What I have so far.   

What I have so far. 

Purpose

What are you wanting to do in the yard?  

What are the various blue and yellow connections that lead out of the yard?  Are they main tracks? 

It looks like you have one track about 2 ft long that you can hold cars on, so maybe four 40 ft cars or three 60 ft cars.

Questions

Doesn't that create some quite large grades in a fairly short distance,...4.724" to zero??

Are you sure you didn't mean the top track as the mainline?

It goes around the room 3

It goes around the room 3 times    blue starts at the east end of the yard at zero climbs to pink starts at 60mm then meets green starts at 120mm then goes to 180mm and back down again and is a grading of 1% to 1.4% in some parts. Its like being inside a helix ...sort of.  Yellow is storage / staging. So the blue rail closest to the 2960 is the main line if you follow it.  So far I've built half of the yellow track and half of the blue track.

Yard

Since all but two tracks are more or less running tracks then you aren't going to be able to do much in the yard in the way of switching.  If you leave cars on the long track then you block the only runaround on the blue level, and then the only other track you have is only 3 or 4 cars long.

So once again, the question is what do you want to do with the yard?  Is it the best use?  Depends on what you want to use it for.  You aren't going to do much switching because most of the tracks are through routes, its not really a yard as much as a junction.

Yard Function

What is the purpose of your yard?  Give us a brief operational overview.

For example.  The small yard on my layout is based on a prototypical yard for the area I am modeling.  The actual yard was a small “backwater” yard along a branch line used primarily by the local switcher assigned to switch industries in the area.  Other functions included short-term industry car storage, and as an exchange point with Frisco railroad.

For these types of duties, my yard tracks only needed to accommodate a few cars and the yard could be compressed into a small area but still look realistic and allow for prototypical operations based on the prototypical yard’s purpose.

My design and space required would be much different if modeling a yard along a mainline used for car sorting and  distribution.  Certainly the need for longer tracks to accommodate more cars would have to be considered and overall yard operations would be different.

“One of the keys in successful layout yard design and operations is deciding how the yard will be used on your layout”

Joe

Joe

It's not a yard. Certainly

It's not a yard, not a classification yard, not a layover yard (trains stashed awaiting fresh crews), not an interchange yard. Certainly won't function efficiently as any kind of yard. Maybe at best it's a truncated set-out track or, as Dave H. states, a junction.

Have you done any research into yards, the types of yards and how they function? Honestly, this looks more like imagination than replication or even representation.

Also, why the double crossover with a diamond? Except for urban passenger yards, those are almost never seen on North American class 1s main lines. Diamonds already are a PITA to maintain; adding them to a double crossover is unnecessary.

And since I'm asking questions, where on the trackplan are the structures and industries? It's quite a spaghetti bowl you have designed.

Ok Juntion looks like it is. 

Ok Juntion looks like it is.  I have marked small towns but industries sort of ..but the buildings I do need to plan maybe before laying more track. It does look a bit spaghetti but some track is hidden depending where you are and also it has levels which make it less junkie in appearance. Green track is higher and is in a different scene then blue and in some places pink. I have seen people separated by boards differing one scene from another. I'm got some ideas how to do that but instead splitting it vertically I want to split horizontally. Using gullies, trees, open side tunnels, height and position where one stands or sits.

If I could unfold it it would be approx 154 feet long not including the yellow track. 

On a layout this small,

On a layout this small, clearly you don't have the luxury of modeling the detail of a specific type of yard.  It seems to me that the clear answer to the questions "Is this a classification yard... a passenger yard..." is "YES!".

So generalize the problem.  A yard is where you store cars and where you shunt cars around to make up trains.  The minimum to do this is some stub tracks and a run-around.  

It's ideal to do all this without fouling the main, but you are pretty crowded here, so sharing the run-around track and the switch lead with the main is required. 

But you have 3 tracks dedicated to through traffic here, which seems a waste.  I would take that crossover on the right side between tracks 2 and 3 (counting from the fascia).  and flip it around so it crosses up and right from track 1 to 2.  Now you have tracks 3 and 4 up there to store stuff on.   In a pinch you could even split track three and get another tiny stub on the right.  Or you could use that space for scenery.

I also recommend you think about if you can figure out how to tilt the whole yard structure a bit relative to the front.  track that runs parallel to the fascia ruins the illusion to me, especially when you have so many tracks running parallel as naturally happens in a yard.

Just 2c from an arm chair layout building....

-Jamie

What is the purpose of your yard?

I don't see any industries on the rest of the layout or even spurs where an industry coulld be located.  You have staging for trains already made up, so I'm not sure what else you need unless you are going to put in some spurs for industries to switch. 

@DocApoc    figure out how to

That sounds like a good suggestion it would look better if I can? As the 3 turnouts are already in place. Would it matter if they weren't all apparelled to each other.?

Track 1 is the main line because the yellow (storage) are at the back and most of the time can't be seen. It would be good as main track but wouldn't be seen so I made it a storage track. So I sort of have 2 stub ends and 2 (yellow) storage tracks and track 1 close to the fascia is the mainline (but is sort of a branchoff from the right and naturally climbs up to green track Mountain and then back down again. Other option is track 2 from the fasica is the main and is just a single once around  like drive-bys  Trains coming from Knoxville up to Roanoke. And drops some cars off at Abingdon station that then go up to Damamcus - Green Cove - White top mountain West Jefferson - and go off into staging/storage.

The industries are logging at White top mountain and coal but small towns supplies etc 

Each Wall features something

at top of plan - small yard (junction)

on the right West Jefferson

Bottom of plan -  White top mountain trestle bridge

left is Damascus. 

Instead of having vertical dividers I'm attempting subtle horizontal dividers. so if the layout was unrolled it maybe about 150 feet long.        

I'm going see how I can change it with some of the suggestions.  Thanks               

"Clear" answer?

Actually the clear answer is kind of "no".

With two through/running tracks, and one double end passing siding (which could also be used to park some cars) you're only left with the one single ended track which can maybe hold half a dozen short cars if lucky.

With only one track, it's useless for sorting anything, too short for passenger servicing, and really only a storage place for extra cars for local industries.

Realign the track connecting from the "south" so it junctions as immediately as possible with the horizontal "east-west" track instead of pulling parallel for that distance. That could allow a siding track to be placed on the "south" side where it's currently a through running track. Then the two tracks on the "north" side can actually be used as a mini local yard. The little "tail" track off the "north" siding looks like it'll hold maybe one car, eliminate that as useless and save yourself a switch to use elsewhere. Lengthen the other stub-end track on the north side for a bit more capacity and you at least have a pair of tracks for car storage and switching.

Thanks for the suggestions I

Thanks for the suggestions 

I put some of them below and a couple of mine as well.

As suggested I have put the junction on a bit on the angle to make it more realistic.

I only have one mainline run through the junction and that is the blue one. The yellow ones are for staging and storage and also could used move trains around. The very top yellow track(No5 top of pic) I could used that as a mainline as well if I decide. Hope some of these might work.

Where it looks like a track (pink/orange) is running thru my station I could make that as a station front flat.

Please suggest if you have an another option or like one of them. Its a Junction now not a yard now.

I tend to like plan E as

I tend to like plan E as below. Do think this would work as a small junction / switching yardish thing. The yellow track from the blue on the right is like a classification track you add cars to it. The blue south line is the main line.      

The pink and green are at 120mm height and will be in a different scene.

B/D

I would prefer plan B or D, as most of the others still seem to be using the majority of the tracks as through tracks and not for leaving cars standing.

Thanks cc acr Appreciate your

Thanks cc acr

Appreciate your point  but what about E where there is only still one track blue that needs clearance for mainline and the rest are handy to have enter and exit. Otherwise trains mostly will be travelling west to east if it drives into those sidings they then have to back out rather than just go forward into staging storage and than back into the layout.

What do you think?

Thanks cc acr Appreciate your

Thanks cc acr

Appreciate your point  but what about E where there is only still one track blue that needs clearance for mainline and the rest are handy to have enter and exit. Otherwise trains mostly will be travelling west to east if it drives into those sidings they then have to back out rather than just go forward into staging storage and than back into the layout.

What do you think?

B or D

E isn't really useable as a "yard" per se.  There really isn't any track you could leave cars on without blocking access to something or preventing a runaround from being used.

On the other hand, if you like E more than the others, build E.  Its your layout.

Thanks   Its just easier if

Thanks   Its just easier if someone just tells what to do in track planning area.

E vs B

E has only one track that you can leave cars standing on.

You can't block the bottom track, since that's your branch line's main track.

You can't block the top track and still have access to the station/industry building at the top right.

You can only block the bottom of the middle tracks if you still want to access the yellow track to the right, and the runaround formed by the crossover between the top track and upper middle track. (The upper middle track must remain clear in order to access the yellow track or runaround anything.)

With B or D, you have two dedicated yard tracks. The branch and the yellow track and both accessed via the same upper middle track, with runaround via the crossover to the top track. While the yard tracks aren't double ended, you do at least have a runaround.

Basically, "E" has an extra track that's not useful, since three of the four tracks must be kept clear in order to use the rest of the tracks. At least "B" or "D" has two tracks that cars can be left standing.

In looking at the right side

In looking at the right side of the track plan there seems to be areas where one track passes over another. Has a grade check been examined?

@Rob  thanks l've just got to

@Rob  thanks l've just got to re-configure the heights. I am aiming for lowish clearances as I want have high trains. Also aiming for 1% to 1.4 grades. I know it busy looking but I'm aiming for multiple dioramas seen from different angles. It might not work but I really want to do this and I love complication but with order.

Nice plans

Hi,

those are quite a few nice plans!

That may be contrary to the current opinion, my favorite is plan C, but without the crossing at the right end of tracks 1/2. In my case I claim the "lowest number of tracks and turnouts" as the reason. There is more open space around the tracks.

However... In order to make a really good recommendation I'd have to understand the traffic patterns that this junction is subjected to.

I assume the orange/green lines are elevated. Just from a looking at the track-plan, keep the orange and green lines closely parallel, especially on the right of the plan. Putting them on a double-track viaduct will reduce the impression of "too many tracks" (which is just my thing today).

There are two main lines on the "ground level": staging (yellow) and mainline (blue). Another assumption. If that is the case, you could even delete the yellow track coming out of #3 to the right. There's another, more scenic, connection to staging at the left of the station. And make track #1 or #3 your runaround (I'd prefer #1 as runaround because it will put your nice locos on display and put most of your switching action out front).

Anyway, all the track plans are quite nice and the choice depends more on the intended traffic flow than on the look of the track plan (or my comments

Have fun and stay healthy

my latest plan

I'm really wanting to have an in my small yard. Reason being the trains go around mostly clockwise and if they enter from the west side how do I get the engine out?    Where as #f i can use as a staging thoroughfare and when it departs the station I can back it up and go around the top way #a or back the classification train back up into one of the 2 yard tracks if it is there. The passenger train can do a lap around the room and then enters from the west into #C and starts the journey visiting towns climbing slowly 1.5 times and then descending another 1.5 down. 

Do you think this could be feasible?  see full map on page 1

p.s.  height is in mm   eg180