Final (semi) proposed layout-BNSF Albuquerque

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
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First, thanks to all who helped me in the N Scale Door layout thread. it was a bit long in the tooth and served to focus me into this semi-final version. The benchwork is now built, having begged…err negotiated…real estate requests in the spare room. :slight_smile:

I satisfied my givens and most of my druthers. I gave up on the continuous loop, feeling that the switching layout was best served without it. It runs as a point to point switcher for the most part. This final proposed layour is based on a section of Albuquerque’s BNSF trackage and services prototype.

This layout really FEELS right for my space. Giving up the continuous loop opened it up to do more what I was wanting.

I have a few requests for you experts:

  1. I’m still unhappy with the “yard” area in the small L portion of the layout. How can I improve it without drastic alterations. Do I need an engine escape or something over there? Essentially, I wanted two center tracks suggesting a major inbound/outbound staging track with surrounding tracks being overflow as well as the two outermost tracks serving 2 industries in the same space. Would a switch at the start of the turn above Rainbo Bakery that sweeps into the center of the two seperate (but visually the same) yards add to the appearance and give me a lot more staging on a single inbound or outbound suggested track?

  2. In the upper left of the layout would I benefit operation by creating a runaround coming off the curve and into the Centex track there? I’m feeling like the very short engine runaround track at the bottom is too small for the layout. This upper-left location seems the most obvious one for a long runaround.

  3. Did I make any major design errors? Are there any obvious derail points, S-curves etc.?

Thanks to all of your suggestions, I feel like my layouts vision and design has VASTLY improved over the

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A few thoughts from my brief perusal:

Yes, I do think you need to work in a runaround up near the Centex siding, if at all possible. You have a ton of industries to be worked there, and your only runaround option now is a short 1-car siding at the front. Operationally, having to make runaround moves there will destroy any illusion of remoteness between the two scenes, which I think runs counter to your intentions. I would guess that you want to operate this as if it is two towns, i.e. a crew works the back side first, then proceed to the front, or vice-versa.

The runaround at the front could be made a little bit longer, too, by returning to the main at a point between the switches leading to SW fireproofing and Premier Distributing. BTW, good job labeling all you industries, makes it SO much easier to discuss the plan!

Aesthetically, I’d alter a couple of spurs. Instead of running the SW Fireproofing track back to parallel to the main, I’d leave it a straight run. This would move the footprint of the building around towards the big empty space in front of the oil company, potentially allowing a larger industry… and you can spot cars on the entire length of straight track, whereas the curve limits how many cars can (or “should”) be spotted there. I’d say a similar thing about the Rainbo Bakery spur - don’t S-curve it, but just straighten it out at an angle that has it terminating at about the same point. Then, what I’d do is move the foorprint of the bakery building to the other side of the track, so that it isn’t between the siding and the main. This would make it touch the layout front; I’d go ahead and slice the building off at the layout edge and make it look as if it is a much larger facility, and all we’re seeing is the loading dock section. Premier Dist. could have its curve back to parallel with the main moved closer towards the main, so that the siding is a little bit forward, and thus give more room for the building itself.

As for yard improvements, you migh

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One other thing - yes, there is a noticeable S-curve right in front of Centex on the main, but I think it can be resolved while at the same time fitting in a switch to make the desired runaround. The switch that leads to the unnamed industry is a right-hand switch with the main flowing through the straight leg. Flip that to a left-hand switch with the main flowing through the diverging route. Then, replace the S-curved flex track shown with a RH switch, again with the main flowing through the diverging route. The straight leg of this turnout then can lead into the runaround in front of Centex. You still end up with an S-curve, but a gentler one, at the expense of having to run the mainline through diverging routes of two turnouts.

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Thank you WPP. VERY good suggestions and I believe I applied them all. I also managed a bit more room for the benchwork so reworked the geometry a bit and I really like the result.

Any new issues? Any quick once overs from those who helped me as this vision came together ?

I removed the lower left business…made the rainbo location much larger…I might do a superdetail on that. This allowed me to really emphasize the Oil area…big in the Albuquerque, Gallup, New Mexico area. Again a lot of modeling in this area to provide a nice focal point.

I also reworked the yard trackage on the far right and like its configuration for a small layout. I can see this section easily expanding on my future layout in a year or so at the new house.

Any new issues with this plan?

Thank you everyone who has helped! I REEEALLLY appreciate you :slight_smile:

Dan

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Hi,

What you have looks okay for moving cars around, but I’m wondering two things:

  1. Do you have an operational plan? How do goods and empties get to and from the businesses. How do they get to he rest of the world?

  2. Have you allowed for roads, truck deliveries and employee parking in your businesses? Where does the lumber sit in your lumber yard and how do the customers get it?

Are there any fuel or maintenance facilities in your yard.

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I’m modeling a fairly small area of ABQ, New Mexico BNSF trackage. Most of y inbound and outbound traffic will be on the back part (Inglenook) part of the lower right yard. I could also use the center track from the front section of the “yard” as an outgoing loads track. The entire layout will only be served by BNSF switching locomotives and loosely represents a small prototypical area from the Albuquerque yards to businesses.For now, I see all, or nearly all operations being off of the mainline. I can alter this in the future for my larger layout which will force switching to be conscious of mainline traffic.

The businesses in Albuquerque served by BNSF are all fairly small when compared to larger cities, therefore the trains can be modeled in a small way with limited loads each day.

I purposely created a few “large” companies in order to recieve deliveries (ethanol, grain, lumber, freight, etc) on the layout from many different potential customers along with a few smaller companies that will only recieve a few cars each week. I also plan to have a team track modeled. Each of these businesses is located in the Albuquerque area and many of the ones I’ve labeled so far are very near to each other; many being next door neighbors.

My plan is to have several specific delivery and pickup orders, such as specific dock placements etc. for incoming and/or outgoing freight orders for all of the businesses. It’s based on Byron Henderson’s (Cuyama’s?) Layoutvision.com website suggestions and other places I have visited and read. The industries I selected will allow for many different types of cars and freight types to come and go and require many specific placements within the larger industries

An example–Rainbo Bakery will have incoming and outgoing docks with specific “doors” at which loads need to be placed for incoming supplies (grain, packageing material, paper, etc.) as well as “finished products” for outbound staging to be delivered off-track.
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Dan,

I recently went throug the same process with my Whitton Brnach Layout. I amin HO, with 2 foot, by 11.5 feet shelf style. All point to point, so to speak, all switching. I wanted to squeeze a lot in as operations were more important than perfect planning. I used some selective compression, but, keeping it within reason.

Here are a couple of tips I took from the railroad around here, the Union Pacific. They work the east valley in Mesa, Tempe and Chandler. (All areas of Phoenix) and I took alot of my ideas right from the rear world.

Engine servicing is done by truck. Fuel and occasional small repairs. Anything bigger and they get sent back to the yard in Central Phoenix or for major work, back down south to Tucson, 100 miles away. Also, I have notcied, they seem, to switch the engines around about once a month or so. I am assuming that is done in rotation that has to do with servicing requirements. So, here is a prototype that reallys does do it, “off the layout”. Plus it gives me a chance to change up the power.

Since most of my industries, are the backs, I got away with not haveing to worry a lot about roads, since around here, most of the industries have rail service in the rear, trucks upfront. Also, operations are pretty hectic as it all depends on who, what, and where which is usually set by the customer. Some days are busy, some days are slow. All depends on what on the desk for the crew that morning. Which allows me, a lot fo freedom to set my operations schedule, which I mostly work on the “like for like”, or empties/full switch out.

I admit, I wish I could say I learned all this from books or hours of research… turns out one of my customers is a 30+ year engineer with UP, so he gave me all kinds of insight