STAGING TRAIN LENGTH (Cars):
Write this stat as three values sep-
arated by slashes – longest/average/shortest. Longest is the length
of your longest staging track in cars. Average is the length an aver-
age staging track in cars, computed as:
staging track / number of
staging tracks.
Shortest is the length of your shortest staging track
in cars.
Ideally, staging train lengths should more or less equal the corre-
sponding passing train lengths. Significantly smaller staging train
lengths mean extra switching will be involved in getting a “full
length” train into or out of staging. Larger staging train lengths
mean full length opposing trains from staging will clog the main.
The longer of passing or staging train length should rule in deter-
mining typical long train length. The shorter of passing or staging
train lengths should rule in determining typical average and short
train lengths.
You may notice that staging tracks and passing tracks appear
somewhat interchangeable in these formulas. This either/or use
of staging and passing sidings reflects an operating session real-
ity (one that was actually exploited by Tony Koester on his AM,
by the way) where the layout’s staging can be viewed as “virtual
passing sidings”.
“Ideally, staging train lengths
should more or less equal
the corresponding passing
train lengths.”
Layout design assessment - 7
MRH-Oct 2014
