Tutorial – Correcting railroad signal issues in TRS22 using my railroad signals

[MSGSapper]

When it comes to railroad signals in TRS22 strange things can sometimes happen. As an example, here is a screenshot showing a right diverging siding being protected by my <kuid:439337:119134> SAP_Signal_3_RH_RD_PBR railroad signal.

As you can see the lights do not display correctly. The reason for this is that the next junction where the siding reconnects to the mainline is not protected by railroad signals, so Trainz gets confused and does not display the lights correctly. How do you correct that?

If you add railroad signals such as my <kuid:439337:119134> SAP_Signal_3_RH_RD_PBR dwarf signal to protect both tracks, then Trainz will than display the signals correctly. The below screenshot shows what happens when I did this:

and

BTW if you don’t want those signals at the next junction to not be seen for some reason, than just add invisible signals such as my <kuid:439337:118758> SAP_Invisible_Signal_Dwarf_1_PBR. In either case this will fix this issue and make the railroad signal display lights correctly.

Another issue is when you have a siding or spur that does not reconnect back to the mainline. The following screenshot shows that Trainz is once again confused by this and does not display the lights correctly.

A simple way to fix this is to add an invisible signal, such as my <kuid:439337:118758> SAP_Invisible_Signal_Dwarf_1_PBR to the end of that track. When you do that, the issue will be resolved as shown below in the screenshot which now displays the lights correctly.

These are the solutions I have adopted for my line of railroad signals that fixes these Trainz railroad signaling quirks, and they work well if you do as I indicated above. BTW other authors have taken a somewhat different approach and used a Trainz script to deal with these issues with their railroad signals.

Bob

 

[norfolksouthern37]

As you can see the lights do not display correctly. The reason for this is that the next junction where the siding reconnects to the mainline is not protected by railroad signals, so Trainz gets confused and does not display the lights correctly. How do you correct that?

I can't figure out for my own life what or how these signals are supposed to be signals in the first place. You've invented your own trainset version and I've never seen anything like them. How are they supposed to work to begin with?

Another issue is when you have a siding or spur that does not reconnect back to the mainline. The following screenshot shows that Trainz is once again confused by this and does not display the lights correctly.

Would not this be corrected if the spur line were finished and had a proper bumper/end of track asset on the end?

 

[MSGSapper]

I can't figure out for my own life what or how these signals are supposed to be signals in the first place. You've invented your own trainset version and I've never seen anything like them. How are they supposed to work to begin with?



Would not this be corrected if the spur line were finished and had a proper bumper/end of track asset on the end?

<kuid:439337:119134> SAP_Signal_3_RH_RD_PBR
Description: A U.S. railroad right hand right diverging three aspect track signal on a concrete base. Uses non-parallax PBR textures. Poly count = 12834. Non-permissive (stop on red). The following aspects are used:
0 STOP
3 CAUTION AND RIGHT DIVERGE
4 CAUTION
6 PROCEED AND RIGHT DIVERGE
8 PROCEED.

This is showing those aspects correctly for the right diverging signal in the second and fifth screenshots. BTW all my signals are set up and comply with this:

https://online.ts2009.com/mediaWiki/index.php/CCG/Kind:_MOSignal

Your signals function pretty much the same, but you use a script to achieve the correct aspects from what I have seen. The bumpers don't seem to make a difference from what I have experienced. That explains why there are so many invisible signals available on the DLS.

Bob

 

[norfolksouthern37]

A bumper is just a red signal to the track graph. Invisible signals are highly overused by inexperienced route creators.

I get the aspect states, what I mean is the signal itself follows no real situation/aspect and is apparently just made up - so nobody who understands signals can know what this is supposed to show and your first post is about them needing to be corrected.

 

[p-dehnert]

Not all track end devices are configured as signals. These other devices need an invisible signal, otherwise the stub track is unsignaled.

Peter

 

[davesnow]

Not all track end devices are configured as signals. These other devices need an invisible signal, otherwise the stub track is unsignaled.

Peter

I remember way back---- probably 2006 or 2007--there was a thread started by Auran that stated something to the effect that the game had an issue whereby cars would not stop (bump?) when they were kicked to a siding with a bumper. The cars would derail. Auran stated that the issue had been fixed. I distinctly remember that. Doesn't work today I don't think. Cars will either derail or phase through the bumper and then derail. As to invisible stuff I don't use invisible anything in my routes. Except maybe a traffic spawner. I have never needed an invisible signal. Wouldn't know how to use it!

 

[MSGSapper]

I get the aspect states, what I mean is the signal itself follows no real situation/aspect and is apparently just made up - so nobody who understands signals can know what this is supposed to show and your first post is about them needing to be corrected.

I am not sure I am following you here. Are you saying the overall appearance of the signal is not prototypical, or are you saying that the aspects are not correct for the diverging signal being shown in the screenshot for that situation?

Regarding U.S. signals, here is a quote from Wikipedia (emphasis on the no from me): "There is no national standard or system for railroad signaling in North America. Individual railroad corporations are free to devise their own signaling systems as long as they uphold some basic regulated safety requirements."

This quote comes from here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_railroad_signals

Prior to releasing these I did some checking/research and found that over the years there have been many, many different types of U.S. railroad signals in just about any kind of configuration and appearance you can imagine - and I saw some pretty weird ones. Today it's a lot more standardized than it was in the past. Given that I don't think these are too far beyond the pale at all considering many of the ones I saw online and they uphold the required Trainz aspect settings.

As for the overall appearance, it works for me and looks and functions pretty good I think. If folks don't agree, of course they are free to use other available signals on the DLS that meet there needs, to include your fine ones.

Bob

 

[norfolksouthern37]

Whatever the case these are just made up and have no intuitive way of reading them. They remind me of something for O or S 3-rail trains. Is there some kind of guide to the trainset signals or not?

Bumpers do generally bump the cars that are not careening into them at a high speed.

As well with bumpers, why even bring up the exception that some are not true signals at all? The fact is any spur track that is properly set up as has been the case for years does not require the "correction" in post 1 for the signal to clear the spur.

Perhaps this should be a guide thread rather than an unnecessary correction and a vague outline of something nobody has seen before. 2 signal heads side by side? When does a rd or ld become relevant and/or is it switching the side of the mast for the secondary head?

Highway railroad crossing sign on a wayside signal?

 

[H222]

Whatever the case these are just made up and have no intuitive way of reading them. They remind me of something for O or S 3-rail trains. Is there some kind of guide to the trainset signals or not?

Bumpers do generally bump the cars that are not careening into them at a high speed.

As well with bumpers, why even bring up the exception that some are not true signals at all? The fact is any spur track that is properly set up as has been the case for years does not require the "correction" in post 1 for the signal to clear the spur.

Perhaps this should be a guide thread rather than an unnecessary correction and a vague outline of something nobody has seen before. 2 signal heads side by side? When does a rd or ld become relevant and/or is it switching the side of the mast for the secondary head?

Highway railroad crossing sign on a wayside signal?

At first glance I thought these were a horrendously out of scale UK colour light signalling set, as they do use route signalling and do have junction diverging heads displayed on 2 separate heads.

But this.... This is not anything even remotely prototypical, and I suspect that the reason the game struggles to display them "prototypically" is because they are not prototypical at all. I suspect this isn't even a "bug" or a limitation of Trainz, and rather a completely improper signalling system.

How many years on the Railroad and what safeworking systems and networks were you qualified on, Bob?