OPERATIONS ON GARDEN RAILROADS

YARD DESIGN

By a yard, I will mean any combination of sidings that includes at least one passing siding and one spur siding attached to the passing siding. The simplest type of yard possible is shown in the diagram below.

This yard allows the spur siding to be switched by trains going in either direction. If a train is going from right to left, then the turnout for the spur siding presents a facing point for the train. To see how to switch facing points, go to the article on TRAINING. When a train going from right to left switches the spur siding, it will have to block the mainline as the locomotive runs around the train to switch from behind. It may also have to leave a car on the mainline for a short time during the switching maneuver. A train going from left to right will have to leave all the cars behind the car it is setting off on the mainline as well. So any train switching the spur siding will "foul" the main. This will prevent other trains from passing and cause congestion.

Now look at the redesigned yard below.

This configuration uses more space and requires more track, but it has the same number of switches. Now trains moving in each direction can switch the spur siding without leaving any cars on the mainline. The only time the mainline is blocked during a switching operation is when the locomotive of a train moving from right to left runs around the train to switch the facing points. Designing your simple yards so the turnout for any spur sidings are in the middle of the passing siding with room on either side of the turnout to park cars will reduce traffic congestion and improve operations.

You may have seen various switching problems in model railroad magazines. These are fun as puzzles, but you don't want one in your layout if you plan to have operating sessions. Trust me on this. When I first designed our main yard at Rivendell, I included such a puzzle. The result was that all our trains ended up at this yard because it took so long to switch the industries. Real railroads only put sidings in places that are difficult to switch because space limitations leave them no choice. Time is money. Real railroads will design yards to make switching as easy as possible. I tore the entire Rivendell yard out and redesigned it - three times - before I arrived at our current design. The result is the diagram below.

The Rivendell Yard

A singal mainline approaches the yard from the left and a double mainline leaves from the right. Track EF goes off to the engine facility which includes a coaling station, a water tower, an engine house, and a holding track for a yard switcher. Trains coming from the left go onto the top mainline track and switch the three sidings at the top of the diagram. Trains come into the yard from the right on the lower mainline track and switch the siding at the bottom of the diagram. A yard switcher moves cars between the top sidings and the bottom sidings as needed. So two mainline trains can switch the yard at the same time. The switcher stays out of the way at the engine facility when one or more mainline engines are in the yard. We can operate the layout without a yard switcher using careful car movement when we have fewer operators. But when we have extra operators, this design creates a job for another crew.

Two final lessons we have learned is to make all switches easily accessible, preferably without walking into the layout, and use only as many switches as you absolutely need. The Rivendell yard above is at ground level and there is a path below the bottom of the diagram. The yard is so wide that operators must walk into the yard to uncouple cars, but there is plenty of room between the mainline and the top three industry tracks where operators can stand. All buildings on this part of the layout are beyond the top three industry tracks. There was a depot between the mainline and the top three industry tracks, but one of my operators wiped it out. We also had a logging spur on a section of track where operators had to walk across a dry stream bed to switch the spur. We quickly realized that children could turn an ankle or fall down trying to cross the dry stream bed. So we took this siding out and we now have a nice, long stretch of mainline in this area.

Old Hobbiton Reverse Loop and Yard

These last two lessons also apply to the design of the smaller yard at Hobbiton. You can see the original design in the diagram above. This area of the layout is raised about two feet above ground level with a wall all around. Notice that there is a reverse loop, a passing siding built into the reverse loop, and three industrial sidings coming off the loop. The right hand turnout at the top of the diagram was spring loaded so that trains entering the loop went to the left into the yard. You could allow a train to pass on the passing siding, but to do this an operator would have to walk all the way around this raised section of track to change the switches at the top of the diagram. Also, operators had to climb onto the raised section and maneuver between the buildings to switch the industrial sidings. All in all, this was not a good arrangement.

Almost every train that comes to Hobbiton will do some switching. So we really didn't need the passing siding. If there is a train already switching this yard, an incoming train can wait on the mainline to the right until the first train has finished switching. After switching, the first train can go into the back of the loop to wait for the incoming train to enter the yard. Then the first train can leave Hobbiton. I took out the passing siding. I also rearranged the industrial sidings so that all the turnouts could be reached and all the cars could be uncoupled from the front of the layout. The result was the design below.

New Hobbiton Reverse Loop and Yard

So here are a set of rules I have learned about designing yards for operations. I have learned these rules almost entirely from making mistakes. Maybe my mistakes will save you some effort and frustration.

1. Make your yards as simple to switch as possible.

2. Try to put all turnouts and sidings where they can be reached without walking into the layout.

3. If you can, make all passing sidings long enough to hold your longest train.

4. Remember that reverse loops provide holding areas for trains. This can help you handle traffic with fewer passing sidings.

5. Don't use any more turnouts than you need for the operating opportunities you want.

6. Try not to put structures where they get in the way of switching operations.