[DPS] East Coast
Main Line – North East
What is 'East Coast
Main Line - North East'?
The route is a clone of
the original East Coast Main Line route, formerly known as Newcastle
to York. The original route is set in the late 1970's and is probably
starting to show it's age given it originates before the release of
Rail Simulator in 2007. This project from DPSimulation is an effort
to modernise the route to reflect the route as it currently stands in
2013 with full electrification, accurate speed limits, track
rationalisation, complete resignalling and scenery improvements
throughout.
What requirements do
I need?
The original East Coast
Main Line route is required, this was available to all users of Train
Simulator prior to the release of Train Simulator 2013. Anyone who
purchased a copy of Train Simulator after that release would need to
purchase the route from Steam. Great Eastern Main Line is also a
requirement as this provides the foundation for the track, track
rules, catenary and large portions of foliage and buildings.
What changes have
been made?
The current changes, as
of release date are as follows:
Complete track
rule swap with the GEML track to incorporate the new track rule and
allow electrification using the new catenary tool.
Complete track swap to GEML track, replacing
the washed out effect that was present with the original ECML track.
All nearside trees and bush lines bulk
swapped with the relevant newer variations provided with GEML.
Scenery changes have been implemented
throughout the route in order to reflect the modern day prototype
more closely.
Bridges along the route either replaced or
raised to accomodate the catenary. In some cases, these bridges have
been completely swapped with the newer GEML variants along with
occlusion to project shadows and block rain. Occlusion has also been
added to the stations at Newcastle, York and Darlington in order to
block rain.
The end points of the route have been
completely reworked so that they now match the correct location in
real life. As well as being prototypically correct, this now means
that the route is set for future extensions.
Quick Drive has been implemented with start
points at key locations along the route. These include York,
Newcastle, Dunston, Holgate Yard, Tyne Yard, Low Fell Royal Mail
Terminal, Saltburn Line at Darlington.
Milepost replacement along the full length of
the route to depict the more modern yellow posts. These are also now
in the correct locations with the starting origin at York.
What is to be done
to the route?
As of release date, it
is possible to drive the full length of the route between Newcastle
to York. It is also possible to perform freight operations between
key points such as Tyne Yard, Holgate Yard and Low Fell Royal Mail
Terminal. The main reception sidings at Tyne Yard are complete, but
there are still several sidings that need to be included. Likewise,
York Yard still has to be completed and will be included in a future
update. Scenario creation is entirely possible and any future
additions will not have an impact on scenarios.
Another possible option
is a complete texture replacement using the more extensive texture
set provided with GEML. This would provide benefits such as a better
ballast blend and greater variation in field texturing. However, any
texture replacement would require the route to be stripped back to a
base colour and completely repainted from scratch so is currently
just slated as an option.
It is also entirely
possible that the route may receive extensions to provide greater
operational ability. These extensions could take the form of an
extension north to Morpeth including Heaton Depot, west to
MetroCentre and east to Saltburn.
What cannot
currently be done?
At this point,
super-elevation is not viable on the route due to the track not
originally being laid with easements. The only current solution would
be to completely replace the track and this is not viable mainly due
to the timescales involved. In addition, not all gradient transitions
have had smoothing integrated due to issues when using the newer
gradient smoothing tool which created various kinks in the track.
Options to work around this are currently being investigated.
Many people have asked
me about the possibility of custom assets but unfortunately, the
Steam Workshop will not support this meaning I can only use assets
originally available with Newcastle to York and also GEML as the
requirement. This means I have to place an emphasis on creatively
using these objects to achieve the desired effect.
Quick Drive currently
does not support AI operations. This is due to the need for custom
blueprints to be created for AI to be implemented, and as such the
workshop will not support this custom content. It is possible that AI
will be implemented in the future and made available as a file via
the DPSimulation website.
Current issues?
Due to the complex
track layout at the northern end of Newcastle Central, a simplified
layout at the northern end is currently in place due to the inability
to form correct slips and double slips. This, like the gradient
smoothing is currently under investigation as it should not be
happening.
Due to the issues
mentioned above with regards to the gradient smoothing tool, there is
an element of rough riding over certain sections, the same that were
present in the original ECML route. Also, due to the track following
the same alignment of the original route, but with higher speed
limits in some locations, this also presents an issue when taking
curves at speed, not that there are any chances of derailment, but it
doesn't feel right at times.
Scenarios
As with all projects on
the Train Simulator 2014 Steam Workshop, scenarios are not supported
from the outset whilst the route is still in development. A dedicated
page has been set up at DPSimulation which will feature scenarios for
the route, both from me and the community.
http://www.dpsimulation.org.uk/scenariosecmlne.html
Where can I obtain
the route?
The route will be made
available, to all in the next few days from the DPSimulation workshop
for Train Simulator 2014. As with other routes from DPSimulation, it
will be provided in incremental versions and updated regularly.
As with the initial
development of the route, early access is still available and any
future updates will be provided in advance to those who donate, or
have donated to DPSimulation as a way of thanks for helping offset
the costs incurred in running the website. Following a period of
feedback from these users, these updates will then be rolled out to
all users.
If you have previously
donated to DPSimulation, then please send a feedback form at
http://www.dpsimulation.org.uk/contactus.html
stating your Steam username. Equally, if you wish to make a donation
to DPSimulation, please send us the same form after donating in order
to be added for early access.
