(No subject)

I think this will be basically it

I think this will be my plan. 

Before you start...

I know your mind may be made up but what are you looking to accomplish? Continuous running or point to point? Prototypical or freelance? Switching or mainline running? What is the era? What is the locale? What scenic and structural features do you want? Do you want to operate realistically or run trains in a circle? What room will the layout be in?

There are multiple issues with this plan that may be wasting your money or space. Answering these questions could help myself and others hone your plan. I would build in a modular manner as well, completing one 100% before doing any more, just to get some experience under your belt. 

Just on the surface, it seems your track plan might be well suited for a locomotive servicing terminal.

Yes, listen to Sancho

This is good advice.

Without knowing what you're trying to model, this trackplan is just so many lines on the screen. We can't tell if it will satisfy you or not without some more background on what you're aiming to model. Answer Sancho's questions and then we can help you determine if these lines on the screen will give you something that will satisfy.

Third Opinion....

My opinion echoes that of Joe and Sancho. The 101 Track Plans book dates to the mid-1950s, with some of its plans dating back even further, and as such many of its plans were intended for O-scale. Our hobby has changed a great deal in the past 60+ years. The Frisco Lines plan that you said elsewhere that you are drawing inspiration from has some potential for a good modern plan, but even if you were coping it exactly, I would still caution you against doing yourself a disservice with what amounts to a giant loop.

Consider Disguising The Loop

Nice steam era engine servicing facility or diesel era for that matter.  I lived in a town that served as a mid point for branch line, similar set up,  roundhouse left over from the steam era used for diesel servicing, through yard were cars were sorted from the train for local switching the remaining cars to continue down the branch on the next train.

The issue with a loop is how does a train heading out of a yard and down the branch return to the same yard but at the opposite end? The answer, it's not the same yard, it just looks the same. That makes the yard a highly detailed staging area with an engine servicing facility.

Or, Consider a view block. The 59.7" surface has plenty of room for a view block and room for some switching not associated with the yard on the other side of the view block. This will hide the loop.

Or, you could put a terminating yard on the other side of the view block making it a point to point.

(add a secret track reconnecting the loop, just don't tell anyone )

Eugene

My mind is definitely not made up

I'm not very creative when it comes to track planning I'll admit. I'm looking to have continuous running mainline with maybe some switching. More freelance than prototype. The era will be modern with a smattering of steam "excursion" type. The locale would probably be similar to Ogden UT to Evenstan WY. My joy comes more from the construction than the operation so I'm not so much looking for realistic operations.

Close to the edge

That curve will make some great train crash scenes. Push it away from the edge.

Where exactly will this be in the room? We need some context. Like the others said, what are your goals in modeling this?

If you're a builder, have you considered a TOMA design?

If you're a builder, then have you looked at a TOMA layout design? Just go up to the search bar on the upper right and type TOMA. Then read the threads that come up. It's a module-section approach that could be just what you're looking for if you're a builder. With TOMA you can experience the entire building process from end-to-end in weeks to months, yet keep building and swapping out module sections forever if you like.

Preliminary recommendations

Preliminary recommendations:

Modeling a freelanced UP in Evenstan is a solid choice. If it is UP modern equipment and steam that you plan to run, maximize your curve and turnout radii, the larger the better. Current turnouts will struggle to work for modern equipment and won't work with large steam locomotives and passenger cars.

Eliminate all of your spurs save for maybe those across the main from the turntable. Unless they have a purpose, they appear unnecessary.

Eliminate the roundhouse/turntable. Not only is it not functional today but it also wastes a good deal of space.

Try to reduce the number of crossovers or push them closer together. 

What room do you have to work with? Your bench work sizing seems very odd and the center two feet appear unusable. An around the room shelf layout seems better.

Evenstan doesn't have much for industries but the Union Tank Car facility and yard are very cool. Had you considered modeling this?

​River scenery along your main and highway overpasses as scenic dividers seem to be good scenic elements and are more realistic than dropping a canyon next to the yard.

Overall, I would take a serious look at Evenstan on Google Earth, especially west of the roundhouse. Namely the Union Tank yard and facilities, the UP Yard, industrial spurs, and the mainline west of town. Pelle Soeborg is an excellent UP modern modeler that you may want to look into, he's a master at realism and is also freelancing.

suggest adding another route with interchange and hidden layover

That's a big space for a somewhat plain oval. My suggestion is to add another line that provides additional routing possibilities and hidden layover for operating variety. Mainline trains can head off on the connecting (brown) line and lay over before reappearing. The space appears large enough for two levels with modest connecting grades.

The attached diagram illustrates the general idea, not a scale detailed plan. The double-track line could be single-tracked outside of the main yard and there are a zillion other ways to modify and refine the idea.

This general idea has some parallels with my own HO layout, which I am pretty satisfied with. I'm not a big switching fan; I mainly like the capacity to handle a variety of different trains on different routes with a hidden layover option.

Which almost guarantees. . .

Can you widen it a bit?

A 24 inch wide space is going to feel constrictive after a while. If the room is wide enough I'd make that center aisle at least 3 feet wide and 4 foot would be even better. This would allow larger radius curves which are always handy to have. It looks like your primary goal is a roundhouse/ engine service scene so you might consider where the operators will stand and orient the roundhouse view and the engine service tracks to make them operator accessible. ....DaveB

Yep, good advice

How old are you?

"A 24 inch wide space is going to feel constrictive" I would certainly have some issues with the 24 in aisle!  If I could get around in there I would be wiping the edge of the layout clean all the time!    Take a couple of your kitchen chairs and place them 24 inches away from your dining table and see just how close that really is.

Separating the twin mains on one end would help with being able to hide one of them inside some mountain scenery.

Most important advice is to have FUN it is your layout not ours!  Keep a smile on your face and enjoy the hobby.  Russ 

Odd room

The layout will be in kind of an odd room I will have 17' by 10'6"  to work with in the basement room that I am using. The remainder of that room past the 17' mark is being used for exercise equipment for my wife. at about the 9' mark i need to provide for a 3' aisle that will allow access to a laundry room/downstairs bathroom. the door to access the room is also on that same wall but does not interfere with the layout at all. it is after the 17' end of the layout by a few inches. Here is a picture of the room the layout will be in once I get the rest of the stuff from moving cleared out and the previous owners horrible decorating choice painted over. the door closest enters into the room from the stairs and the far door goes into the other rooms. Ideally I could frame that door in and get into the other rooms from the bottom of the stairs but that is impossible due to water heater and furnace placement.

I think I would actually like to do Ogden on one side of the room and Evanston on the other side of the room if I could figure out how to do a continuous loop with part hidden to appear to come into Evanston from Cheyenne and Ogden from Brigham if I could figure out how to get that done with large radii curves. I would be ok with a 2nd level and have even considered it.

Door

What's the possibility of putting in a lift bridge at the door entrance and at the bottom of the lay out. The idea is that they are in the up position at all times except for when you are running trains. Then you can use all the wall space and have a much wider aisle.

Jack

probably not

The problem with that is the distance, it is about 8' down to that door. I think it would be much easier to just provide an aisle directly to that door.

"The remainder of that room

  The obvious solution is fill up the room with benchwork and let her get her exercise climbing under the layout and soldering your feeder wires......DaveB 

union tank

That would be fun to model I think. The best part of doing freelance is there doesn't actually have to be a business that you model in the area in the real world. This model is my world and any business I want can live there.