Reverse Points

[Stuz]

Hi,
I have been running an activity on the Feather River Route, Oroville to Portola Part1, and have reached a situation where there is a freight going to overtake me. There are some double reverse points ahead for me to grab the main once the Freight has passed. I am therefore diverted into the loop, stopping for a red to allow the freight to pass. The red is ahead of me but when I stop, the red instantly changes to green and my train grabs the path out of the loop. I have not yet triggered the reverse points. The freight coming along side me then cannot pass as it loses the path. I have run this a few times and it appears that if I do not stop the freight can pass. If I stop, the above situation developes.
A bit long winded, but an interesting dilemma. I know work is still progressing on OR but can anyone throw any more light on this situation.

Regards Stu

[callagst]

Hi,
I have been running an activity on the Feather River Route, Oroville to Portola Part1, and have reached a situation where there is a freight going to overtake me. There are some double reverse points ahead for me to grab the main once the Freight has passed. I am therefore diverted into the loop, stopping for a red to allow the freight to pass. The red is ahead of me but when I stop, the red instantly changes to green and my train grabs the path out of the loop. I have not yet triggered the reverse points. The freight coming along side me then cannot pass as it loses the path. I have run this a few times and it appears that if I do not stop the freight can pass. If I stop, the above situation developes.
A bit long winded, but an interesting dilemma. I know work is still progressing on OR but can anyone throw any more light on this situation.

Regards Stu

The same thing happens in MSTS for this activity. When you stop the train and the signal for your route path clears out, center the locomotive reverser and then reverse the movement of your locomotive by backing up a few feet and stopping again. This should allow the AI path to clear out and let the AI train scoop yours. Once the AI train clears the next signal your train's path should clear out and allow you to continue the activity. I had the same thing happen with the empty grain activity because I arrived at Keddie ahead of time and had a low green at the east end. I went over to Sierra and was lined in the passing track, to discover that I was lined out the east end of Sierra as well. Since the activity work order stated that I was to meet the Zeyphr at Keddie, with my real-life rail experience kicking in I took the slow clear signal at east Keddie and kept on moving. Net result was going through a slow clear signal at east Sierra and colliding with the Zephyr stopped just east of the signal. The fact that I had taken the signal at Keddie broke the path of the AI passenger train and caused it to stop. In real life this situation would have been trouble-free as the rail traffic controller (train dispatcher to Americans-I live in Canada) would have seen the difference in the running times and changed the meet point without excessively penalizing the passenger train by running it into the passing track (what you folks call a loop) at Sierra instead of holding my freight at Keddie as required by the work order. Also, if a westbound train already occupies a block entering it from the opposing direction in real life the eastbound signal cannot be cleared out and an opposing traffic route established for an eastbound train as the signal control logic does not allow this to occur. The sigconfig and sigdat and simulator AI and opposing or following AI train detection is far from perfect in both OR and MSTS, and my lifetime of driver's experience caught me out! If your timing on a run is inside the activity AI timing and you do not fully respect the work order, you get nailed with either a standoff or what we call a cornfield meet in North America. Try the above mentioned activity keeping your train speed as close as possible to the allowed speed limits at all times. You will re-create the scenario I have just described.

Cheers from the great white north (we still have two feet of snow on the ground-springtime-what's that?)

Steve Callaghan

[Stuz]

Thanks for the interesting reply. I have just left James. Your remedy did not work for me. As a last resort, after altering times in the activity editor for the passing freight and having to start it on the main as it got stuck on the siding back where it was initiated ( nice to be able to scoot around using the 8 key camera free option to find out where the AI is ) I used Ctrl M and the path changed at James and the freight passed OK. I then used Ctrl M again and the path changed back to me. I got the red over yellow and was able to proceed. It will be interesting to see how I go from here.

We are coming out of the longest drought in 40 years in NZ. Cracks over 25mm wide in the paddocks! Winter round the corner. Regards Stu

[roeter]

Hello,

the procedure described above for MSTS will not work in OR, for unlike MSTS, OR will not release the train's route on backing up.
The double reversal points will not work either as, again unlike MSTS, reversal points are triggered by OR the moment you stop in the section which contains these points - you don't have to actual pass the position of the points (it takes too long here to explain why).
What will work is, when you've stopped, to switch your train to Manual mode (CTRL-M). This will release the route ahead (you will see the signal ahead reset to stop), and will allow the AI to pass. Once the train is passed, you can switch back to Auto mode (again CTRL-M), and you will regain your normal route.

Regards,

Rob Roeterdink

[Stuz]

Thanks Rob.
Regards Stu