AnCreating a successful bus network!

[+Guest katrina]

what do i have 2 look for-pedestrian density,road traffic???

what population is suitable?

any tips would be appreciated

[z1 566]

A bus network is suitable for any size city, and in fact a good bus network is a plus for just about any size city.  But to start with, your Sims have to be smart enough to use buses when they make sense, and for that, a good traffic simulator is essential.  You get one automatically when you install the Network Addon Mod (NAM), which I would recommend anyway; if you don't want to install the whole NAM, you can still get the traffic simulator from the NAM Traffic Subsystem.

Then it's simply a matter of placing bus stops near Sims' homes and jobs.  You generally don't want to place your bus stops much more than a couple of blocks away from the Sims' homes or jobs, or else they'll decide that their trip involves too much walking and they'll take their cars instead.  Bus routes are created on the fly by the game; like all vehicles in SC4, buses are effectively single-passenger.

Bus stops automatically serve both sides of a road, and a bus stop at an intersection corner will serve both roads in the intersection.  For avenues, though, you need a bus stop on both sides of the avenue, unless you're placing them at an intersection, or you're using RTMT bus stops (see below).

You can also save a lot of space by using bus stops that sit on the road itself instead of using a separate lot; these can be found in the Roadtop Mass Transit (RTMT) pack.  If you install this pack, I would highly recommend installing the RTMT Add-On Pack V3.60 as well.  This add-on pack includes some bug fixes, updated capacities (I would recommend the "high" version), and bus stops for a couple of additional networks as well.

Finally, if you want your Sims to use your buses, make them serve unique areas.  If you put your bus routes right over your subway lines, or very near rail lines, the Sims will quickly figure out that these other lines are faster and will take them instead of the buses.  However, using buses as feeders to fast rail lines is a very effective transportation strategy.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Very good advice.  Now unless things have changed in the year or so when I wasn't playing, Sims won't walk more than about 8 gridsquares total to get to work.  This includes both ends, so you need transit services in both the residential and the work places. 

Don't be shy about clobbering a house to place a bus station in the middle of a block.  You can always enhance your Mayor rating by putting park-type things in the wasted space.  Failing that, put in grassy plots and trees.  This helps your pollution situation.

The same applies to commerical and industrial areas.  If you are adding bus lines as a post-development thing, then a little urban shoulder pushing is to be expected.  The industrials usually heal themselves, but a plaza in the middle of an industrial area makes it more attractive to  higher level stuff.  Plaza and flower gardens, carefully arranged can be very nice in the commercial zone too.  It gives the gofer's some place to eat lunch.  Be generous with parks, it pays off in the end.

Here is a current working example of a bus line:

Enjoy.

[z1 566]

Originally posted by: A Nonny Moose

Now unless things have changed in the year or so when I wasn't playing, Sims won't walk more than about 8 gridsquares total to get to work.  This includes both ends, so you need transit services in both the residential and the work places

quote>

This is one area in which there has been substantial change, which explains my emphasis on getting the current traffic simulator.  Sims will now walk as far as they need to in order to get to work.  Realistically, you don't see Sims walking across an entire city, or even usually more than a few blocks, since at that point it tends to become much faster to drive.  And Sims now always take the fastest route to work, although the speed of their route is weighted by the preference of the various wealth levels for driving or mass transit.  But in general, those Sims that prefer mass transit will think nothing of walking a couple of blocks at each end of their commute, and they'll even walk a bit more if they can take a fast network such as a subway or a monorail as part of their journey.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Well yes, I can see that from my snapshot.  However, I do believe in good service.  Bus stops are cheap.

[+Guest katrina]

Thanx alot guyz for your tips...i have installed the RTMT and its quite fantastic in saving alot of space!!!