It also has a number of depots scattered around for both passenger and freight. Cambridge North Cambridge North is one of the newest stations in the UK, opening in 2017. most services that previously terminated at Cambridge now terminate here, such as those from Kings Cross and Liverpool St. Waterbeach Waterbeach is a quiet station that only receives occasional stopping services, most of which being the King's Lynn services that are hourly. Ely Ely is another big junction station that is often too busy for the number of platforms it has, especially during times of ECML diversions! To the south is the Fen Line being joined by another line from Bury St Edmond's and Ipswich and to the north is a massive three-way junction with Norwich to the right, King's Lynn in the middle and Peterborough to the left. A multitude of different services now come into play such as East Midlands Trains services running between Norwich and Liverpool and Greater Anglia services between Ipswich and Peterborough. Littleport Downham Market Watlington These three stations are on the King's Lynn branch after Ely North Junction, and are all relatively quiet despite all services usually stopping at all three stations. Each of them have some nice heritage features about them such as canopies or signal boxes. Downham Market also has some sidings still with semaphore signals. The route from Cambridge to King's Lynn is around 40 miles equating to about an hours driving with more potential route mileage coming from the various branching paths, which I will return to later. Between Cambridge and Ely is all double track however some sections after Ely are single track. Trains: An updated Class 365 EMU An ideal unit for this route would be an updated 365, with more features in the cab and enhanced textures. Something to consider would be to provide the 365 in many liveries such as FCC, Great Northern (FCC) Great Northern White and maybe even Scotrail and NSE. It could be done in a similar way to what was done recently with the new PDL and Desiro EMUs. This EMU would run along the entirety of the route between Cambridge and King's Lynn and if it were updated it could then also be used on exiting routes such as the ECML South and Edinburgh-Glasgow. Class 387 EMU These EMUs run alongside the 365s for the whole route and are now more common on the line than the 365s. This could be available in both Greater Anglia and Great Northern liveries for the route. Other passenger services are formed of Cross Country and Greater Anglia 170s, East Midlands Trains 158s and Greater Anglia 317s. However these are either already available or likely to be in development. The 317 would be a fine addition but AP and Waggonz may be working on one currently. Perhaps a Class 170 in both Greater Anglia and Cross Country liveries could be included as AI only for the purpose of giving the route some variety. Thameslink Class 700s are also appearing as far up as Cambridge North so they are also a potential inclusion here. As for freight, it mostly consists of 66s and 70s both of which are already out in various forms. A Class 66 in EWS and Freightliner liveries could also be included as AI to make areas around Cambridge and Ely seem more busy in given scenarios. If the Middleton Towers Branch was added in (see more below) some WBB Sand Hoppers could be included for scenarios on this line that would be new additions to the simulator. Potential extensions: Branches off this route that could be added in to make up route mileage are as follows: Cambridge down to Hitchin on the ECML (another 30 minutes, potential for Class 700 scenarios) Ely to March depot/Peterborough (another 15/30 minutes, more viability for freight scenarios) Kings Lynn to Middleton Towers (another 15-20 minutes, more route and scenario variation) (Options highlighted in bold are the ones that I would like to see the most) Scenario Viability: There is plenty of potential for scenarios for this route to be made by the community using existing rolling stock, such as: ECML Diversions with 67s + 91s, HSTs, and 180s Stock moves to Ely Papworth Sidings (Class 365s and 442s) Cross Country services between Cambridge and Ely/Peterborough Greater Anglia Services between Cambridge and Ely/Peterborough East Midlands Trains services around Ely/Peterborough Engineering trains around March Depot/Peterborough Intermodal trains around Ely/Peterborough So, what do you all think? Would you like to see this route in Train Simulator with the included trains? Any feedback would be appreciated!
