RHW Interchange Guide

[Haljackey 17,304]

Hello everyone,

With the release of RHW 3.0, there is virtually an infinite number of ways you can construct your highways and interchanges. However, this is not a simple task, and takes quite a bit of getting used to. Many folks have looked at several pictures of RHW interchanges and asked "whoa! How'd you do that?" and have tried to construct something similar themselves, sometimes with much difficulty that eventually causes them to give up.

This guide will show examples of various interchange types and will describe how they were made. Feel free to ask questions after a guide has been posted if you are having difficulty. I will attempt to show how to construct these interchanges as simple as possible, using only the necessary downloads.

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Before we get started, make sure you have downloaded the following.

Network Addon Mod (NAM) March 09:

PC: https://www.simtropolis.com/modding/index.cfm?p=details&id=380

Mac: https://www.simtropolis.com/modding/index.cfm?p=details&id=388

Rural Highway (RHW) mod version 3.0:

PC: https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=19188

Mac: https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=19189

Hole Digging lots (optional, but highly recommended): https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=3599

-Using a slope mod is also recommended.

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Table of Contents

Section 1: Diamond Interchanges

1.1: Standard Diamond Interchanges

1.2: Elevated Diamond Interchanges

1.3: Left Exit/Entrance Diamond Interchanges

Section 2: Parclo Interchanges

2.1: Parclo A-2 Interchange

2.2: Parclo A-4 Interchange

2.3: Tight Parclo A-4 Interchange

2.4: Parclo A-4 Interchange with dual acceleration/deceleration ramps

2.5: Parclo A-4 Interchange with single acceleration/deceleration ramps

(Table of Contents will be filled in as more guides are posted.)

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Reserve images

-Examples of RHW interchange types not shown in this guide.

Trumpet

Windmill

Turbine

Cloverstack

Basketweave (for interchanging a Multi-RHW)

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Other Links:

-NAM tutorials on the SC4 Wiki

-Haljackey's RHW Interchange Guide on SC4 Devotion

-Your RHW readme file.

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Anyways, that's it for now.  The first guide will be for making various diamond interchanges. I hope you enjoy this guide!

EDIT: I am very sorry for the bandwidth problems, and I have decided never to use Photobucket anymore. Even with 6 accounts there I still get this problem. Recently Imageshack has improved their bulk image uploader, and I will be using that from now on.

2nd Edit:  Pictures are back now, and I assume they will always be up from this point forward.

[tahill79 13]

cool idea. i like to look at GTR and get some hints from it. cant wait for more friend.

[Brady Baker 1]

This is a good idea, Hal. This will help those who do not know the functionality of RHW 3.0 (such as myself) to be better at it. It will also lead to some interesting CJs.

[Patricius Maximus 236]

Hmm, one of the great interchange builders of Simcity revealing his secrets? Interesting. Perhaps I can pick up a few tips from these tutorials.

I'll be watching this.

[Dino007 1]

Oh, I can't wait

Making more complex interchanges is such a trouble for me and it takes hours to complete one big interchange!

[pagenotfound 53]

oooh nice idea.

[Korot 6]

Great, now I don't have to mess around with the pieces, hoping to get if fit, you're doing it for me! (and all others of course) So yes, this is a very nice idea.

[Monk's Dream 0]

How do you download the Mac version of the Jan 09 NAM?  When I go to the link, there's no download click or anything.

thx

[Monk's Dream 0]

And yes, I am a member there.  Thx!

[doironhebert123 0]

I can make good interchanges but nothing compared to u Hal!!! 

[Monk's Dream 0]

Ah, I found it.  Okay, thanks Hal.  I really admire your stuff.

[Haljackey 17,304]

All right, let's get started, shall we?

Section One:  Diamond Interchanges

To quote from Mightygoose's Compendium of Interchanges:

"A very simple design involving two carriageways, usually perpendicular to each other however other angles are perfectly possible, of different grade (grade being quantity of traffic usually handled). The major grade carriageway in a diamond is referred to as the surface road, as it is customary that the road with higher usage has the least deviation from the horizontal. The minor grade carriageway is reflected to in this case as the street. The street may go either over or under the surface road but it will clearly undergo a greater elevation change if both routes intersect on level ground.

Diamonds are the simplest 4 ramp interchanges. They are often used in where there is a very large grade difference in the carriageways such as highways passing through inner boroughs of cities. However they scale up badly. At the ramp/street intersection, unless the street is very low grade, there must be lights. This slows down traffic, and if the street is high grade, cause congestion. Furthermore if the majority of traffic is using only one ramp of the interchange then efficient light timings are going to cause congestion on the street, especially if it is cross-carriageway turning (a left turn in the US or a right in the UK)."quote>

Simply put, a diamond is a simple, space-saving low capacity interchange between a highway and a road.  All the road/highway interchanges Maxis included for the elevated and ground highways are diamonds and follow this concept. 

Now, I will show you how to make diamonds for the RHW!

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Getting the basic stuff out of the way

This is almost a direct copy of the RHW Readme file, showing how to make a RHW.  I will make a 4-lane RHW with a 1 tile median to keep things as simple as possible.

Place your starter pieces...

Drag the RHW using the RHW tool...

(Optional) Delete the starter pieces to create a RHW without any overrides.

And drag the stable network over it.

Voila!  You have a RHW!  Now lets make some diamond interchanges for it!

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Standard RHW-type "A" diamond interchange.

From this part forward, the pictures will do most of the talking.  Note, this is just for reference, and your results can be different than mine!

Build your overpass.  For this example, I will use a simple road overpass using the NAM raised road pieces.  You can use proper land grading to create a much better looking, realistic result.

Get some RHW-2 action going now.  Drag your ramp setup at the ends of the overpass.

With those RHW-2s placed as visual examples, you now know where to plop your RHW type "A" ramps:

Connect the edge of the ramps up with the RHW-2s, and they should override to create the MIS ramps. 

All right!  You have made your first diamond interchange!

The same setup can be applied for type "C" Ramps.  Just make sure you leave enough room next to the RHW for accel-decel lanes (RHW-6S).

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Standard RHW-type "B" diamond interchange.

This setup will make the ramps intersect the RHW at a 45 degree angle, which will result in a smaller, better-looking diamond interchange.

Do all the steps used in the first guide up to here:

Now, instead of plopping the RHW type "A" ramps, plop the RHW type "B" ramps.

Now, connect the edge of the ramps up with the RHW-2s and you should get your MIS ramps working.

There you go!  Another RHW diamond interchange!

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Standard "Space-Saving" diamond interchange.

Up to now, all the examples I showed were possible with RHW 2.0.  Well, RHW 3.0 is out now, allowing for even more possibilities!  Here is one example.

You'll need to construct the overpass a bit differently this time, putting the new RHW/MIS 4-way intersection piece on either side of the RHW.

Use the ground to elevated MIS pieces on all four corners of the intersections you first built.

And then just use the type "A" RHW ramps to connect everything together.

Now, that's quite a space-saver eh?

The same setup can be applied for type "C" Ramps.  Just make sure you leave enough room next to the RHW for accel-decel lanes (RHW-6S).

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Sunken Diamond Interchange

Two things you should get before we get started: hole-digging lots and a slope mod.

I am going to use both of them for this tutorial.  The end result will look similar to the sunken highway tutorial, but with the RHW!

Place your hole-digging lots.  (Hole diggers for sunken.)

Drag a road over each to create your hole.

Plop road stubs to level the ground properly.

Once stable enough, delete the hole digging lots and the road segments.

Dig yourself a trench.  Use road stubs for the length of your sunken segment.

Once complete, delete the road stubs.

Now construct your RHW inside the trench.  Use the steps at the very beginning of this guide for best results. 

Create your sunken overpass.

Here's where things get tricky.  Extend the sunken segment and create a sloped RHW-2 connecting the road to the sunken segment.

-Your results will probably be different than mine!

Repeat, 3 more times.

Delete any remaining road stubs and level any remaining rugged ground.

Plop the new type "A" RHW ramps that separate the RHW and MIS with a 1 tile gap in the remaining sunken areas.

You're done!  You can now rest easy.

The same setup can be applied with the "space-saver" concept displayed above.

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Anyways, that will do it for now.  Have fun making some diamond interchanges for the RHW!

Best,

-Haljackey

[_Atticus 10]

Wow these are great techniques you're showing us here Hal! Many people will find this very useful. Great work, and I can't wait 'til you get to the more complicated stuff

-Pingangster

[Dino007 1]

Great, but where can I find Slope mod?

[Korot 6]

Here: https://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1512, it's the one advised to use with the RHW

[rainyday 2]

Keep the interchanges coming Hal

[Theirishnintendonerd 13]

thanks for the tutorails hal , Ive allways wondered  how you made such good interchanges lol

-Trevor

[angel0fmars 0]

wow! seems like some pretty good tutorials. great thanks in advance for the hard work! hoping to see more tutorials coming soon!

[De Ja Vu 117]

Finally the RHW makes a little sense to me !!! Thanks for this awesome tutorials. I hope you have more interchange tutorials in plan, because I could sure use some of these in my city!

[SounderBruce 173]

Wow...can't wait for more!

[Boycey08 0]

thanks haljackey for your dedication towards helping others with this stuff, RHW 3 has only been out a little while and you've already got the start of a new guide for it, so thanks alot

this thread is being favourited right now and will be a constant reference for me when i get abit more time to get back into SC4 again

keep up the good work

[Hawkeye9 0]

Wow, awsome work Haljakey!!!

Great idea on this thread, it will definatly be put to use!!!

Thanks!!!

[un1 41]

Useful guide haljackey!

I always wondered how you make sunken highway interchanges.

-un1

[N106 10]

That will really help. Thank you.

[Haljackey 17,304]

Once again a huge thanks for the feedback everyone! It means a lot that you are finding this guide useful!

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Section 1.1:  Elevated Diamond Interchanges.

The El-RHW is a real beaut when it comes to making diamond interchanges.  In this guide, I will show you how to build 3 more diamond interchanges with the El-RHW, using the El-RHW type "A" ramp and ground-to elevated MIS transitions.

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Getting the basic stuff out of the way

For this guide, I will construct a El-RHW with a 0 tile median.  This makes sense as it gives the appearance that the entire highway is one structure, and because the El-RHW can easily be used in dense urban areas, a place where having a multiple tile median is rarely seen.

Place your starter pieces...

Drag the RHW using the RHW tool...

(Optional) Delete the starter pieces to create a RHW without any overrides.

And drag the stable network over it.

Congrats!  You now have a El-RHW!

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Standard El-RHW Diamond Interchange

This setup is probably the easiest and most common type of elevated diamond interchanges, and is quite a space saver!

Drag a road under your El-RHW:

Place 4 ground-to elevated MIS transition pieces on each corner:

Plop your El-RHW type "A" ramps.

-Currently, this is the only El-RHW ramp.

Drag the MIS on the ground to intersect with the road and connect to the other side.

And you're done!  Pretty simple eh?  Looks great too!

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Higher Capacity El-RHW Diamond Interchange

A downside to diamond interchanges is that they have a low capacity.  When space is an issue, diamond interchanges will be placed in dense cities, creating a lot of traffic problems if overused.  This setup will be better to use in those areas because it contains an extra lane at the intersection and traffic lights for better flow.

Because this is going to be higher capacity, lets put an avenue underneath instead of a road.

Drag one-way roads on either side of the RHW to create intersections.  Continue to drag them for at least one tile on each side of the intersections.

Place 4 ground-to elevated MIS transition pieces on each corner, just like we did in the last guide:

And again, plop your El-RHW type "A" ramps.

Now, drag the MIS on the ground to the one-way roads.  The ramp will widen to two lanes, allowing for dedicated right and left turn lanes and giving the appearance that it is of higher capacity.

All right!  This should work perfectly for any urban setting.

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Now for something different

This guide is made for ultra-dense cities where interchanges need to consume as little room as possible.  It may not be the best looking interchange, but it will get the job done while conserving space.

Place a elevated highway/avenue interchange in the middle of the junction.  Then drag El-RHWs up to the elevated highway, leaving one tile vacant between the elevated highway and the El-RHW.

-You can also use the elevated highway/road interchange too.

Now, cycle through the raised avenue puzzle pieces tab until you find the raised avenue-elevated highway transition puzzle piece.  Place them on either side of the elevated highway in the one tile you left vacant to create a working connection.

And that's it!  The raised avenue-elevated highway transition puzzle piece can be used whenever you want to connect a El-RHW to a elevated highway.

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I hope you find this guide useful!  The El-RHW is a fantastic addition, and its very useful for making interchanges!

Best,

-Haljackey

[LucaPdor 0]

WOW! Thank you Haljackey! This one is great! :-)

[De Ja Vu 117]

Cool looking interchanges! Do you have any that are really complicated?

[psander5 195]

Very useful stuff. i don't really use elevated highways myself. I'm more of a sunken networks man. I can see I'll definately get some handy tips from this thread.

[charactersnotpermitted 3]

Excellent tutorials...Plus it reminded me to download the latest RHW mod...

Definitely gonna try some of those interchanges...

[Haljackey 17,304]

Thanks to all for your continued support!

Originally posted by: De Ja Vu Cool looking interchanges! Do you have any that are really complicated? quote>

Umm... I have made so many that are really complicated that I have lost count! 

-Just check out the GTR (my CJ) or the Show Us Your Interchanges thread for examples.  Both of those  links are in my signature.

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Section 1.2:  Left Exit/Entrance Diamond Interchanges.

Made by request(s), I will show you how to make some diamond interchanges using the new left exit/entrance ramps included with RHW 3.0.

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Getting the basic stuff out of the way

For this guide, I will construct a RHW with a 2 tile median.  You will need to have a RHW with a median of at least 2 tiles in order to get use left exit/entrance ramps for diamond interchanges.

Place your starter pieces...

Drag the RHW using the RHW tool...

(Optional) Delete the starter pieces to create a RHW without any overrides.

And drag the stable network over it.

Ok, your RHW is now set up.

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Standard RHW left exit/entrance diamond interchange

Again, I will use a road as an overpass this time.  Make sure you put two 4-way El-MIS/raised road intersections in the median tiles, and make sure they are facing the right direction!

Plop 4 ground-to-elevated MIS transition pieces next to the intersections you made in the RHW's median.

...And then place the left RHW type "A" ramps next to the MIS ramps.

And you're done.  That's an odd looking diamond, eh?

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High Capacity RHW left exit/entrance diamond interchange

This higher capacity interchange will not take up any additional room than the standard RHW left exit/entrance diamond interchange, and will look more at home in urban areas.  Like the higher capacity El-RHW diamond interchange, it will include an additional lane at the intersection and add traffic lights.

I will use an avenue for this diamond.  Place a 4-way raised avenue intersection in the median of your RHW.

Now use the ground-to-raised avenue puzzle pieces inside the median like so:

Place the left RHW type "A" ramps next to the avenues in the RHW's median.

Then all you have to do is drag the MIS coming from the ramp to the avenue to create a working connection.

And there you go.  Kind of a mini SPUI for those who know what I'm talking about.

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After I made this guide, I decided to play around with my new interchange for a bit.  I ended up making this interesting creation:

Click for full resolution!

This 8-ramp monster handles traffic traveling in all directions.  The new outer 4 ramps handle right turns while the original 4 left ramps handle left turns.  It is truly amazing what you can make with RHW 3.0, there's just so many possibilities! 

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this guide.  That will just about do it for diamond interchanges I think.

Best,

-Haljackey