Murrbahn: Layout Design from prototype track plans Gaildorf/West (5)

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Quelle: Staatsarchiv Ludwigsburg (PL 723 Bü 55). Used with permission.

The north end of the freight area is dominated by several wood storage and loading areas operated by Gebr Closs. A short Internet search did not reveal any information about this company.

A set of regular and double-slip turnouts allows for run-around moves in the freight area. As the single track main line leaves the station area it crosses a small access road at grade.

I simplified the turnout arrangement in the freight area and moved the turnouts further north to gain as much space as possible for car storage. I will model the wood loading ramp and facilities at the north end of the tracks.

On the main tracks I flipped the sequence of the turnouts to tracks 1 and 3 in order to avoid an S-curve coning out of the top of the helix. The railroad crossing will be modeled just to the right of the yellow area and the street will curve away to the wall.

This concludes the series of articles about how I turned a prototype track plan into a compressed representation of reality using various techniques to retain the general look and feel of the prototype location and most operational possibilities, but do it in 30% of the length. Of course I lost some prototype fidelity along the way, but I'm quite happy to find that I can achieve the operational needs I was after within the space I have available for this station. This track plan uses readily available commercial turnouts and track, so I will be able to build this rather quickly and ensure that it delivers on my expectations without going in that deep.