Hey guys. My layout is coming along but after realising that switching can be fun I decided to change from a part of a mainline to a passenger terminal. Now i need help in finding a place to draw inspiration from.
Mitchell
Mitchell,
I place I like is San Bernadino. It has an attractive old Santa Fe “Mission Style” station with maybe three tracks used for through trains. It always had terminal tracks on the Los Angeles side and these are now altered to a Metrolink terminal.
When I was last there the preserved 4-8-4 3751 was kept in the open in the yard near the flyover taking Metrolink trains over the BNSF tracks.
Historically, this station at the bottom of Cajon Pass was used by AT&SF and UP trains like the Super Chief and City of Los Angeles.
In steam days, the Santa Fe’s locomotive workshops sat across the tracks from the station. The shops have gone and there is a big intermodal yard.
Track plans of the station in steam days appear in the end papers of the book “The Santa Fe Diesel (Volume 1)” by Dr Cinthia Priest.
Otherwise you could always try Keswick terminal in Adelaide, leaving out all the broad gauge third rails!
Peter
I just leafed thru my copy of Model RR planning 2005, which arrived in the mail last week, and there are some articles on switching layout planning. I did not read them yet, but they might be a starting point?
Mitchell,
I’m sure that you’ll get some great responses. I have three favorites myself. St. Louis Union Terminal, GM&O Terminal Station in Mobile, Al. and Terminal Station in Birmingham, Al. The first two are still in exsistance but the Terminal Station in B’ham was torn down in 1969.
I remember reading this article back then and it was a real eye opener. I went to the magazine index and found this.
Make mine passenger operation - terminal trackplan & ops
Model Railroader, November 1974 page 66
( OPERATION, “ORGIBET, JORGES”, PASSENGER, TERMINAL, TRACKPLAN, YARD, HO, MR )
The article included a plan appropriate for a home layout, but I can’t remember how big it was. I knew some of the operations involved in passenger terminals at that time, but this article described what one man has done to take it above a basic level. I would recommend getting a copy of it from MR if possible. Using this article, you can include everything from just a simple operation, all the way to the terminal becoming the dominate theme of the layout if you so wish.
Search MR index for articles by Hitch***. Chuck used to have a layout that featured passenger train switching and did a few articles on it.
Umm…Mitch, what era of passenger service are you thinking? If modern, there really wouldn’t be much, if you’re thinking transistion era, you’d have more to do.
But I suspect you’re a modern era person, from what i’ve seen, and I’d say try a Freight yard switching layout, you’d have more options than a modern passenger train operation.
Hiya Mitchell, check out Chicago yards as well. I have seen some awesome layouts designed around that part of the country.
Kids still want their Spongebob and Tinkerbell trains, hopefully I will acquire and start painting soon.
Thanks Mitchell
Tim
Take a look at Kevin J. Holland’s “Classic American Railroad Terminals.” This book is chock full of pictures and other information that should inspire even the master hobbyist.
We all start somewhere, and for me - it was my imagination coupled with lots of mental images of places I’ve been and stations I’ve seen. That’s the beauty of the hobby, if it “works” for you - then it “works” PERIOD!
Good luck.
I would say Los Angeles Union Station… but this station is very very large and you wouldn’t be able to model it properly even in Normal… it would take up half of your layout because of the size of the buildings… but you could take from thier loading areas and have the station platform then 2 tracks then station platform and 2 tracks and then station platform again.
nearly forgot another station that is amazing and would take much less room is the Santa Fe Station in San Diego very nice architecture and it’s small enough to model… just finding a kit for it could be kinda tough… it’s a mission style building with a couple tracks with ground level loading… on the other side of the track there is a golf driving range and the other side of that is the naval yard I do believe.