Coals to Newcastle - Ver 6.0 This route is based on the railway lines radiating out of the Newcastle area of New South Wales, Australia, around the 1950 to 1960 period, as well as the main northern line (the Short North) from Sydney to Newcastle, Main North to Maitland and the North Coast to Dungog. ============================================================================================================================= Copyright, Distribution and Terms of Use ---------------------------------------------------------- You are NOT permitted to distribute this archive. By downloading this route you are subject to the following conditions: i) This route is intended for private, non-commercial use only; ii) This route and any of its associated files may not be retro-engineered or used for any purpose other than its original intended use without the prior written consent of the author; iii) This archive must not be re-distributed in any way without the prior written consent of the author; iv) The inclusion of any individual file from this archive in another archive without the prior written permission of the author is prohibited; v) This route is provided AS IS, no responsibility or liablity is assumed for any MSTS or system hardware/software problems the user may encounter after installing this route; vi) By downloading and/or using this route, you have agreed with these terms and conditions of use; The authors' rights and wishes concerning this archive must be respected; Copyrights: * MS Train Simulator, MS Windows: Copyright Microsoft Corp 2002 * Route: Copyright Peter Newell 2002-2007 * Custom Scenery objects: Copyright Brian Bere-Streeter 2004-2006 or the individual modellers ============================================================================================================================= Installation Notes ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ********* You will require all default routes installed in MSTS to install this route ********* This route has been packaged using Route Riter and Install Creator. Steps: i) Make sure that you have installed the additional add-ons indicated above, ie Xtracks, New roads, etc. ii) If you have an old copy of the route copy the old route folder to another location (outside the MSTS folders). iii) Download the V5 install file - "ctnv6_(1).exe" iv) Double click the "ctnv6_(1).exe" file and this will install the new route. vi) You should be able to run MSTS and see the the route now. A default activity has been included to make the route visible in MSTS. ******************** You will require to have the following software installed ******************************************** i) Xtracks 3.18 to run this route - available from www.railpage.org.au/steam4me/trainsim ii) Asphalt Platforms - Graham Pitt - available from UK Train Site website (Included in CTN install file) iii) MSTS New Roads, Version 3.2 - Standard Edition by Bruce Bridges, Martyn T. Griffin, Steven Masters - available from www.railpage.org.au/steam4me/trainsim iv) Bridge track pieces - Teemu Saukkonen aka Enocell - available from www.train-sim.com (enobrgs1.zip) (Included in CTN install file) v) Kangaroo hazard - Paul Gausden - available from www.railpage.org.au/steam4me/trainsim (Included in CTN install file) ============================================================================================================================== ##### Performance Tips ##### When driving driving on some sections performance problems maybe experienced due to the heavy object density. Lockups, reduced frame rates and stuttering screens may occur as well. The following suggestions are offered to minimse these problems: i) View the train from the side (ie look perpendicular across the train as this puts less load on the PC then looking directly forward along the direction of travel). ii) Make sure that you regularly defragment your hard disk drive that has MSTS on it. iii) Reduce your MSTS option settings to the those suggested on the CTN FAQ page. These settings may change from PC to PC due to difference in setup, etc. You may need to experiment by increasing or decreasing these settings. Alternatively you can install the patch MSTS Bin v1.6+ which appears to have improved these performance issues in MSTS. MSTS Bin is available from the following website: http://mstsbin.uktrainsim.com/eng/eng.html ============================================================================================================================= ************* Special Thanks ******************************* A special thanks to the following who have made custom objects for CTN: i) Brian Bere-Streeter who has assisted in enhancing the scenery for the route. For more details refer to the included readme file "BBS_readme.txt" ii) John Yelland who has made signals to suit the route iii) Russell Beer for some bridges. iv) Ron Picardi who has also made some custom bridges for CTN ============================================================================================================================= Add-Ons used in this route have been created by: Bill Bagley Simon Barnes Russell Beer Brian Bere-Streeter Rainer Bluhm Donald E. Brynelsen Trevor Burt Bill Bzak Caldrail Wayne Campbell Franco Caruso Frank Carver Colin Cribb John Dibben IAN DODD Rich Garber Paul Gausden Robert Harper James Hart James L. Jendro Ian Jenkins Jeff Layfield Sean Lim Jörg Löscher Chris Jennings Jonas Mannion Robert C Mapplebeck Ian Martin Brad Miles John Milligan Ian Morgan Frank Musick E P Norrell Clayton Notgrass Ron Paulden Ron Picardi Foster L. Putman Rob Roeterdink Teemu Saukkonen Michael Sinclair Mike Simpson Richard Smith Oneal Smyrl Jur Snijder Christopher Sos Yuri Sos Gary Sprandel Bob Staples John Tackett Michael Thompson Stephen Thompson Ian Thornton Terry Thornton Teemu Vehkaoja Phil Voxland - telephone poles Jim Ward Bret Wilfong Mike Wilson Stuart Williamson Pete Worsley Chuck Zeiler Greenery and vegetation - http://www.virtuallandscaping.net If I have used somebody's work without acknowledging them please email me so that I can credit your efforts. ============================================================================================================================= ============================================================================================================================= WHAT'S NEW in version 6.0 - South Maitland Railways Route extended west from East Greta to Cessnock, including a number of collieries out as far as Pelton - Richmond Vale Railway Route extended west from Hexham to Weston (link to SMR) and including Richmond Main and Pelaw Main collieries - Main North Coast Route extended north from Telarah to Dungog - New improved NSWGR semaphore signalling updated throughout - Additional 'cityscape' night textures along the Strathfield - Central corridor - Lineside fencing added to around 50% of the route, complete with 'private' level crossings - General detail improvements and corrections throughout the route. ============================================================================================================================= WHAT'S NEW in version 5.0 - Route extended north from Waratah up to Maitland, including the starting sections of the J & A Brown, and South Maitland private railways - Route extended east from Strathfield to Central and Darling Harbour, also route extended from Strathfield to Enfield Marshalling Yards. - NIGHT textures and lighting throughout the route - including 'working' lights on all station platforms, night textures to all station buildings and signal boxes,'working' yard lights in most larger goods yards, 'working' streetlights in main urban and rural areas alongside the track. See separate document 'BBS_Readme.txt' - Port Waratah yard and BHP Newcastle Steelworks now detailed. - Gosford Racecourse branch now detailed - Adjustments to Environment Files to give several new weather effects - see separate document 'CTN Environment Settings' - General detail improvements and corrections throughout the route **NOTE** - Some areas of the route are heavily populated with objects and therefore some users may experience performance problems depending on their PC setups, etc. This partciularly applies to the Sydney to Strathfield and Newcastle to Broadmeadow sections. Refer to the Coals to Newcastle FAQ page for further information. =========================================================================================================================== WHAT'S NEW in Version 4.0 - Route extended south from Hornsby down to Strathfield - Newcastle and Honeysuckle goods yards now added - Electrification extended north from Hornsby to Gosford (Jan 1960) - Extensive scenery detailing over most of the route - Newcastle corridor and CBD now fully detailed - Collieries now detailed and fitted out - WORK IN PROGRESS - some areas of the route are still incomplete and will be addressed in future versions - Main line areas to the East and West of Strathfield - Toronto Branch - Port Waratah area - and BHP Steelworks - Main line areas to the North of Scholey Street Junction and Waratah ============================================================================================================================= Protoype Information and Traffic Working - some additional notes - by Brian Bere-Streeter There is now an extensive range of prototype information available on the Coals to Newcastle website, to help you gain the maximum enjoyment from this route. Amongst the documents are: - Learn the Route - Sydney to Lidcombe - Learn the Route - Strathfield to Newcastle - Train Compositions 1958 - Working Timetable(s) 1958 - Local Appendix 1951 - Newcastle Coal Traffic Appendix 1951 - Special Train Notices (Unusual train movements) These documents are in PDF format and require Adobe Acrobat Reader V5 or later. With the extensions to the route and the information in these new documents, there is now the opportunity to re-create many of the very extensive traffic workings over the Short North, in an authentic atmosphere. The route itself allows for many varied activities, that can now be based on real-life trains that worked during the period represented by this route. You are encouraged to develop autthentic activities using the operational information. Traffic Workings :- The extension of the overhead electrification to Gosford in the CTN route, allows for two major scenarios types: PRE-ELECTRIFICATION to Gosford You could run the CTN route assuming that the overhead wiring is complete to Cowan (Nov 1958), and the masts and wiring under construction between Cowan and Gosford, but prior to 'switching on'. This scenario allows you to have: - single-deck ('red rattler') suburban traffic to and from Sydney or Hornsby to Cowan - retain full steam hauled passenger and goods traffic (with early diesels) throughout the route. You can extend the electric workings to Hawkesbury River (April 1959), and all UP steam banking assistance on the Cowan Bank from Hawkesbury River to Cowan, would then be worked by 46 class electrics rather than using the 'standard goods'. A very good sub-scenario, that would work well, is the electrification works on Cowan Bank. Whilst the electrification works were in progress between Cowan and Hawkesbury River, a series of single-line workings took place where, the construction engineers took possession of one of the main lines. All traffic, both Up and Down, used a single track over this section, on some working days, the Up line was used, and on some working days the Down line was used. As a precaution to trains stalling in the 'work area', all Up trains were generally banked, including trains that would otherwise ascend Cowan Bank with only the train locomotive. This could lead to some very interesting train workings in MSTS, using 'wrong-road' running in a legitimate activity, eg - an UP Newcastle Flyer working towards Sydney on the Down line, with a standard goods in the lead, as banker. POST-ELECTRIFICATION to Gosford You could then change to the post-electrification scenario (January 1960). - all steam powered short distance passenger workings from Sydney to Gosford were replaced by the electric single-deck Interurban car sets. Short distance passenger workings between Gosford and Newcastle retained steam power until the end of steam in the early 70's. - all steam powered long distance passenger express and mail trains were worked to and from Sydney to Gosford by class 46 electric locomotives - where a locomotive change was made to steam or diesel power from Gosford to Newcastle, or to the North. - most (but not all) steam powered goods trains over the Short North used class 46 electric locomotives between Gosford and Sydney, when locomotive availability allowed. Many of the fastest through express goods, livestock trains and fruit and perishables trains used diesel power throughout to avoid a locomotive changeover at Gosford. This later Post-Electrification scenario would allow you to create very interesting two-part activities with the changeover of locomotives at Gosford - one part (A) using one type of locomotive haulage, and the second part (B) using the alternative type of locomotive haulage. ============================================================================================================================= If you wish to email suggestions or problems, contact me on: Peter Newell: coals_to_newcastle@yahoo.com.au January 2007.