(BUG Workaround)How to automate a train going back and forth between 2 stations with a 3th inbetween

Question

Hello fellow Ficsit train-workers!

I've been trying to find a way to automate my train but i just dont seem to get it right. Might be a bug or might be me being stupid :p

Anyways, ive got my main station. The train leaves from there going straight to the second station than continues to the 3th. Than it goes in reverse to load off resources at my main station. For some reason the time table doesnt get this and so when it reaches the 3th station it doesn't go back to main but just stays there telling me its stuck because it cant reach the station inbetween, even though i told it to pass that station and go straight back to my main station.

While writing this i was still trying to figure it out, and i did! so to make a train go from A to C while stopping at B in between than reversing, going all the way back to A and than repeat, your timetable should look like this;

A->B->A->C->A

Its really weird, but its the only way i got it to work. It would be much better if you could just make your timetable the obvious A->B->C and let it repeat that.

Please let me know if you guys find any better way to do this (without making a loop).

Greetz, XireX

Answer 1

With bidirectional trains, the schedule is advanced one extra time every time the train reverses direction, but the train will maintain the original target until it stops to the next station, after which it will again advance the schedule and pick the next station, ultimately skipping a stop. You can work around this by adding the station which comes after a reverse twice in the schedule: Let's say you have stations <A, >B, >C (arrows for the direction of the station), you can make a schedule A,A,B,B,C and it will work, because it will change directions at A and C. I have tested this workaround with moderately complex scenarios and it works consistently, but it may show strange behavior initially depending where the train stops first after the schedule is activated. I believe this is a legit bug related to the schedule handling of bidirectional trains.

Comments

I also use the multiple destinations in the timetable option with bi-directional trains to 'bodge' this , I have

(< >  shows the direction of the station)

<A-----B>-----C>-----D>-----E>

and the timetable is set to

A
A
B
B
C
C
D
D
E

The train stops at every station just fine.

Not ideal, but it saves having to put extra stations in the line to allow them to stop AND add them to the timetable also.

The REAL fix for this issue would to only allow the NEXT station to change when the train stopped at a station and not when it reversed (regardless of which of the engines was at the front) with the timetable just looping back to the start when it reached the end.

Answer 2

stations have a direction (there's an arrow on the model).
automated trtains need to enter the station in that direction (and need to be able to go that way).

Comments

I know that, but if you build station A going <-- and B and C --> you cant simply tell your train to go to A than B than C. it will get stuck upon reaching C . But i got mainly trown off by the way you have to put it in your timetable. But as said above, i got it to work, just a bit weird to do it like that.

Answer 3

The first thing you need to do is add train station to both ends of the platform. Make sure the arrows are pointing outwards. E.G <-A1=A2-> (This "->" represents the direction). So your track should look like  A1=A2---B1=B2---C1=C2 (Letters represents the train station, = represents the platform and - represents the track). Then in the timetable set it in the following order A2 B2 C2 C1 B1 A1 A2. Then it should work.

Comments

The other thing you can do is put a loop at the end of stations A & C, so your train can turn.

Answer 4

You have to look at the arrows on the train station platform. Idk if it works for single trains but i got it to work with 2 trains and cart(s) in the middle.

So with a double train backnforth setup, to make it go to the third, the arrows gotta be like this.

<A B> C> And the time table A B C A

This is a simple solution, and if u want it to go to C then to B, just reverse the B arrow by replacing the station and your set to go. And as long as its in the right order on the time table, you don't need to do a AABBCC. Just a ABCA Unless u want ACBA that is.