How much traffic would a midwest (Oklahoma) branchline get in the peak of the grain harvest? One that has a few industries but mostly gets it’s traffic form grain elevators and local passenger runs. i am thinking about two frieghts a day and mabey two passengers. Thanks!
That would depend on the size and numer of grain elevators on the line. It would also depend on whether it was a “good” or “bad” havest.
Have fun
But those granger lines tended to be busy during harvest season! Other times of year, you’d almost think the lines were abandoned.
My first thought that came to mind was to look up some information from a book I have titled “Santa Fe in the Lone Star State”. There’s a photo in one of that chapters that shows four zebra striped GP-7’s on the point of a “branch line” run with what seems like an eternity of cars trailing behind, most of which appear to be grain hoppers. I believe the photo was taken around 1959 and reflects their typical summer operations. The branch line ran from Sweetwater, Texas up to the area around Altus, Oklahoma. So it appears that you can almost have any type/length of train that you want - - and it can be varied depending on the season.
There is also the answer: As many as you want.
I agree with spacemouse. as many as you want. if your modeling a prototype then why not see if you can find out how many trains the prototype ran.