Sims wont use major arteries

[waterboy 0]

So why are Sims taking side streets  and small roads more often than avenues and highways?  It seems that Sims are so anxious to go the shortest route, not necessarily the fastest route.  If I put a side street right along a highway, Sims will always take the side street because it is a little bit shorter.  They won't use my highways!  Anyone else having the same problem?!?!

 

We have to use mods to get these things right, but these are small details that should have come standard with the game and taken care of before SC4 was put onto shelves!

[Facelessman 5]

A picture of this problem would be really useful...

 

The NAM might fix the problem, if you don't have it...and it's got a lot of other cool stuff with it...

[spa 970]

Date: 7/6/2005 4:25:38 PM Author:waterboy

So why are Sims taking side streets  and small roads more often than avenues and highways?  It seems that Sims are so anxious to go the shortest route, not necessarily the fastest route.  If I put a side street right along a highway, Sims will always take the side street because it is a little bit shorter.  They won't use my highways!  Anyone else having the same problem?!?!

We have to use mods to get these things right, but these are small details that should have come standard with the game and taken care of before SC4 was put onto shelves!

quote> 

I know what you mean. The sims will detour though when their preferred shortcut route becomes too congested. In my cities it's not really a problem because I design my residental neighbourhoods so that the sims have to come out onto avenues that cut throughout the city. They can decide though whether or not to then get on the highway and many do. Part of highyway use though is that you need to have distance to your city. Why would a sim go through the trouble of getting on and off the highway if there is a place right around the corner where he or she can work?

 

None of this really bugs me though because in a way I think it's more realistic. Urban planners are constantly grappling with traffic going where it's not suppose to be. People simply don't  always stick to the plan which usually means the planners have to come back and attempt to correct the problem. I know in my home city of Halifax there are two residental neighbourhoods that have had very significant problems with shortcutters treating their road like a throughfare. As a result the city has had to go back to the drawing board and work on solutions such as signal lights, speed bumps and street closings to stop people from treating these neighbourhoods like major roadways. So you see, it does happen in real life too. Personally, I enjoy going back and fixings things. Makes me feel like the city is a little more real.

 

-Sam

[Facelessman 5]

Ah, now I see what he meant.    I also make my sims take the main avenues and stuff.  Try to not make low capacity roads that go strait to the sim's destinations.  I usually place jobs near major roads and make sure my sims' best way to get there is to take the major roads.  It can take some time to get used to it.  I'm still not that great at it...

Lol...

 

spa said:

Why would a sim go through the trouble of getting on and off the highway if there is a place right around the corner where he or she can work?

 

Sometimes I find myself wondering why, when my sims can work right around the corner, they drive to the other side of the city.

[ramvid01 0]

yea dont worry, everyone has this problem, even with the nam, i get sims using side roads by the bunches, it can be frustrating lol

[waterboy 0]

Thanks Sam.  I never looked at it as a positive thing, I guess you're right about it being realistic.  And thanks to both of you for the avenue advice. This really helps. thx

[waterboy 0]

by the way, what is a 'NAM'? 

[Tolomar 5]

NAM is the network Add-om Mod....it the combination of many bug and graphic fixes for the game put together with many new transit opoins and new intersection and transistion lots....

 

personelly wouldn't play the game with out it... just NAM IT!  download found on the homepage (in the centre, just scroll down.....or in greyveil's sig

 

 

as for getting sims to use the major arteries...cut access to other raods....forcing the sims to use major arteries or MT....have to...cuz sims are stupid...it's just a fact you have to face

[Tenzium 0]

My favorite way of getting the Sims off of using roads as major arteries is simply to knock out one square of the road and plop a bus station there.

Want to use the shortcut? Sure! But you have to use the clean bus to do it (and pay a small fee as well).

Many of your Sims suddenly decide that maybe the major arteries aren't so bad after all. I also think this way is a good incentive to use Mass Transit as well.

[Compromise 1]

Yes often the best ay to stop sims using the shortest route is to not let them e.g make most streets no througth roads.

[waterboy 0]

Good idea Tenzium.  I tried the bus-station-in-the-middle-of-the-street idea.  This works well in the suburbs where the wealthier cats don't like mass transit.  I also tried toll booths on small streets to encourage usage of larger arteries, which is the same idea, but a more natural approach.

Nice motto there, Tolomar.  Too bad that my computer isn't very friendly with video games, though.  In fact, I have to stick to small farming and low-density towns or my computer will crash. It's a fairly new computer, too.  But i guess all that talk is for another day. 

 

I love everyone's ideas.  thanks a bunch 

[SC4 meister 7]

Date: 7/7/2005 3:37:52 PM Author: Tenzium My favorite way of getting the Sims off of using roads as major arteries is simply to knock out one square of the road and plop a bus station there.  Want to use the shortcut?  Sure!  But you have to use the clean bus to do it (and pay a small fee as well). Many of your Sims suddenly decide that maybe the major arteries aren't so bad after all.  I also think this way is a good incentive to use Mass Transit as well.

quote>

  DUUUUDE (or dudet) that's such an awesome idea, never thought of that, that would sooo rock, can't wait till I get home so I can build a city so I can try that.   Thanks man! (or girl)

[spa 970]

I too have used the bus station out method to promote a positive mass transit option. You can also use the buses only roadways (downloadable from the exchange). That way it looks more natural.

-Sam

[Tenzium 0]

Date: 7/7/2005 7:35:01 PM
Author: SC4 meister

Date: 7/7/2005 3:37:52 PM Author: Tenzium My favorite way of getting the Sims off of using roads as major arteries is simply to knock out one square of the road and plop a bus station there.  Want to use the shortcut?  Sure!  But you have to use the clean bus to do it (and pay a small fee as well). Many of your Sims suddenly decide that maybe the major arteries aren't so bad after all.  I also think this way is a good incentive to use Mass Transit as well.

quote>

DUUUUDE (or dudet) that's such an awesome idea, never thought of that, that would sooo rock, can't wait till I get home so I can build a city so I can try that. Thanks man! (or girl)

quote>


I'm a guy.

And it's nice to see another Sacramento Kings fan here (I lived in Sacramento for about 13 years, and attended college there).

[Tenzium 0]

Do Sims have to pay money to go on Bus Only roadways? I actually like the fact that the bus station charges the Sims (again) to pass through the road. A little extra change in the city's budget never hurts!

[Compromise 1]

Date: 7/8/2005 10:05:48 AM Author: Tenzium Do Sims have to pay money to go on Bus Only roadways?  I actually like the fact that the bus station charges the Sims (again) to pass through the road.  A little extra change in the city's budget never hurts!

quote>

Sims do have to pay to travel on the bus and I think everyone on the bus pays when they go througth a toll booth.

[Glenni 1,446]

yep sims arew pretty st00pidthe will always use th shortest rout whatever the circumstances i know its pretty frustrating!haah lol

[Johnnyman7 0]

This is a great post. I think when Maxis engineers were designing SM4, they were probably hoping all of us would become make-believe city planners, discussing real-life planning problems in a friendly community. And look at us!

 

The truth is, this happens all the time in real life. Hell, at least twice a day, I take a street to get to a destination where an avenue would be just as convenient. But maybe I dont want to deal with the traffic on the avenue. Or maybe I think it will be extra congested today. Traffic in LA can be bad (shh..thats a secret).

 

This is what I like about SM4: I'll design a neighborhood on Pause with streets and all. As soon as I start time again, problems pop up that I didnt predict. So I work to correct those problems...transforming some streets to roads...making other streets dead-ends so Sims cant use it as an alternative. And after some work, the neighborhood is exactly what I desire it to be.

 

If it were all so easy to plan, SM4 would be uninteresting. Look at it that way, and it wont be so annoying to you.

 

 

[PhantomSoul 3]

I usually just use roads and streets until I start to get some office commerce developing in a downtown area. Once a downtown starts to form, avenues/boulevards are good for getting people from your residential neighborhoods downtown.

I've found that freeways are initially useful to supplement railroads in connecting those dense industrail areas near the center of your town to the neighbors (remember, industry needs neighbor connections to thrive). Once you start getting an entire metro area going, commuters from neighboring towns will start to use the freeways.

Finally, if you keep developing and your roads, avenues, and freeways start to get congested, you'll start to see commuter rail use as well. But if you have no congestion on your local roads (ie, green on the traffic map), there's really no reason for anyone to get on the freeway or railroad.

[+Guest]

After laying out my trans. plan for the city I would wait 15 years to see if it works or not. If it dosen't I uselly(Sp?) change it and wait another 15 years. If that doesn't work and the Sims keep complaining and blaming me for their unbelievable predictable stupid dense brainless behavior I would go like this .

Sim Child: look up in the sky! It's a brid!

Sim Man: No it a plane!

Sim Woman: NO IT'S A...

 

But sadly it seems they were too dim-witted to figure out that their end was near.

 

BWHAHAHAHAHA-gasp-gasp-HAHAHAHAHAHA

 

yeah... Its normal for them to act stupid

[SamFlash 0]

Date: 8/21/2005 8:15:30 AM Author: BlAcKBrOoK1

After laying out my trans. plan for the city I would wait 15 years to see if it works or not. If it dosen't I uselly(Sp?) change it and wait another 15 years. If that doesn't work and the Sims keep complaining and blaming me for their unbelievable predictable stupid dense brainless behavior I would go like this .

Sim Child: 'look up in the sky! It's a brid!

Sim Man: 'No it a plane!'

Sim Woman: 'NO IT'S A...'

But sadly it seems they were too dim-witted to figure out that their end was near.

BWHAHAHAHAHA-gasp-gasp-HAHAHAHAHAHA

yeah... Its normal for them to act stupid

quote>

 

That will teach them!

 

[DUBCity22 2]

I usuallytry to make dead end streets especially in my suburbs but i also have avenues running through my city and i have a highway loop in my big cities and an expressway going to downtown and ending there. In bigger cities i put down bus stations but i mostly stick to the american way of using cars/buses/