Winchester

[dfnva 34]

Kyle (ky72x): Thanks, glad you enjoyed how everything looked.
Packersfan: I downloaded a font suite called "Roadgeek Fonts" which I found a link to on misc.transport.road. You may want to google that. The website you're referring to is "Sign Maker", which is a fine utility, I just like making my own better.
Ace of Spades: Thanks, glad you like the suburban areas. One of my favorite things to build is sprawl.
Edmonton_Stinks: Thanks. I think the city is going to replace those abandoned mansions with some upscale condos in the near future. 
JasonB52: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the suburbs.
Jacqulinia: Thanks, glad you liked the roadgeekery and residential areas.
KJ3400: Traffic signals like the one you're referring to are very common in Virginia as most of the time there's a signal above each lane, so if there's a lane that's both left and through, the signal reflects that.
Travis (SCDawg): Yes, I-79 is a reality, all of US-27 has been upgraded, I should post some more pics of that in the near future. Glad you enjoyed the update.
Schulmanator: It's always sad when signage isn't good in real life. I wonder why, in your case, there isn't signage on both sides of the intersection? 
Equilibria: Thanks, glad you thought the residential areas looked realistic. As for the high school intersection, I presume you're asking about the signals? The folks living in the residential area there requested the signals be built to the side as opposed to above the road as to not ruin how the community looked.
Evil Weasel: Nope, I'm from near Washington, DC. But glad you mentioned Scarborough as we'll be headed there soon once we start heading east on US-84 again.
=======================================

And now I present Winchester's first downtown map! If there's anything particular you'd like to see a picture of, let me know and I'll post it next time.







Thanks for visiting,
Dan

[bbfan02 23]

Excellent road map! I have never seen such a detailed and clear map in a cj!

-bbfan02-

[edmonton_stinks 5]

That map is fantastic! It looks like something from a travel brochure, or one of those pamphlets they give you at hotels.

[ky72x 13]

Now that's what I call a map! Fantastic job creating it, I like the high level of detail included in it. The numbered POI's and hotels were a nice thing to include. I sure cannot wait to see that NASCAR track. As you can probably tell by my sig, I'm a pretty big fan.

- Kyle

[Superchan 23]

looks nice.

[suplado! 23]

wow -- the trans map looks great...very detailed!!

[kj3400 178]

Looks great! The route markers make a great touch. How did you do it?

[packersfan 666]

Thanks for the link, I'll try it. I want to, in some cases, make my own signs too, especially mileage and interchange signs with the ramp lamp picture. And I'm really excited because I'm going to be able to update tonight or tomorrow!!! Finally fixing the wireless...and I've been going crazy building interchanges and labeling routes!!!

[oroen 0]

Hi Dan,

Just stopping in quickly to say that I'm really enjoying these tours. I like the local/express setup on the I-79 bridges. I've started getting more interested in signal assemblies, and I think I can partially credit your CJ for that! Nice downtown map as well; I see a lot of nice details in it.

[s_olah 87]

Wow, that map looks really awesome, what program did you use?

[Haljackey 17,325]

Wow! Now thats a change from your usual stuff, dfnva!

Keep up the great work!

[nihonkaranws 88]

Wow that's a beautiful map. Nice job dfnva!

[AceofSpades 1]

Very nice detailed map! Great job! And yeah building sprawl is really fun.

[Deionn 137]

Nice, nice. I need to step my game up for my next CJ Austra.

[jacqulina 162]

road geekery i like that lol,excellent transport map my friend

[dfnva 34]

Bbfan02: Thanks, though I must be modest and say that Dedgren's maps of his Three Rivers region are far superior. Anyhow, glad you like the map.

Edmonton_Stinks: Thanks, I agree that the points of interest look like something you'd find in a hotel. 

Kyle (Ky72x): Thanks. The Nascar track will go where there was once a Maxis airport, I plan to put a pic of that in the next update.

Superchad: Thanks!

Suplado: Thanks, glad you like the detail of the road map.

KJ3400 and S_Olah: Thanks. I copied the traffic map into MS-Paint and recolored the picture to show the roads/highways better and then added the route shields over top in Powerpoint. 

Packersfan: I was glad to finally see an update from you. I'd love to see some signage for those interchanges you made. 

Dave (Oroen): Thanks! Glad you've been enjoying the tours. For some reason, I've always thought it was interesting how different traffic signals are from state to state and from intersection to intersection. Speaking of such you may enjoy some of the pics below. Sorry I hadn't responded yet to your message, but glad to see you're still around. Good luck with your PhD. 

Haljackey: Thanks, glad you liked the map.

Nihonkaranws: Thanks!

Ace of Spades: Thanks, we'll see some more sprawl in the near future.

Deion30296: Thanks! Good luck with your new CJ.

Jacqulina: Thanks, glad you enjoyed the map and roadgeekery!

Sorry there's no update today. Last week I went to Roanoke for a conference and since this CJ is somewhat based on my interpretation of Roanoke (and other medium-sized cities), I thought I'd share some pics I took.

Here's a pic of downtown Roanoke that I took from the Mill Mountain Star.

Residential areas to the south of the CBD.

From downtown Roanoke you can see the star here.

Various buildings in downtown Roanoke. I like the old signs and they light up nicely at night.

On some of the walls of buildings, there are old ads, repainted to look like they once would have. This surface parking lot, of which there are plenty, makes me think of how Tomdapom's Marshall, MN looks.

How about some roadgeekery? Roanoke has a lot of really old traffic signals, probably many of the oldest still hanging in Virginia. Virginia doesn't seem to treasure old traffic signals the way that Pennsylvania does.

More relics:

And finally, here are a couple pics I took along a scenic drive on VA-42 so

[Schulmanator 5,787]

You know, even though I did not/do not live there, that's my ancestral homeland!

[ky72x 13]

Cool shots, Dan! Taking a break from the typical SC4 fare is nice to do once in a while. I say that, and yet I never do it.

I liked downtown a lot. The parking lots also reminded me of his CJ! So do the blocks of W2W's. Were you taking these these pictures while driving, of were you riding along with someone? It looks like you were the piloting the car, but I was just wondering.

- Kyle

[edmonton_stinks 5]

Cool. Looks exactly like Winchester does!

[kj3400 178]

Roanoke looks great. The downtown area reminds me of my city, Baltimore.

[packersfan 666]

O yes, definitely going to be making signs for those interchanges and freeway tours in general. I'm in the process of putting mile markers in the game, so I know what exits are number, etc. All of this is inspired by you though, I hope to do a good job!

[dfnva 34]

Schulmanator: That's cool, do you have relatives there who you visit?

Kyle (KY72X): LOL, I was driving during many of the pictures, and by the time I got the camera out and took the pics most of the lights had turned green. Something I wouldn't recommend doing.

Edmonton_Stinks: Ha, not sure about that, but hopefully real-life Roanoke and my take in Winchester appear analogous.

KJ3400: Baltimore is a nice town with a lot of character, though it is bigger than Roanoke. 

Packers Fan: I like how you number your miles along freeways. I end up guessing much of the time and it would be good to have a standard. How many tiles do you use to determine tenth-miles and such?

And now presenting....

Before we start heading east on US-84 out of town, I thought I would share some photos of downtown Winchester.

Here are some nice apartments overlooking the Wanata River just off of MP-39/S. Jefferson Ave.

I know Kyle and Travis will like this one. This new NASCAR track is built where the former Winchester/Salem Municipal Airport was located. With the completion of the new Mountain View Regional Airport, the municipal airport was deemed redundant, obsolete, and over-capacity so it was torn down.

Here is a pic of the Wanata River Resort and Conference Center with its stunning view of the Wanata River.

Some of the region's tallest buildings are here at the corner of S. Jefferson Ave. and E. Carson St.

Many a conference have been held at the Winchester-Piedmont Convention Center which is prominantly at the intersection of I-79 and US-84/Hartford Blvd.

Like going through the Chocolate Factory at Hershey Park (in Pennsylvania), one gets a free brew (if you're 21 or over) after touring the Mountain Ale Brewery and Museum. On some weekends, the brewery sponsors beer tastings in the parking lots here.

The Winchester Federal Building houses regional offices for the federal agencies such as the FBI, ATF, and BBB (Bureau of Bureaucratic Brazenness).

Lastly, here's an overview shot...

Next time, we head east on US-84.

Thanks for visiting,

Dan

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Looks like a bustling town. Winchester is doing well.

As for me, I have not been up in a while. But, I may be passing through Roanoke this summer to check in.

[Equilibria 16]

I like the whole update, but especially the Federal Building. It has a nice evil look to it, sort of Soviet in the way it dominates the entire rest of the city.

Why does it seem like all Federal buildings in America were built between 1950 and 1965?

[ky72x 13]

Now that's what I call a city! Nice, well varied set of apartments next to the river. And, of course I like that NASCAR track! It does seem a bit small, so I'm not sure if the Sprint Cup Series (NASCAR's highest racing division) would race there. Nevertheless, it's still a great addition to the city.

I really like that road underpass by the convention center and the Best Western hotel. It a unique sight in Sim City, but in RL those kinds of underpasses are pretty common, especially with railroads. Superb showcasing of Winchester's highlight landmarks. The NDEX buildings released by DragonAnime last year really fit it any area, but obviously they look the best in a downtown like yours. Ending the update with an overview was a wise choice.

- Kyle

[AceofSpades 1]

Wow great work! The downtown is extremely realistic.

[Benedict 3,119]

Like the downtown map - I'd love to see the bank and museums.

[kj3400 178]

Downtown Winchester looks like it's growing nicely. Does it have mass transit yet?

[SCDawg 0]

Awesome update as usual Dan. Downtown looks very nice. Adding in the NASCAR track is a big plus, we need more short tracks. The Sprint Cup series could race there, although I can't tell how big that track is exactly.

Keep It Up!

Travis

[edmonton_stinks 5]

I love everything about that downtown area except for St. Ritzy and the Freytag Building. I hate them so much!!!

I find they really clutter up my cities. That's why I gave up and started plopping my downtowns.