Super Realistic Tutorial RHW

El Argentino · March 8, 2015

Do you want to do some like this?

Or this?

Or why not this?

And many other things?

Visit my future updates and learn to do something like that !!

I wait for you! Greetings from Bs As!

juliusCSR · March 8, 2015

yes awesome!! Can't get enough from pictures of interchanges, train, rhw, roads whatever ! love em all

+1

Angry_Bubble · March 8, 2015

How to put these light poles in the middle?

Titanicbuff · March 9, 2015

I'm generally real good with interchanges- impressive ones here.

Mymyjp · March 9, 2015

Excellent!!!!!!

Thin White Duke · March 9, 2015

Nor sure if this belongs here. Try putting it in the Omnibus section.

Haljackey · March 9, 2015

If you'd like to contribute to the RHW Interchange Guide (On SC4Devotion), feel free to post in the submissions thread.

Link is in my signature.

El Argentino · March 28, 2015

REPLIES

Haljackey em, i would love but i haven't a account on SC4dev, i like the page but the topics are very mixed and i don't understand. Also, i like much more Simtropolis

__B i think that not will be problem, or yes?

Mymyjp Thankss miss!!

Titanicbuff Ahh yes? Thanks!!

Angry_Bubble Emm i don't know. Professional secret... Jaja lies, i just use the LRM, anything magic.

juliusCSR Thanks so much men! finally an apprentice eager to learn.

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Well, after of days or weeks, finally i decided to start with this tutorial. And today, i did 3 interchanges, 2 diamonds and a trumpet.

Jaja you excuse me if i write wrong the names of the motorways, really.

Maybe you wonder why i say Realistic. Well, only by the fact that the highway on 7 mts looks better. Sure that if have to rise more, yes. But the basics interchanges or simples i think that can't be on 15 mts, in what place you see those? So, i do this for give to the SC4 one touch more realist of metropolis or urban. If not, is boring the game.

Please remember that is my first of this tutorials.

In first, i will show you the trumpet. Is a interchange of two motorways of big capacity.

You have that make the same at the images, if not, It does not look good, although not seem, this all very tight

I hope that you like it, and if you not understand some, tell me please

The result that we search is this.

Step 1. First, you must to planning the intersections, like you see, i use the diggers.

Step 2. Start with the most simple, put this ramps and inner curves symmetrically. *north*

Step 3. Why there rails? If not know, is 'cause i use a mod that leveling "automatically" with my help. We must put this way so that it looks like. *north*

Step 4. For bridges, you must use Flex Heigt Transitions, "onslope 7 mts" *north*

Step 5. You must remove the curve and put a starter of RH4, in order to avoid complications with the fillers, and come back to put the curves

Step 6. You have to put a transition of otho RH4 to RH4 FAR. And after, a 10S FAR ramp that be compatible

It is worth noting that to avoid problems with the FAR, the floor must be flat.

With this ramps completed, we pass to make the other side .... the hard part

Step 7. This date is VERY important!!. from the bridge to the 10S FAR ramp must there 9 tiles, like it in the image with the roads, don't forget the tiles that there between the ground motorway and the onslope bridge.

Step 8. Well, in the FAR ramp, yo have to put a transition from 6S FAR to 6S diagonal

Step 9. Start with the descent. That Is Very Important When you put the curve, the terrain it flat. If not, will appear unlevel. You have to see exactly equal to the next image.

Step 10. To follow, you must put the next inside curve on those position. Auntomatically should have that to be leveled.

Step 11. If you make the last step well, now in more will be more easy.

Step 12. Complete the curve, and put the diagonal fillers.

The descent must see it

Step 13. Well, now we going to make the ascent with outside curves 6S. On this crossing, must have this tiles, is very important that be it.

Step 14. You have that leveling the terrain of this form

And after remove

Step 15. Put the outside curve on the high terrain. So, the terrain will be leveling.

Step 16. With the flat terrain, put the inner curve.

Step 17. Put the transition "diagonal-FAR"

Step 18. Put the FAR 10S ramp for 6S.

And we finished.

If you wanna make some more real, put light poles, signs and other. Put the lights is a engineer job. Jaja, if never you did, perhaps be hard.

Well, it's my work terminated.

Night mode.

I hope that you liked it.

I repeat, if you have any question, tell me

Greetings from Bs. As

_Michael · March 28, 2015

Great tutorial, very easy to follow and a great result!

Mymyjp · March 28, 2015

very nicely explained and done!

MandelSoft · March 28, 2015

Well, I have my own opinions about realistic interchanges. The basics explained here are good, but there are a few other things to keep in mind:

If you add slopes to an interchange, try to get the most gentle slope. Make the least slope changes as possible. Don't go up and down unless you have to.
Try to make curves as gentle as possible and prevent curving back and forth.
If you add an overpass, always take either the one with the shortest span or the one with the narrower road.
Keep bridge and tunnel length to a minimum. This doesn't mean you need to build cloverleafs instead of stack interchanges, but avoid unnecessary tunnel and bridge length. Use excavations or earth ramps instead.
Prevent weaving (AKA, building two ramps in close proximity of each other).
Add acceleration and decelleration lanes to the ramp. This adds buffer space to the ramps and allows traffic to merge more gentle. Make them around 10-15 tiles long.
Try to avoid merging taper ramps. These are not very safe...
Probably this is region dependent and more an European thing: don't build too many lanes. it can quickly look like overkill. Think about the budget

Those are my tips

Best,
Maarten

El Argentino · March 29, 2015

Well, I have my own opinions about realistic interchanges. The basics explained here are good, but there are a few other things to keep in mind:

If you add slopes to an interchange, try to get the most gentle slope. Make the least slope changes as possible. Don't go up and down unless you have to.

Try to make curves as gentle as possible and prevent curving back and forth.

If you add an overpass, always take either the one with the shortest span or the one with the narrower road.

Keep bridge and tunnel length to a minimum. This doesn't mean you need to build cloverleafs instead of stack interchanges, but avoid unnecessary tunnel and bridge length. Use excavations or earth ramps instead.

Add acceleration and decellera

Prevent weaving (AKA, building two ramps in close proximity of each other).

tion lanes to the ramp. This adds buffer space to the ramps and allows traffic to merge more gentle. Make them around 10-15 tiles long.

Try to avoid merging taper ramps. These are not very safe...

Probably this is region dependent and more an European thing: don't build too many lanes. it can quickly look like overkill. Think about the budget
Those are my tips
Best,
Maarten

Thanks for yout tips. And now a question, your tips, its present in my motorways? 'cause there things that i don't understand. I said realistic, 'cause is the most better way to make this. And in your last tip, in where you say "don't build too many lanes" if i have a motorway with 5 lanes, what, would have that to reduce for to follow your tip? I don't believe, would have serious traffic problem, bottle effect

Respect at the seccond tip, the curves aren't gentle? And well, first turn to de right and after, to the left, that have?

The tip one and four i don't understand, at the same the five, how that not? yes, there are, look at. The ramps are close to each other

What is conic ramps? Example? Image? Pleasee.

Acceleration lanes, well, is a detail. Like i said, is the way to build, not this datails.

Best,

Eze.

Major from Bajor · March 29, 2015

Holly crap! Yes hit me with interchanges please!

chocolate_city · March 30, 2015

Its such a shame, because the roads and their textures look so impressive. If were possible to make real flyovers and bridge to highway connections I'd go back to SC4. but they are non-existant, but the overall work and dedication to this network is nothing short of genious.

MandelSoft · March 30, 2015

Thanks for yout tips. And now a question, your tips, its present in my motorways? 'cause there things that i don't understand. I said realistic, 'cause is the most better way to make this.

Most of them are present in your interchange, but I'm just pointing out that there may be some other things to keep in mind

And in your last tip, in where you say "don't build too many lanes" if i have a motorway with 5 lanes, what, would have that to reduce for to follow your tip? I don't believe, would have serious traffic problem, bottle effect

You should only reduce it when it's pure overkill. But I have the impression that European motorways tend to have less lanes, since you usually have to keep right and only use the left lanes for passing (or to pick a route at interchanges). There is no "keep your lane" system here, something I have seen in the USA however. Take a look around at for example the German Autobahn network. Lots of Autobahns are only 2×2 or 2×3 lanes, and only get wider near cities.

Respect at the seccond tip, the curves aren't gentle? And well, first turn to de right and after, to the left, that have?

The curves are quite gentle, but especially the ramps on the left can be a bit smoother. Instead of making the ramps parrallel to the main road, keep them curved and use FARHW to make just one curve, like I did on the top-left ramp here:

The fact that you used smooth curves only is a good thing My own norm is not to use sharp curves anywhere, and that's what you did too.

The tip one and four i don't understand, at the same the five, how that not? yes, there are, look at. The ramps are close to each other

It's more the case where an exit ramp follows quickly after a merging ramp. This causes turbulence in the traffic flow because a lot of lane changes happen in a short distance:

This is why cloverleaf interchanges have a relatively bad traffic flow. Other interchange types can try to prevent these kind of road layouts that are bad for traffic flow, such as turbine and stack interchanges.

But not only does weaving play a role on interchanges themselves, but also on interchanges that follow up each other in a short distance. This should also be avoided.

What is conic ramps? Example? Image? Pleasee.

I mean these things:

These merging taper ramps are not that safe and should be avoided with a different solution.

The reverse of it (a splitting taper) is not much of a problem:

Quote from Chriszwolle over at SkyScraperCity.com:

For most people, the merging taper is the most difficult, as you have no long merging lane, and you need to merge immediately. So you have to look before you enter to see if there is a gap. You absolutely need to be at motorway speed to use a merging taper! Merging tapers are extensively used in the Netherlands, but less so in other European countries
Exiting tapers are somewhat more common, where you can use the right lane to exit at the last moment, increasing capacity at the exit. It is normally used at high-capacity off-ramps or on motorway-to-motorway interchanges.

Best,

Maarten

Sabretooth78 · March 30, 2015

The reverse of it (a splitting taper) is not much of a problem:

This is becoming more of the norm here in the US vs. adding both lanes - it saves a fair amount of pavement as you only have to widen by one lane. There are a few of these by me that they recently re-did and as a result there is now a nice wide shoulder that is hatched off well upstream of the gore because that pavement simply isn't needed any more. My experience is they also flow smoother.

But yeah, the on-ramp version of that sucks. There was one in New Hampshire that I always hated. In theory, it would work assuming the rightmost lane of the ramp was added to the mainline, but it simply doesn't work that way. I would agree that all merging lanes should be added and then dropped by tapers appropriately far enough downstream.

gviper · March 30, 2015

Thanks for yout tips. And now a question, your tips, its present in my motorways? 'cause there things that i don't understand. I said realistic, 'cause is the most better way to make this.

Most of them are present in your interchange, but I'm just pointing out that there may be some other things to keep in mind

And in your last tip, in where you say "don't build too many lanes" if i have a motorway with 5 lanes, what, would have that to reduce for to follow your tip? I don't believe, would have serious traffic problem, bottle effect

You should only reduce it when it's pure overkill. But I have the impression that European motorways tend to have less lanes, since you usually have to keep right and only use the left lanes for passing (or to pick a route at interchanges). There is no "keep your lane" system here, something I have seen in the USA however. Take a look around at for example the German Autobahn network. Lots of Autobahns are only 2×2 or 2×3 lanes, and only get wider near cities.

Respect at the seccond tip, the curves aren't gentle? And well, first turn to de right and after, to the left, that have?

The curves are quite gentle, but especially the ramps on the left can be a bit smoother. Instead of making the ramps parrallel to the main road, keep them curved and use FARHW to make just one curve, like I did on the top-left ramp here:
The fact that you used smooth curves only is a good thing My own norm is not to use sharp curves anywhere, and that's what you did too.

The tip one and four i don't understand, at the same the five, how that not? yes, there are, look at. The ramps are close to each other

It's more the case where an exit ramp follows quickly after a merging ramp. This causes turbulence in the traffic flow because a lot of lane changes happen in a short distance:
This is why cloverleaf interchanges have a relatively bad traffic flow. Other interchange types can try to prevent these kind of road layouts that are bad for traffic flow, such as turbine and stack interchanges.
But not only does weaving play a role on interchanges themselves, but also on interchanges that follow up each other in a short distance. This should also be avoided.

What is conic ramps? Example? Image? Pleasee.

I mean these things:
These merging taper ramps are not that safe and should be avoided with a different solution.
The reverse of it (a splitting taper) is not much of a problem:
Quote from Chriszwolle over at SkyScraperCity.com:

For most people, the merging taper is the most difficult, as you have no long merging lane, and you need to merge immediately. So you have to look before you enter to see if there is a gap. You absolutely need to be at motorway speed to use a merging taper! Merging tapers are extensively used in the Netherlands, but less so in other European countries
Exiting tapers are somewhat more common, where you can use the right lane to exit at the last moment, increasing capacity at the exit. It is normally used at high-capacity off-ramps or on motorway-to-motorway interchanges.

Best,
Maarten

Wow! Glad we don't have any of those here in the state of Oregon! I don't mind the exit taper ramp, but the merging taper ramp leaves no room for an "out" in case something goes awry. Occasionally I have watched the fact that there was a shoulder for someone to utilize prevent a nasty wreck because either the merging vehicle misjudged speed, wasn't paying attention, paranoid about merging, or the semi truck in the right lane in some cases really wasn't that interested in slowing down to accommodate someone who wasn't up to speed or a crowded lane were they couldn't fall back behind to merge in time...

Lost Realist · March 30, 2015

Acceleration lanes, well, is a detail. Like i said, is the way to build, not this datails.

They are essential to the safe and fluent operation of an access-restricted, high-speed motorway, so they are not something I'd consider a "detail".. Of course you can build your own interchanges just the way you like it, but if you claim "super realistic" RHW, you will be held and should also hold yourself to that standard.

I also share Mandels thought on the capacity of your networks, they're huge. A three-lane ramp could take an incredible amount of traffic. This is obviously more of a style decision as the merging lanes, not knowing the environment that interchange will be in, but I suggest taking a look at some data on what sort of capacity highways of this width can actually serve. Highways can handle a lot more traffic than you'd think.

El Argentino · March 31, 2015

Well. It will be difficult to answer at all. Em, i see that all you know too much of the topic. Perhaps you it's ready to build actual motorway But we will not forget that it is a game. Only one thing, i appreciate all your replies and i love that you say your knowledge and that we can discuss this.

michae95l - Mymyjp : Thanks for your words!

Major from Bajor: Jaja well well.

chocolate_city: Yes you have reason, but in the next NAM said that will have Flexfly 7 mts and others things. I'm very anxious that we can make things better! Thank you very much for of the genius jaja.

Dear Mandel.. i like your photo of the pony jaja. My sister watch the program and well.

Yes, the ascent / descent can be more gentle. Much more. I did so to use less space. But yes, was built bad this part
Well. Other thing, i had the oppotunity of play simulators of trucks on Europe, and was "keep your lane" If your drive in the left lane going to .., to the middle gonig to, and so.
I did so too, 'cause i dont like the lanes fusion, like one of you said, an accident can occur.
And a question, why do not you put +1? Jaja at least recognize my merit

Lost Realist, yes, is a realistic detail that i passed overlooked, and i sorry. Yes, there are many lanes. But give a aspect better, and more hard to make.

TakemeThere · March 31, 2015

Well, I have my own opinions about realistic interchanges. The basics explained here are good, but there are a few other things to keep in mind:

You've definitely given some great advice, but I think its important to remember that there are always exceptions to the norm.

If you add an overpass, always take either the one with the shortest span or the one with the narrower road.

I don't know if its the case in other parts of the world, but in NA its not uncommon to see wider overpasses on the top. Here's an example from LA

Use excavations or earth ramps instead.

Earth ramps are much more common where I'm from too(Canada), but I've seen many interchanges in the US that transfer directly from the ground level to an elevated ramp. It really depends on the density of the local area and available space for the interchange.

A well known example would be the Dallas High-Five which as far as I can tell has no earth ramps:

Add acceleration and decelleration lanes to the ramp. Make them around 10-15 tiles long.

Generally speaking your correct in saying that 10-15 spaces would be an accurate representation for the length of a ramp IRL(in real life). But there are a few things I'd like to add about this. One is that there are definitely many exceptions to that standard. Take for instance this example of a highway on ramp in Buffalo, USA:

The length of the acceleration/merging lane before the transition area is only 64m, equal to 4 titles in SC4. Also the combined entrance/exit lane going the other way on the bottom is only 132m long, equal to 8 tiles.

The transition zone/area is admittedly far longer in the real world example compared to the in game RHW transition piece. Being 5.5 spaces long vs 2 spaces for the RHW. So if you take that into consideration then the total length of the ramp is 155m/9.5 spaces. But imo counting the space when a lane becomes smaller then the space a car could actually occupy is pointless. At that point its essentially no different than driving on the shoulder and really you are driving on the shoulder if you haven't merged by then. Basically as long as the shoulder continues its just as safe as the thin transition area. Which makes the practical ramp space of that RL example about 120m/7.5 spaces long.

IRL most drivers would probably see that as being very short, perhaps even unsafe. And I know many jurisdictions around the world have implemented their own regulations/highway standards in place that would not allow for on ramps to be so short.

However that doesn't change the fact that ramps of those lengths do exists IRL and can therefor be labeled as completely realistic in game.

Another important consideration is that distances appear to be longer in game. I don't know if its the perspective/angle of the view, but take this example from my region and then compare it to its real world counterpart:

The images are the exact same length - 200m across. The acceleration lane portion of the ramps are the same length as well at 64m/4 spaces apiece. The overall ramp length of the real world ramp is longer because of the extended transition zone. 7.5 spaces to about 5.5 space - only counting what imo is the useful part of both ramps re: the transition zone. Yet it seems to me that the in game version looks like it would be the safer one.

My next point is the factor of speed. Lower the speed limit in an area and merging becomes easier and safer even with short lanes. Who's to say the highway speed has to be the exact same in game as it is IRL? I think of my highways as having a speed limit somewhere in the range of 80 to 90kph(50 to 56mph) in the downtown/core area's, allowing for shorter ramps in those area's.

Edit* I just remembered about a ramp close to home that I actually use on almost a weekly basis that's way shorter than the previous example:

Technically there is no merging lane at all for this on-ramp. And the ramp its itself which extends for 300m from the connecting roadway, serves as the acceleration lane. While other users may not feel the same, I can honestly say that I don't have any problems using that ramp. Which is surprising when I think about it because I would never build an on ramp like that in SC4. Driver behavior has seemingly compensated for the lack of a merging lane, as most highway users will either slow down or switch over to the next lane when they see someone coming down the ramp.

Lastly, I think building certain things out to there actual real world size only marginally makes them look better, if at all. I'm referring to the transportation related items, not buildings of course. I think approx. 50% scale is more or less sufficient. I'll refer to a recent example I went into great detail about in my last CJ entry.

Take a look at the image below:

Notice the grade change of the rail lines? The rail line on top went from being level with the highway on the left side of the image to going over it on the right. I think most, if not all, would agree that the slope is very gradual.

In fact the rail line on the top transitions 47ft(14.2m) in height over 19 spaces or 998ft(304m).

The one on the bottom transitions a little more steeply, increasing 70ft(21.3m) in height over 22 spaces or 1,155ft(352m)

This equates to grade changes of 4.7 and 6.1 percent respectively.

IRL, a 2% grade is considered severe and 4% grades are almost non-existent. 6.1% would operationally be considered impassable for freight trains. Even passenger trains(including HSR), which can handle far greater vertical grades due to their lighter weight and greater power per weight, don't encounter those kinds of grades any where in the world(afaik). There are trains that can but they require specialized equipment to do so i.e. cable pulled funiculars or trains & tracks with rack equipment.

My point is that it would be pointless for me to make the grade any more gradual then it already is.

Imo, the same thing applies to highway ramps once you get to about 50% scale. The difference in realism between a ramp that's say 7 or 8 spaces long verses one that's 10 to 15 spaces long is minimal at best. It's equivalent to the difference between making that 6.1% grade a 3% grade. I'd even go so far as to say that for a 4 lane RHW(total lanes both directions), a merging lane that is 8 spaces long looks better then a one 15 spaces. The very long merging lanes & ramps just appears too exaggerated/drawn out even if that length is more commonly seen IRL.

Probably this is region dependent and more an European thing: don't build too many lanes. it can quickly look like overkill.

I definitely think that's a European thing. In NA highway widening is commonplace. 10, 12 or even bigger highways are present in many of the larger cities. I myself live in a city that has built this;

And we're quite proud of it too

I don't mean to contradict your advice as its entirely accurate if you look at it from a more often than not perspective. But I also think its perfectly acceptable to be a little more flexible in regards to those specific points.

A question about the usage of trees here;

It's not very common to see that much foliage within an interchange in NA urban areas. Especially in between the off/onramps when they are directly next to the main highway lanes. I take it this is more of a European thing? The main problem I see with it is that I think it would be dangerous to have that many obstructions near the highway without having any barriers in between in case a vehicle goes off road.

El Argentino · March 31, 2015

Wow wow woow! Thanks very much for your information!! I too learn thanks to you. I never thought that with this "tutorial" i was to learn about the topic. And your image is so good! I meet a person that do the same like me, elevate the rails to put the transition. I really don't like the NAM transition from ground to elevated rail, i think that is very short it

Here in Argentina, we have a mixed between european and americans motorways. For example, the interchange between the Gereral Paz and 25 de mayo, is like says Mandel, any "slopes". Otherwise, on the motorway to west access, there are so much of this "slopes"

So i think that not there are a book that say How build.. like said Lost Realist "Of course you can build your own interchanges just the way you like it". I think that there are recommendations, but not a "tutorial step to step" Jaja what hypocrite that i'm

And i repeat, this only i did for give other "more realistic" use to the fantastic creation of NAM, the RHW.

Perhaps tomorrow i'm going to update the topic with the easiest.. the "Diamonds"

TakemeThere · March 31, 2015

Not a problem, glad to be of help!

Ideally the roadway should transition instead of rail line, but because of all the ruggedness/changes terrain height across my region it couldn't be avoided in many areas. Plus I think it looks interesting to change it up once in a while. The NAM rail transition was a very useful item for me in the past. But I agree its not for those of us who want to be as realistic as possible.

Also I wouldn't worry too much about coming across as saying this is how you should/have make them. I think you've offered some very good advice so far. It took me a long time to get the hang of making RHW interchanges, a tutorial like this certainly would of been useful to me years ago. I'm sure there's many players who are still trying to get the hang of using the RHW mod so more examples of how to build interchanges can only help - Keep up the good work :thumb:

Lost Realist · March 31, 2015

It's not very common to see that much foliage within an interchange in NA urban areas. Especially in between the off/onramps when they are directly next to the main highway lanes. I take it this is more of a European thing? The main problem I see with it is that I think it would be dangerous to have that many obstructions near the highway without having any barriers in between in case a vehicle goes off road.

In Europe, this is very common. Many interchanges will have a few meters of grass next to the ramps and the highways and then get framed in trees. I guess this prevents them from sticking out like a sore thumb and I don't think it's a considerable safety issue, or at least I've never heard of anything suggesting that. If the turns get steeper, guardrails are very common and often mandatory.

MandelSoft · March 31, 2015

You've definitely given some great advice, but I think its important to remember that there are always exceptions to the norm.

You always have sub-standard elements, even in countries with high norms. In the Netherlands, we have a really high norm for acceleration and deceleration lane lengths (400m is the norm on motorways, which would be equal to 25 tiles). However, this doesn't prevent that there are shorter ones. The shortest one that exists in the Netherlands is only 60 meters long; it's on the A27 near Breda. But usually there is a reason for this. In the case I just mentioned, there is a narrow bridge just after the merge. This limits the length of the acceleration lane.

It's not very common to see that much foliage within an interchange in NA urban areas. Especially in between the off/onramps when they are directly next to the main highway lanes. I take it this is more of a European thing? The main problem I see with it is that I think it would be dangerous to have that many obstructions near the highway without having any barriers in between in case a vehicle goes off road.

Usually we do have barriers in those locations, usually because the curves themselves are sharp already

Haljackey · March 31, 2015

Standards differ all over the world, and opinions can vary from person to person, especially when it comes to SC4.

This is a good tutorial. Don't get hung up on the 'super realistic' part.

El Argentino · April 1, 2015

Well, after of my First Update, and after all the discussion we had, which incidentally, was good, i going to update the tutorials with the easiest of the motorways, the Diamonds, uses for interchanges between the HW and a avenue, route, etc.

We will start with a Diamond "buried", underlevel.

Step 1. Preparing the terrain, with a Digger 7 mts.