City of BALAMB GARDEN

[Mike the Mayor 51]

Wow - so many awesome pictures. I like the bus journey and the congestion on the roads is simply amazing. Looks all very realistic. Keep up with all these fantastic updates!

[Cloud Strife 0]

Originally posted by: Mike the Mayor Wow - so many awesome pictures. I like the bus journey and the congestion on the roads is simply amazing. Looks all very realistic. Keep up with all these fantastic updates!quote>

 

Thanks for your comment

As for the congestion, it's real in the game, I obtained such amount of cars messing around in the NAM automata.dat file, and changing some values.

Unfortunately, the best effect is obtained in UDI mode. In normal mode I've been able to obtain more cars/sims simultaneously too, but not as many as in UDI mode.

And we made it to page 4..

Next Update

- The works on the lightrail from Paradise Island to Quetzal Airport

[Cloud Strife 0]

Work in progress on the elevated light railway

Built the highway, there are still some works to do in order to improve the connection with the Quetzal Airport.

Now that should be easier to reach it by car, thanks to the large lanes of the freeway, it's time to look at the public transport system.

Being too expensive yet too difficult to draw normal rail tracks, due to the few available space and the connecteable stations, Mayor Seifer decided to use the already existing small elevated lightrail network that serves the Lunagate area in the southern suburb of the city.

It is going to be prolonged up to the airport.

The "Raven" Station

The first of the two new elevated lightrail stations has been built a very intelligent way.

It's double-sided, allowing access both from its front and its backside.

On the back, it has been connected to the Raven area, that we toured in our last post.

On the front, it's connected to the Quetzal Roadway.

So now it's possible to reach the New Convention Center also by lightrail trains!

However a roadway connection between the Raven area and Quetzal Roadway has NOT nor WONT be established!

At this time, the Raven area is accessible only by the Highway (that is also paytoll).

Building a street connecting the Raven avenue to the Quetzal roadway would cause a HUGE traffic jam, due to cars that would prefer this "free" path to the "pay-toll" highway.

So the only possible connection between the two sides of the rails is pedestrian through the just built lightrail station.

And now, just some few more shots of the Lunagate area

There is no special purpose for the following pics, just wanted to show some pics of that area.

Next update you will see...

- The completion of the lightrail to the Airport

- Some shots of the traffic improvements in the areas that have been recently worked on

[Joetropian1 1]

Looks great! This was one of the first cjs I ever visited and I am glad to see it getting better and better!

JT1

[Twenty20 28]

Very nice colours, realistic pics, looks very great !

[Mike the Mayor 51]

Another great update there. Very nice pictures, I like how you annotate every one of them in some way. It's interesting watching cjs like this with all the progress shots.

[jacqulina 162]

wonderfull work and pics my friend

[gabry85 2]

I like how you used the canals, great gardens and el rails!

[nihonkaranws 88]

WOW! Amazing use of the seasonal trees, it just captivates me! Keep it up!

[Cloud Strife 0]

Thank you so much for the replies guys

nihonkaranws: I really like the seasonal trees, they make the pics much more colorful and realistic. They are also a great way to have an immediate glimpse of the season of the year without the needing to go to check the date  I really wonder why Maxis did not added seasonal trees bundled in the game, since they developed some time routines. I remember that even in the first SimCity (that I played on Super Nes) there were seasonal trees!

gabry85: thanks for the reply, I'm going to try soon to use the Oppie Canals instead of the ones I'm using right now, because they seem to have been more used and consequently developed. I saw in other CJs many more plugins and stuff for the Oppie Canal Set instead than for the ones I'm using right now. 

jacqulina: thanks for your reply, I'm glad to have you among my CJ readers, you signed all my CJs and hope that they will continue to be interesting to yours.

Mike the Mayor: thanks for your comment too! I like to describe even the intermediate steps of the works because it adds some realistic touch in my opinion. I also like to look at what really happens in the game, for example what happens to the routing when a road get closed for months due to works.

Twenty20: thanks for your comment!

Joetropian1: wow, I'm really proud to be the author of one of the first CJs you visited! I'm really happy you're still reading it! 

The works on the Elevated Lightrail are complete!

There was just the last station to be completed in the last post.

It's finally there! It required some workings around in the Quetzal Square, but they did it.

First of all, an aerial view of the Airport area and the new station in front of it.

Some more shots. The bus station as long as the terminal have been moved back of the new lightrail station, that cuts the Quetzal square.

This is the bullettin that the BTS Company is giving to its customers in the stations.

Now that the works on the lightrailway are completed, they suggest a new path to commuters that need to reach the airport from the city.

A few post before, we had a tour on a bus from the city to the airport. There were just 2 bus lines connecting the city to Quetzal: 76 (from Carbuncle station) and 77 (from Galbadia station).

The new route is suggested just to the commuters that used to arrive at the Galbadia Station, because it's based on two interchange between the blue subway line and the railway and then from railway to lightrail.

People arriving at Carbuncle would have to do another interchange between red subway line (that serves the Carbuncle area) and the blue line, and that interchange would be possible only at the Balamb Central Station, requiring some more commute-time in order to reach it from the Carbuncle Terminal.

So now people from Galbadia Station may choose between two routes:

- T

[jacqulina 162]

great looking elevated rail there my friend,excellent work and pics

[Simtastico 0]

ah cool pictures!! I like the raven area/mall.. where did you get that mall building from? Keep it up!

[edmonton_stinks 5]

Nice plans for the city. The station is great!

[Dsrwhat316 12]

more nice pics! i especially like that mall. nice use of canals, too. great work!

~ Dan

[Benedict 3,119]

Great transit update. I like the fact that you had the construction progress through the seasons, quite realistic.

[Zelgadis 638]

I always love you little construction progression tours! And all the public transit in your city looks both functional and pretty.

ISF

[bbfan02 23]

Great changes and transit map! I like the how the highway curves in the 1st picture.

-bbfan02-

[Cloud Strife 0]

Hi guys,

thank you so much for your replies!

Mine is going to follow:

jacqulina: as usual, thank you very much for visiting and leaving a comment on my CJ.

Simtastico: thanks for your comment too! You can find and download that mall building on the STEX, just search for Willow Mall  (this is why the street that the mall is facing is called Willow Street... eh eh)

edmonton_stinks: thanks for your visit and reply!

Dsrwhat316: thanks for stopping by to you too!

Benedict: thank you for the reply. I usually describe the work in progress in my CJs but to be honest this is the first time I describe it through the seasons.  I'm happy that  you paid attention on that and liked it this way.

zelgadis: thank you very much !

bbfan02: thanks for your reply too. Some sims noticed that the curve is also requiring them to slow down their run. I don't think that drivers like it as much.

A first tour of the ESTHAR DISTRICTS

Back inside the City Walls

There are two "Esthar Districts" in Balamb: the real so-called ESTHAR DISTRICT and the NEW ESTHAR area.

They are both born along the Esthar Avenue (Viale Esthar), a long ave that runs diagonal from the nothern area to the bottom-western corner of the city.

However many more districts are built along that.

The Esthar district is also connected to the northern "out-of-the-walls" suburbian area through the Aerial Roadway of Esthar, that originates from the avenue and leaves the city running out the walls, straight ahead to the neighborhood.

Some small suburbs are built along that.

IN THIS VERY FIRST PART OF THE TOUR WE'LL VISIT THE NORTHERN AREAS: the suburbs and the Esthar District.

The bypass line that runs nearby is called "Esthar Bypass" (Circonvallazione Esthar, on the map) of course.

Both the districts have a huge hub of the transportation network:

- ESTHAR: there is the Esthar F.S. Station that allows interchange between the FS railway, the blue tramway and the bus lines. It offers even (very) small parking facilities.

- NEW ESTHAR: there is the Trabia Station just down the New Esthar district. It allows interchange between the red subway line (running from Trabia to Carbuncle), and the bus lines since it's a depot both for subway trains and buses. It has even got a big parking building.

The SHUMI Village

The SHUMI VILLAGE is a small suburb that is born just in front of the city walls, along the Aerial Roadway of Esthar.

It's small, quiet and yet nice.

Another shot of the entire Shumi Village. You can see also the central square.

A closeup view of the Shumi Square.

[jacqulina 162]

wow i love how you place the trees and beautifull gardens and parks my friend great planning too

[Lifetec 1]

Wow these are some impressive pictures, lovely trees, keep up the good work!

[Twenty20 28]

Excellent pics, I like all these details who make this city very realistic.

[Cloud Strife 0]

Hi guys, 

thanks for the replies! Glad you liked the update.

Time for the second part!

Along Esthar Avenue

Way to New Esthar

Here we're still along the Esthar Ave, in the Industrial District of Dollet.

There's also the Balamb rail depot in this area.

A view of Balamb Rail Depot for trains, in the Dollet district.

Vinzer Deling district

In this pic, we're still along the Esthar Avenue, that is crossing the Deling district.

You can see a modern art museum along Vinzer Deling street.

Still the Esthar Avenue, that passes underground the internal highway.

You can see two subway stops in this area, both connecting to the blue subway line.

Here the avenue crosses one of the many "star" crossings that put in connection the many avenues that run in the city.

The St. Marie Church along the Esthar avenue.

We're in the middle-western side of the city now.

Laguna district

Just before approaching the New Esthar district, the avenue passes nearby the Laguna District. In this pic we can see the Laguna Station, that is a terminal for both some bus lines and the red tramway.

It has also a parking building and depots for bus and trams.

In the Laguna district we can also see the ending of the bypass roadway.

"Laguna Bypass" ends up in the "Lunatic Pandora Avenue".

A closeup view of the last line of the bypass roadway.

It ends up in this area, and begins again down in the Trabia district, at the very south-western corner of the city (we're going to see it later).

The downcoming lane of the laguna bypass continues one-way only for a few hundred meters ahead, providing connection to the nearby buildings and access to the Ward Street elevated ramp.

Lunatic Pandora district

The very ending of the last little one-way lane of the bypass.

That's a very bad crossing, there are often crashes between cars due to the very bad way it crosses the Lunatic Pandora ave.

Moving down, we're in the LUNATIC PANDORA DISTRICT.

New Esthar is few kilometers ahead (moving south).

[s_olah 87]

I just kept scrolling down thinking, what a lovely little park, turns out, it isn't little...Great city, and great idea with the tour...

[Cloud Strife 0]

Now that we've toured the New Esthar district, we're ready to have a look at the works in progress to complete the GBR Project.

Its aim is to complete the missing roadway line required to connect the Laguna bypass to the Trabia bypass. As a result, there will finally be an unique roadway running around the city, just like a ring.

This is why this bypass roadway will be called GREAT BYPASS RING.

However, the project is not only concerned on the construction of the missing bypass road. Many works are required in so many lines of the ring in order to improve it. For instance, in many areas there are very bad crossings between the bypass (that should be turned into a fast roadway) and the rails or other local streets.

Often the buildings face directly the bypass, that could be dangerous for pedestrians that may want to cross the road. Pedestrian overpasses should be built, as long as ramps for connecting the local streets.

However, we're going to have a glimpse of the works that have just begun.

They're building the missing bypass roadway in the Laguna and Lunatic Pandora areas, crossing New Esthar and heading straight to the Trabia district.

Here's a look of the first line of the new bypass, that is Laguna Bypass.

It's raised to avoid the crossing with the local streets, allowing cars to run faster and straight.

No buildings have been demolished, because they're all occupied by people living there, so the bypass had to be passed through the existing buildings.

In the pic above you can see that the works have already built the ramps in order to access the new bypass line, just nearby the canal.

A closeup shot of the new raised bypass roadway.

Citizens are complaining!

People living in the Laguna district are complaining about the construction of the elevated roadway!

"It's scandalous. Our children used to play in the gardens and yards of our buildings, and now we find them playing under that ugly roadway, near grey pillars, and without the light of the sun!"

"I'm renting my house along Ward Street. The renters used to pay 950 § per month. They now went away, and I'm unable to rent the house at that price. The housing costs lowered down due to the construction of that bypass. It seems that I will have to rent it for about 650 §. I'm loosing 350§ per month!"

"Smog and noise are breaking our calm! There's too much noise even by night due to the cars running on an elevated roadway! The windows of my house do vibrate each time a car run too fast on that ramp."

"Once I used to go on my balcony and relax there. Now it's impossible! It's facing right on the bypass roadway! If a driver throws something out of his car window it would seriously risk to jump on my balcony!"

What you read above are just a few of the complaints of the citizens living in the buildings that now face the bypass.

How would you feel if an elevated roadway was built just in front of the windows of your house?

The workers reached the already existing ramp of Ward Street, and connected the bypass to it, leaving the ramp alone as an exit ramp.

[jacqulina 162]

beautifull work and pics my friend,wonderfully planned

[Kiwi n Grapes 2]

I got to give it to you, this is by far the most realistic cj out there!

Great job!

[Joetropian1 1]

Wow! I have always rather liked this cj, I am glad to see it still going!

Your planning is fantastic, transportation is excellent, and space is used very efficiently! It feels like 2 large tiles, not one!

JT1

[Cloud Strife 0]

Hi guys and welcome back to my CJ

jacqulina: thanks for your comment! It's always much apreciated to read your opinion, even more after I looked at your wonderful CJ 

Kiwi n Grapes: thanks! I always try to be as much realistic as I can while building or modifying the city. It would be easy, maybe too easy, to destroy buildings to raise a roadway. But would it really happen in real life? In my country, I never saw anything like that! I find also interesting to see how the simulation goes on when I change the routing or add/close preferred paths.

Joetropian1: thank you very much for leaving the comment! I'm really glad you like my CJ and are still looking at it! thanks!!

Now let's see what happens in Balamb now that the works on the new bypass line are complete.

This is the point we left in the previous update. As you can see now, instead of the workers, there's the new raised bypass roadway, that is called Lunatic Bypass from that point on.

As seen in the Laguna district, even in the Trabia District the elevated roadway passes through the buildings.

The citizens here are upset as well.

Another aerial shot of the Lunatic Bypass, here near the Trabia Station.

Here's the point where the Lunatic Bypass ends and connects to the already existing Trabia Bypass, in the south-western corner of the city.

To provide access from and to the local roads, two ramps have been built.

Look at those electronic signs.

They have been placed at any entrance to the new raised bypass road, because due to the compliants of the local residents, Mayor Seifer decided to prohibit people to access the raised bypass at night, due to the noise produced by the cars running on the elevated roadway.

So, from 22:00 to 7:00 the bypass is "closed", which means that cars must not access it. They have to use the local roads as they did before the new bypass line construction (transiting along Lunatic Pandora avenue, and New Esthar district).

On saturday, police cars park themselves in front of the bypass entrance to verify that cars do not access the raised roadway.

If caught, they will have to pay a huge fee and may be stopped by the police.

Unfortunately, often some drivers ignore the denying and run on the raised roadway at night too.

The electronic signs are activated at night to inform drivers that they must not access the elevated bypass.

A night shot of the electronic signs at the entrance of the elevated bypass roadway, with a clear message informing the drivers that they must not access it and use the local roads instead.

[Twenty20 28]

wow, that's an impressive road network !

[Benedict 3,119]

IMpressive set of transit-oriented updates. The church looks a bit odd - is it a ruin?