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The only issue I see is that your maximum train length is restricted by the length of your reverse curve.

Reverse loop not an issue

Benny,

Thanks, but that is actually an industrial loop.  Mainline trains aren't going to be going around the loop.  The loop is 183", my longest staging track is shorter than that anyway.

Thanks for the comment.

Ryan

...

I see!

Now about the yard, on the club layout we have a double end yard like that, but it's split down the middle with one end being east and the other end being west.  You've essentially done the same thing, with the top resemebling [east] and the bottom resembling [west]; I'd presume outbound trains would leave from one end, and then arrive on the in/out on the other end.

I think it works!

Opinion on layout

More opinion on layout

Changing stations operation

There was a article, by Chuck Dowd, I believe about the same station representing more than one town back in the sixties.  I think it was called "Lengthing the Main Line."   I've considered it because with a staging yard  you can run TT &TO ops on a small layout.  You  might want to consider extending the short passing siding at Cambria as double track into the staging yard. This would give you a second or alternate meeting point.  The visible double track wouldn't have to be a train length.  A train comes out of the staging yard and pulls to the end of the double track and waits for a oncoming train.

   I think I would hide the staging yard with a fold-down section of hardboard and have the staging yard entrances be a tunnel, or a highway overpass or trees.  When you needed access to the staging yard just fold that section hardboard down.  There seems to be a belief among many that a small railroad can only represent one station or a switching pike.  I'm not sure why people limit themselves to that.

  Hope this gives you some worthwhile ideas.

Re: Passing Siding

Jeff,

Thanks for that comment.  I will see what I can do. (I realize that it looks easy..)  The track plan is prototypically correct, but that doesn't mean that it is good for a layout.  I will put in an additional siding just west of Beaver Dam and see if it ruins the look and feel of the scenic area.  (I don't want to have the whole layout look like double track as this is a branchline.

Thanks,

Ryan

Added Passing Siding

Jeff,

Here is an update with a passing siding.  What does everyone thing?

Ryan

Passing siding

...

It's strong.

You may look at your route map and see if there is a North end point [or south end point; I'm going to use "North"] that you might consider as a second yard.  Then relabel Horicon Yard to be HoriconYard/Northendpoint Yard. 

Your Horicon yard switcher would hang out on the left side [or right], and your Northend yard switcher would hang out on the right[or conversely, left] - you would want to move one of the drill tracks from the inside of the curve to the outside so it's accessible for the back side of the yard.  The yard switchers would each work the yards mostly from their preferred ends, this end being the end freight leaves the yard - though you could also do it the opposite way too [switchers building trains from the first car to the last car, instead of building form the last car to the first car].  The "optional staging" areas would be prime for parking switchers or road power before/between/after runs.

You don't have to sort the cars coming out of Northend.  Even though they are passing by their industries as they come onto your road, the incoming freight first goes to Horicon yard for sorting and dispatching by your yard switchers. The industrial runs then handle deliveries and pickups to the industries.  Once gathered up, the outbound cars would then leave the layout by going through it again, even though at that point they are on the "through freight" instead of the 'local industrial."

If you come into horicon yard from the left to access the layout, then leaving horicon yard on the right would be a trip "off layout"  Same with Northend yard, all freight would enter Northend yard from the right, and anything going out to the left would be going "off layout" as well.

As such, you gain two yards, even though you only have one that is as big as the yards on either end of the line.  You may ask why cars coming into Northend yard never use the bottom tracks - this would be because those tracks are used by trains delivering freight to Northend yard for/from another system altogether, hence you don't have to worry about cars for your area because the Northend yard switcher has already sorted them onto your staging tracks.

I hope this all makes sense.

If it's acceptable to you, go for it!

To answer your question about going around "twice" it really is up to you.  I for one would not be "fooled" when operating.  The local Club I belong too has an HO Scale layout that is a twice around layout, with an "upper" and "lower" main that goes through the same scene.  For some, when operating, they consider it two separate towns, for others, like me, my mind says "we've already been here".  So my point of view says, yes you are asking for "trouble".  BUT that is just it, that's my point of view.  It may work out perfectly for you and your operators, and that is what matters!

Ken L.

Operations

Depends on your operations.  If you try to operate prototypically you will have more problems than just operating informally.

It will be a disaster if you try and use something formal to issue main track authority like TT&TO or track warrants with opposing trains on the layout at the same time.

Your layout stations would be arranged (girls names first lap, boys second lap):

Anna - Bess - Cloy - Dora - Andrew - Bob - Charles - David.

Authority examples:

Eng 1234 run extra Anna to David and meet Extra 4321 West at Cloy.

Or

ABC 1234 proceed from Anna to Cloy, clear main track

ABD 4321 proceed from David to Cloy, hold main track

The problem with either is that the trains will physically meet when the ABC 1234 is on the "girl" lap and the ABC 4321 is on the "boy" lap.  Or worse if they physically meet when ABC 1234 is at Bess and ABC 4321 is at Bob.  Since neither has instructions to meet there, both will be on the main track.

Similar issues with switching cars.  If one car is sitting at one station, is it at Cloy or Charles?

Since you really don't have sidings to meet any trains other than in the yard and the branch junction (unless you make the modifications suggested) you probably aren't going to have opposing trains on the layout at the same time, so it may not be a problem.   You operate once around for actual operations then do a "victory lap" to get to staging.  Or you can just not use formal main track authorities, and just have the crews self dispatch and superiority of trains (clockwise trains hold main track) or just leave it up to the crew to work it out amongst themselves.

It looks like a fun layout, I would just run one lap and operate it more towards the prototype end of the spectrum.

Tweaks and a rough operation plan

Thanks for all the input!  I spent some time this morning looking at the plan and thought of a few things I'd like to try.  I am going to add cassettes off the yard and one side of staging and I'm going to put the mainline behind the industries on the left wall.  This will hide some of the passing siding and bring operations to the edge of the layout.  I'm also going to play with the CNW overpass to have an interchange track come off of the new passing siding.

I will also post my first attempt at how I see the operating session going.

Thanks and stay tuned,

Ryan

Tweaked Plan

Here is what I came up with.  Is it better or worse than what I started with?

Thanks,

Ryan

How many operators?

As is, you could have a yard operator, two way-freight operators, and a mainline operator that would run the through trains, one at a time, once around.  Four people could stay busy for a typical two hour session, and no additional siding would be needed.  The through trains would be foils to the way-freights.

For solo operation, operating rules require that lower class trains clear out 5 minutes before arrival of a first class train.  This would give you time to run a through train once around the layout and back into staging.  Then return to the way-freight.

Model railroaders try to run too many trains, on a tight schedule, against a fast clock.  Pick two hours from an old Milwaukee timetable, and you will find the appropriate number of trains.

Since you have a big oval, you can always grab a beverage and a snack; and just let a train run round-and-round whenever the mood strikes.  Some rumor about it being "your" railroad

Twice around

  I hate to disagree with some knowledge people.  First, I think you should consider merely lengthening the siding you have already in your layout instead of putting in the new one.  Your new plan takes away almost all your mainline.  Consider cutting back the length of the siding.

  While I would willingly admit a large layout with many passing sidings is the best for tt/to ops, I don't believe it's impossible on a small layout.  If you haven't changed your mind and still want to go the more than once around consider this plan.  Make Horican do muliple duty as a departure yard, a divisional yard and a arrival yard and a staging yard.  Counting the loop area as one industry, I count eight industries on your layout.   If you assign two industries to each town on a permanet basis then you can consider you layout as having 4 distinct towns.

   You depart from Horican yard look at your timetable and run say a couple of laps and switch two industries assigned to town A.  You run another couple of laps and pull into your sole passing siding and another train comes out of Horican staging yard in the opposite direction  and you have a meet.  You then switch the two industries assigned to that town, town B.  Make 3 laps and switch the two industries in town C. Looking at your timetable you see a faster train is due to pass you at town C.  This faster train comes out of Horican staging yard and passes you and runs back into Horican yard.  Then you proceed to do the number of laps called for in your timetable (listed as miles perhaps) and switch the loop and one industry assigned to that town.  By assigning industries to their respective towns it's easy to remember where you are.  Counting up to 3 loops between towns isn't difficult.  Of course modern theory called for sincerity and says you are limited to a single town and local industrial switching only.  Your choice.

  For understanding what I propose is for one or two operators.  The second op could work as a conductor and then run trains out of staging for meets or passes.  Whatever you do have fun.

Some notes...

This line was operated generally as an out-and-back turn, leaving Horicon in the morning, working west, then getting to Portage (the other end of the modeled staging yard), then working back east. 

Occasional detour trains would run through, but mostly it was the domain of the patrol.  There are a few other towns on the line not modeled that had passing sidings. 

I'm not sure how long the Beaver Dam siding was, but it might have been a bit longer. 

The CNW interchange would have taken place just just of Horicon at Minnesota Jct, right by the diamond there, where the CNW Janesville-Fond du Lac line crossed.  The CNW Adams line went overhead, no interchange at that point.

I feel cassettes aren't necessary.  Just have some shelving-storage underneath the staging yard and swap cars out between sessions. 

I like it!

I really like your track plan. Nice work.

I suggest ditching the cassettes and their sidings then use the realestate to scenic the yard area and keep it convincing.

Cheers,
- Bill

Ops

I think it would be a fun railroad to operate.

If you want to run multiple laps go for it.  Watch them roll up the miles.

Using a formal timetable or train orders/track warrants when operating multiple laps becomes problematic.  I don't see any problem just making the formal operation as a single lap (well actually two laps if you make it a turn as suggested its essentially two laps, one clockwise, the other counter) with a few other through or passenger trains to run interference and using TT&TO or track warrants  I have operated on smaller layouts that used TT&TO.

I also agree with the comments regarding the cassette staging.  The CNW interchange would be a better "dock".  If you wanted to use a cassette I would put the connection to the dock at the base of the ladder instead of the top so you could shove out ouf any yard track onto the cassette to quickly restage.  Then have a rack with prestaged cassettes under the layout.  That way you really only need one dock.

Thanks guys!

I appreciate all of the comments.  I'll revert it back to original form.  I'll have to post some pictures and video of the progress.  I have one of the staging panels that I just finished.  I also have the staging/yard power distribution done and the four staging tracks are in.

Here's the picture of the panel. 

 It is my first prototype.  I haven't mounted it in it's case yet, but I wanted to move some freight around without always having select the ACCY button.

Ryan