Why Don't Sims take Highways?

[calvint_hk 2]

I have tons of onramps and offramps but my highways are virtually empty. However, since I am trying to build a city similar to Los Angeles, this isn't going to fly. Are tips? Also, are there any mods that encourage sims to take highways instead of roads to work? Thanks

[Kuewr665 40]

Sims typically follow the shortest route to work instead of the fastest. There are pathfinding mods that change the system so Sims use the fastest, such as the one included in the Network Addon Mod.

[Ganaram Inukshuk 906]

Actually, you really would need to use the NAM's Traffic Simulator; it's essentially a bugfix.

[calvint_hk 2]

lol I'm really a $%&^!

I have literally no idea what NAM is

[Ganaram Inukshuk 906]

lol I'm really a $%&^!

I have literally no idea what NAM is

 

It's a (massive) mod that many people consider as both a bugfix and an expansion pack. The minimum you need to install is just the Traffic Simulator.

 

It's only found on ModDB or SC4Devotion. http://www.moddb.com/mods/network-addon-mod

 

Without it, you game will stay broken; even the developers of SC4 say that there are flaws with the game, and sims never taking highways is one of the most notable flaws.

[calvint_hk 2]

Wow thanks alot. I will try it right now.

[Ganaram Inukshuk 906]

I should also ask: Did you apply the SC4 EP1 patch already? The NAM needs it to work properly.

[Prophet42 1,500]

NAM is essential to achieve any kind of success with your transportation network.

[calvint_hk 2]

I've never even heard of that..

[Kuewr665 40]

Do you have either the Rush Hour expansion pack or SimCity 4 Deluxe?

[Ganaram Inukshuk 906]

There's a patch for SC4; if you haven't installed it yet, you should do so before installing anything else first. https://www.sc4devotion.com/forums/index.php?page=6

 

But yes, do you even have Simcity 4 Deluxe or Simcity 4 with Rush Hour installed? 99% of all mods only work with Deluxe or Rush Hour. Almost no mod, not even the NAM, will work with the original SC4 (the one without the expansion pack).

[PlutonianEmpire 2]

Big bump, but I have a similar issue with Avenues. I have a long Avenue connecting a few cities in a new-ish region. I have five cities, of which two Big cities are connected by a long Avenue that runs through a Medium city. Instead  of using the Avenues, my sims are using the Roads to get to the neighboring cities, mostly avoiding the avenue, despite the fact that I'm using Nam 34. I am on SC4 Deluxe with the patch, IIRC.

[APSMS 1,892]

@PlutonianEmpire Keep in mind that with the NAM, Avenues aren't actually any faster than roads, so for Sims to use them, they would need a reason first. If congestion on the roads isn't high enough, or if your traffic funneling doesn't strongly encourage Sims to take the similar-speed Avenue, then they won't do it because there is little gain, and potentially a long-ways to drive to get to that Avenue.

If you replaced parts of the Avenue where there are no zones with the RHW-4, it might be enough to encourage use, but generally speaking Avenues are not faster than roads in the game, and this is both for NWM balancing, and for promoting both OWR and RHW/MHW usage, which would both remain low otherwise. RHW/MHW are also much faster than IRL, and again this is to emphasize their usage since the only things Sims care about on their commute is speed, not safety or personal preference or anything else of that sort.

[z1 566]

One solution that people use here is to build "fast avenues" out of pairs of one-way roads, since the speed limit on one-way roads is substantially higher than that for either roads or avenues.  These "fast avenues" aren't as aesthetically pleasing as regular avenues, but if speed is your top priority, this will do it.

[adamz 0]

Does this work if you use steam?  i bought sim city 4 with rush hour with steam

[rsc204 21,805]

All PC versions of the game are identical, provided they are patched. The Steam version (as most digital ones) are pre-patched. So in short, yes the OWR trick still works.

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Oh while I'm here, avoid the Origin version of SC4, it's not patched, nor patchable, well done EA you embarrass yourselves you are so inept.

If you have yet to do so, consider installing the Network Addon Mod (NAM). This greatly improves how transport works in game and fixes some issues left in the original release. It's a huge mod, but you can choose a basic install with just the fixes if you prefer.

Also, since you are new, can I point your attention to another important fix. Without it, when you get High Tech industry, they won't be employing R$$$ sims, which is a big problem.