I’ve looked at way too many layouts where there is way too little access roads to be realistic.
looking for both planning suggestions and construction methods for realistic blacktop roads…
matthew
Just like in your other threads, you will get better suggestions if you post a track plan. Is there some problem with doing that?
ok the top 4x8 section isn’t being developed yet, the left side is my freight yard, bottom section doesn’t have an industry defined yet and the right hand side is rural/farming
Gidday Matthew, here are some links to similar previous threads,
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/t/215468.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/t/201088.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/t/81718.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/p/174796/1918944.aspx#1918944
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/16425.aspx
Hope these are of use,
Cheers, the Bear.
This does’t directly answer your question, but something practically every modeler fails to include are the railroad maintenance roads parallel to the track, which are usually just dirt.
Can you walk behind the 4X8? I assume that you can, otherwise that will be a problem. The passing sidings seem really short compared to the yard.
OK, I suggest that the next step is to layout the buildings and industries and then it will be obvious where you need roads. If you want to “waste” space on parking lots and such, that is up to you if you think it looks better.
Lots of people leave off some of that car related stuff because it takes up so much room better used for trains. But that is up to you.
I also think that you need to plan out your industries and other major structures before you start thinking about where the roads will go. You are right, though, to think about your roads early on. The last thing you want to do is discover that the only place your road can cross the tracks is at a turnout.
I personally like my roads to wind through the layout, rather than having long straight streets. With roads, you don’t have to really worry about curve radii and grades. While providing grades for your railroad requires careful planning, you can accomplish a lot of the same illusions using roads, with overpasses, underpasses and grade crossings. Grade crossings are particularly interesting, because they can be equipped with anything from crossbucks to crossing gates.
One suggestion I would have for planning is to go to Staples and buy a big pack of cardstock. This is over in the printer paper section, but it’s heavier paper. I use it to make mock-ups of my buildings, and also for surface items like the canal with blue edges here:
After a while, you can see this evolve.
Most of my roads are made with Durham’s Water Putty, a hardware-store item. It’s a dry powder that mixes with water and hardens to a nice solid surface that takes paint well. I work it with a wet foam brush while it’s setting up to get it smooth, and then use an acrylic wash of gray for color.
You can work it right up to the edge
Thank you MrBeasley those were very helpful points/tips Matthew