No job zot above several buildings

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

I always seem to have this problem. Whenever my city reaches a point where the middle class starts to overtake the lower class in amount a lot of buildings start to have the no job zot, but there are plently of jobs everywhere and I can't seem to generate new demand to build more buildings. Eventually my city crumbles as I have all these abandoned buildings and everytime I try to rebuild it just happens again.

I also recently started a new city in which i decided to build my commercial zone across a river, but my sims don't  want to travel there for their jobs, however every single one of the commercial buildings is somehow fully employed. Now this is city is getting screwd up too because I have lots of R demand but no I or C demand, and everytime I zone more R those buildings just get eventually abandoned because I cant build any new I or C. My education level is around 130 and I have only recently built hospitals.

Someone please help

[NBAFAN1 28]

Are you playing with the NAM mod? That fixes a lot of the traffic problems.

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

I installed the NAM mod, I have all the different road parts it gives. Don't remember if I chose to install Simulation Z though. Its just weird cause the sims flat out refuse to work across the bridge. Maybe its cause I put tolls on the bridges?

[T Wrecks 10,209]

Default (Maxis) toll booths or downloads? If they have been downloaded, they might be faulty. Either way, you can answer that last question yourself by simply demolishing the toll booth, setting game speed to "high", waiting for a fdew game months, and checking if the situation has changed.

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

They are the default toll booths, I deleted them and it didn't help. I deleted the bridge and rebuilt it, still didn't help. I decided to start a new city, and it was on a larger map, so I built my industrial zone inside the city away from the residential and commercial zone. The two areas were connected by a single avenue. When i started to rezone my residential areas and make them medium density, the sims suddenly stopped traveling to their old industrial jobs, and the new sims moving into the city don't want to go there either. The commute time is 40, so it isn't like its far away from them. All the buildings in the industrial zone still say that they have sims working in them. And even though my entire city has no job zots residential demand is in the 6000s.Can anyone explain why this is happening?

[CaptCity 4,669]

Just a thought...

Did you recently install NAM or did you have it installed before this started? A couple things could be happening depending on how you installed it.

Also, you might post a picture of the city so others can see the layout.

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

I reinstalled Sim City 4 only recently, and decided that I would try mods. NAM was the first mod I installed.

I would post a picture, but I don't know how to take screen shots or upload them

I also changed the layout of my city and moved the industrial stuff to a neighboring city, the problem has not reoccurred, though I have noticed sims avoiding any avenue intersections, and there are some buildings that are fully employed, but when route queried show no sims traveling to them.

[CaptCity 4,669]

Originally posted by: TheGreatEmperor

I would post a picture, but I don't know how to take screen shots or upload them...quote>

You can use either the game's "camera" feature or the Print Screen key (and paste in Paint) to take pictures of the game. Here's a tutorial on how to post them. You can pick it up at Step 3. You don't have to have IrfanView.

I also changed the layout of my city and moved the industrial stuff to a neighboring city, the problem has not reoccurred, though I have noticed sims avoiding any avenue intersections, and there are some buildings that are fully employed, but when route queried show no sims traveling to them.quote>

Without seeing your layout, I'll just give a couple possible things to check... One, check the driving side of your game. Since you have NAM, you need to be sure you have the correct NAM component that matches your game (right-hand drive or left). Two, since you're using avenues, you might need to make some cross streets on the avenues. These are short stretches of streets or roads that connect one side of the avenue to the other. Without them, Sims may have a hard time getting to the lots along avenues. Third, check to see what traffic simulator you installed with the NAM. If you used the game's default simulator, it is probably the least effective, and you might want to try another. Also, check to be sure you didn't install one of the Park and Ride options.

Although, all of your "symptoms" don't appear to exactly match the usual issues with the above suggestions, I thought I would offer them up, just in case...

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

Okay how do I check my driver side? And how do I check what simulator I installed with the game. I'll add a picture a bit later. But I have noticed that sims do not travel on the intersection of two avenues. I found this strange and checked what the avenue looks like in the traffic view, and it was sowing up not colored in with any of the colors for traffic, as if it wasn't part of the road system.

[CaptCity 4,669]

Originally posted by: TheGreatEmperor

Okay how do I check my driver side?quote>

Run the game and check which side of the road the vehicles travel on - left or right. You should have selected the corresponding NAM option when you installed it. If you do have a left-hand game and just "clicked through" the NAM setup, then you probably got a mismatch since the right-hand option is selected by default.

And how do I check what simulator I installed with the game.quote>

Open your NAM folder. You should see a file named NetworkAddonMod_Traffic_Plugin_... followed by a letter. If it also contains the words "Park and Ride" then you have that version installed. There should only be one file named "Traffic_Plugin" installed at any time.

But I have noticed that sims do not travel on the intersection of two avenues. I found this strange and checked what the avenue looks like in the traffic view, and it was sowing up not colored in with any of the colors for traffic, as if it wasn't part of the road system.quote>

That could be due to the wrong driving side component - especially if you notice the same thing at rail crossings.

[local_authority01 3]

Originally posted by: TheGreatEmperor

I always seem to have this problem. Whenever my city reaches a point where the middle class starts to overtake the lower class in amount a lot of buildings start to have the no job zot, but there are plently of jobs everywhere and I can't seem to generate new demand to build more buildings. Eventually my city crumbles as I have all these abandoned buildings and everytime I try to rebuild it just happens again.

quote>

What you are describing relates to a fundemental design flaw in SC4.  What I belive is happening to your cities is that you are desinging them too well.  I have this problem a lot too.  If you be a good mayor and provide services to every sim, the low wealth sims become educated and change their economic status.  Also their low wealth neigborhoods have increased desirability to medium and high wealth sims as you provide them with more and more services.  Eventually all your low wealth sims either become educated or are forced out of their neighborhoods because of medium and higher wealth development and your city will have no low wealth sims to fill jobs which can eventually cripple demand.

Its a stupid game mechanic that any stage of R$$ or R$$$ can overtake any stage R$ building.  So in order to prevent all your low wealth sims from leaving the city you have to zone with their needs, or rather un-needs in mind.  Keep desirability low in their neighborhoods, and maybe even mark low wealth residential buildings historic to prevent takeover.

If you want to try out more mods for SC4 it is easy.  Most of them just need to be downloaded and put into your plugins folder.  A mod that I have that is supposed to help with keeping low wealth sims in your city is the Less Abandonment Mod by bones1.  It does this indirectly by raising the desirability requirements needed for R$$ and R$$$ sims to move in.  I haven't fully tested it yet but I am sure it works because bones1 is one of the better SC4 modders out there.

[Cobra_nVidia 30]

Screenshots would be nice plz

1. What is the status of your industry? You're not taxing out manufacturing or dirty are you?

2. What are the population levels of your commercial jobs? Unlike high wealth industry, high wealth commerce (CS$$$, CO$$, CO$$$) has NO problem building right next to its lower-wealth counterpart CS$ and CS$$ (while obviously high tech industry won't develop in a sea of high-density dirty industry). So if you have a highly educated population, you're CS$ and CS$$ might have been pushed out of the city. So make sure there's low wealth commercial jobs. For commercial development I use bats with jobs to keep population levels good, though you could in theory use tax levels to help control it too (though it's slow and annoying)

3. What buildings have workers? Careful with this one, Simcity may be FOOLING you! If you query the building and it reads "Jobs: 67/69" that DOES NOT mean there are 67 sims working there, it means there are 67 jobs available and the building can hold 69 maximum. The game treats industry and commerce as their own populations. Only the route query from the Rush Hour expansion can tell you if anyone actually works at a building

4. What's your transit network like? The game can allow you to make cities that are incredibly dense compared to real cities, so you need a very strong transit network. I don't use rail, but I have a massive subway system, lots of avenues and two highways running the length of most of my new cities.

That's all I can think of right now, hope it helps. Would appreciate some screenshots so maybe I can see what's wrong better!

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

First, people appear to be driving on the left side:

http://yfrog.com/3smercantina4feb211270535p

And this is the problem I see occruing, sims are avoiding avenue intersections:

http://yfrog.com/5xmercantina27feb21127053p

This particular problem, isn't much of a problem if I provice alternate routes, but it was a problem earlier when such an intersection was blocking the way to my only idustrial area.

3. What buildings have workers? Careful with this one, Simcity may be FOOLING you! If you query the building and it reads "Jobs: 67/69" that DOES NOT mean there are 67 sims working there, it means there are 67 jobs available and the building can hold 69 maximum. The game treats industry and commerce as their own populations. Only the route query from the Rush Hour expansion can tell you if anyone actually works at a building

 

Wow, really? I didn't know this, thanks! This really clears stuff up. 

4. What's your transit network like? The game can allow you to make cities that are incredibly dense compared to real cities, so you need a very strong transit network. I don't use rail, but I have a massive subway system, lots of avenues and two highways running the length of most of my new cities.

 

I considered laying some early rail, but it was such a hassle, I just decided to go with buses and then add rail or subway. I usually have a mix of all kinds of stuff, I really want to try to build a monorail network one of these days. 

To answere your other questions, I don't mess around with taxes unless its lowering them, and then it is only ever for HT. 

Eventually all your low wealth sims either become educated or are forced out of their neighborhoods because of medium and higher wealth development and your city will have no low wealth sims to fill jobs which can eventually cripple demand.

 

I am starting to notice this, and thats why in my newest city, I reached a population of 20k or so before building any education buildings, this allowed me to get a very sizable industrial base from which to further expand my city.

On a side note, how do you add who was the original author to a quote?

[CaptCity 4,669]

Originally posted by: TheGreatEmperor

First, people appear to be driving on the left side.

And this is the problem I see occruing, sims are avoiding avenue intersections.quote>

Since your game appears to be a left-hand drive game, you would need to have installed the left-hand drive component of NAM when you installed it. If you don't remember doing it, you can check in your NAM folder for a file named NetworkAddonMod_Controller_RIGHT_HAND_VERSION or one named NetworkAddonMod_Controller_LEFT_HAND_VERSION. If you don't have the correct file installed, you will need to re-install the NAM and choose the correct option.

This particular problem, isn't much of a problem if I provice alternate routes, but it was a problem earlier when such an intersection was blocking the way to my only idustrial area.quote>

You might be surprised. This file determines the pathing used for the various networks which is important for proper commuting. It will really cause issues if you get to the point where you want to use any of the rail networks.

On a side note, how do you add who was the original author to a quote?quote>

Use the green "Quote" button in the lower right corner of each post.

quote>

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

Okay, I will reinstall the mod, I am already starting to notice problems caused by this as sims are over using the roads around the intersections, which is causing tons of traffic problems.

Will I have to restart my city after I reinstall the mod?

[CaptCity 4,669]

Originally posted by: TheGreatEmperor

Will I have to restart my city after I reinstall the mod?quote>

No, as long as the driving-side component is the only thing that's different. Any changes should take effect after a bit of time while the simulator "balances" things out. The length of time for this depends on the size of the city and the transportation networks used.

[TheGreatEmperor 0]

Changing to LHD mode in NAM did the trick, everything works perfectly now.

Thanks a bunch to everyone who contributed to this thread, especially CaptCity