Trackplan: advise or suggestions?

My latest trackplan for the Vermont Railway - Clarendon and Pittsford subdivision.
The shed (man room) is getting close to ready for trains (blog to come soon). I have designed this rail plan based on the prototype and based on the room I have for this layout.
HO scale, 8x16 feet. Shelf style, 2 feet deep. 48" high. Era: Present day. Shortline Railroad located in west-central Vermont. Primary customer is the Omya limestone plant just outside of the town of Florence, Vermont, with a large volume of interchange traffic with CP Rail, located in Whitehall, NY.
Wanted a fair amount of switching potential without the "spaghetti bowl" look of track everywhere. I did not include elevation changes, but the Omya plant is roughly 200 feet below Rutland in altitude. Lots of interchange activity here, especially if I include the line going to Bennington Vermont, which interchanges with the Pan-Am railroad. Omya ships limestone slurry to the Pan-Am via this route. Video of this transfer is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE4BrWu3rj4&feature=mh_lolz&list=LLMGdT7jS4ll9ZSFi-KqQIdw
If I included this, the line (based on the prototype) would leave the Rutland yard on the far left opposite Irving Oil. The reason for the tapered top portion of the layout to the left of Omya is because my desk is there.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
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Rutland yard
Your Rutland yard looks a fair amount like what I did for my Montpelier Jct. yard. One thing I wonder about tthe setout for Irving Oil (blech - I'm so happy to no longer be doing business with that company) and the salt stores is if that could extend the passing siding farther up toward Burlington, insert a left handed turnout there, and then run those two businesses at an angle against the fascia.
Kinda like this
Workin' the quarry
Shouldn't the spur for the quarry come off the siding rather than the main?
Alan
Walk-in, Double Deck, HO, 1969, Freelance, 28'x32', DCCwww.LKOrailroad.com
ideas...
Scarpia: Thanks for the idea. That would make the yard a bit bigger without getting overly messy and still keep the possibility open for the Bennington branch line.
Alan: When I designed it, I thought about the branch needing to come off the siding, but then I put it where it is and kinda forgot about it. Thanks for the reminder, I'll fix that. I just wonder about the need for a slightly larger Omya facility (the prototype is quite a large one).
Thanks for the input fellas...
Jeremy
doesn't have to be off the siding
There's no preference for putting industrial sidings off the passing siding on the prototype. Industries are where industries are, and the siding goes off any convenient track.
Jurgen
HO Deutsche Bundesbahn circa 1970
Visit the HO Sudbury Division at www.wrmrc.ca
The preceding message may not conform to NMRA recommended practices.
Fake a Wye?
On the prototype is there no way for trains to go from Florence to Burlington without having to go into Rutland Yard first? Seems that you could stick a left turnout at the peak of your curve and make it head for the right side of the layout as if it were going to wye into the track going to Burlington VT. Not enough room to make it work for real, but it might be nice to simulate it.
--
Jeff Shultz
http://www.shultzinfosystems.com
The Willamette & Pacific RR - Oregon Electric Branch
Model Railroad Hobbyist Technical Assistant
You are...
correct Jeff, there is indeed a wye for the trains in Florence to head either north to B-Town or south to Rutland. I had not thought about that possibility, but the idea has merit. I will surely fire up Xtrack and see what comes of this...
One area where I bent the rules was where Omya is vs. where the track to Whitehall NY is. The Whitehall track is several miles to the south of the Omya plant in Florence. However, I wanted to include this Interchange element and couldn't think of a better way of including this based on the layout area...
All the suggestions are very much appreciated btw!
Jeremy
Jeremy
Prototype
I would swap what you have titled as the mains to Burlington and Whitehall. The prototype has the Omya plant off the Burlington main (with a series of sidings and run arounds there). you could even throw in the Carris Reels industry at the whitehall jct. to expand the potential for traffic and switching out a car or two. Check out these maps: http://siliconghost.tripod.com/trains/florence.gif and http://siliconghost.tripod.com/trains/rutland.gif .