I was driving an eastbound mixed freight to Bochum yard and came across a signalling anamoly / error. I was running on greens all the way, including this green at 1.7km from the destination: (Sorry about screenshot quality; I compresed them too much in Paint!) So as a mode M freight I could have happily ran at 120kmh max if I wanted (in reality I was driving at 100kmh max). But note from the top-right HUD you can see that there was a 25kmh restriction ahead - the turnout points for the yard, with no further signals inbetween. 600 metres further, and only just before the points to the yard, I got an Expect Stop vorsignal; the first signalling indication I needed to slow down. Far too late, of course! You can just make out the points, immediately past the signal. Now I knew from the HUD I needed to be slowing down, and I was. But if I'd been playing HUDless, as I often do, there's no way I could have slowed down from 100kmh to 25mph once the vorsignal aspect came into sight. Can the many German signalling experts in here tell me what aspect I should have got at the signal which was green? I'd have expected an Reduced (preceded by an Expect Reduced), at the very least.
First thing is as a driver you know the route. You know the yard is upcoming so naturally you will slow down. And you have the EBuLa in real life. Depending on the location of the yard, you will be aware whether you have to cross the mainline and expect oncoming traffic that has priority, before you can drive into the Gegengleis to enter the yard - so you are prepared to stop anyway as a trained driver. An you're also aware that a shunter might do its work and block the entry temporarily, so you're anticipating a red signal.
Indeed, but I would not expect to be entering a drive-on-sight yard if I was running under a Hp1 or Ks1. Nor to expect such a drastic reduction from the linespeed of 160kmh to 25kmh without any prior signalling indication at all. Of course, I'm happy to accept I'm misunderstanding something fundamental about how my train was signalled!
