Commonwealth updates

Replies:

Mike: I never really think to much about it. I just see a problem and work out the quickest way I can get a solution. In this case, there was a problem of traffic clogging up the road to get to I-302 from the avenue (which I have decided to call Sunnysidington Av. ). So the easiest solution would be to have the folks from Sunnysidington Av have direct access to Gateway Freeway. From there it's just putting the pieces together.

Carl: I try, but I know of some regions that would put my dowdy highways to shame (i.e. Aydina or Virgin Shores)

Dan: You cannot resist...

Qorten: Thanks

Apologies for not keeping up the pic parade. I haven't been feeling up to SC4 recently. I did get another town started, but didn't take any pics of it.

I do however have this blast from the past pic that I don't think ever saw the light of day before now, back when RHW was making its debut in my region as well as construction pictures. I think this was RHW 3...

Looks good!

oooooo interchanges

Going so far as adding in detail to make it a construction in process scene. That's commitment!

Indeed. It would be nice to get a pic of how it looks when it was finished and whether it has changed any over time with new RHM releases.

Replies:

Dan, Carl, Mike: Thanks

Qorten: It actually changed a LOT from when I started.
Here's how it looked immediately after I got RHW 3.0 (and I realize now the pic I showed you was pre-RHW 3.0)



I'll have to get a pic from recently, but it hasn't changed all that much from that pic.

Today I present more growth from Clearyville.







And a region view. I'm closing that suburb gap...

Ooooo it's a small town

Small city! Very modest downtown, i love it!

Wow, great pictures! I really like that city center, and the one with the railroad going through.

Yay for region views! And beaches!

*sends flock of mutant irradiated seagulls to the beaches*

Replies:

Carl: Yes it is

Mike: Thanks! Big city is a tile over

Qorten: Thank you. I have gotten rid of those trees since then, though, as they felt junglesque.

Dan: There'll be more beaches soon.

Today I'd like for you to pretend you're on the Johnson City Council and that I'm a representative of a committee from the Commonwealth Transit Department. You'll see why.

This meeting for the interim report on the progress of the planning of the Capital Beltway will come to order.
This meeting is to discuss the progress of plan reference number 3115199112, otherwise known as the Capital Beltway, designated as Interstate Highway 601. This freeway is being constructed as a circumferential highway around the capital city metropolitan area as a means to deter future congestion in the city center and to facilitate travel through and around the city itself. Although the city’s population is at only about 110,000 and the metropolitan area is barely over 275,000, we feel that construction of the Capital Beltway now, while the population is low and the land is inexpensive is the best plan, particularly when the time comes to widen and we’re faced with a large bill because development has pushed right up against the beltway.
Provided with your portfolios is an overview of the beltway’s projected path and an alternate view showing the area being affected by the freeway. We apologize for the poor quality, but that’s the best we could do at such short notice.





As you may already know, construction on 4 exits of the Capital Beltway, or Phase I, was completed some time ago and is getting usage comparable to the figures we had estimated. However, traffic levels are still rising and so Phase II is ready to be implemented. Phase II involves extending the west side of the Beltway to Interstate Highway 2, and this is what we’ll be going over today. Keep in mind these interchanges are not set in stone and are subject to change, but these interchanges are what most likely will be built.

Exit 1



Exit 1 is the interesting situation where I-601 splits around I-1 before ending. This is where we will begin our meeting. Exit 1 will have the mainline of I-601 extend past I-1, claiming a small neighborhood that may or may not have been authorized by the council to be constructed. Ramps for the eastbound lanes of the beltway will be added. Notice there is no access to WB I-601 from NB I-1. This has been noted, and will be addressed later. I-601 will have a half diamond interchange (Exit 1D) with Route 6 (Southern Blvd.) accessible from the eastbound direction only.

Exit 2



I-601 transitions back to a ground highway and passes under the Great Southwest Road, which will be elevated over I-601 on a new overpass. The interchange of choice here will be a folded diamond.


Option 1a/1b split



Two alternative plans have been drawn up for I-601 and this is the first of the two. The preferred route, option 1a, heads north here and that is the one we will follow for now.


Option 1a exit 3



Exit 3 is pretty complex due to the intersection of the Great West Road and Old Beltway Blvd. and the bridge I-601 will travel over to cross the Johnson River. The interchange is a cross between a parclo and a trumpet. NB, a simple exit ramp ends at Old Beltway Blvd, with a free flow ramp from WB OBB merging with NB I-601. SB, a similar free flow ramp will merge with WB Great West Road, while a loop ramp will intersect at the same intersection that already exists flowing directly into the Great West Road. A diagram of the intersection is provided in your portfolios as an example.



Exit 4 and 5



Exit 4 and 5 is rather complicated due to the desire to have full connections between the beltway and I-2/I-302 as well as Rts. 7/19 and so I will advise you to look to the image. However I will note the land being reclaimed in the southern portion of the interchange in order to have enough room to make it, as room is a premium in this neighborhood, unless we demolish a lot of development, which is something that wouldn’t be tolerated.

Option 1b split-3 stretch



The only noteworthy thing which warranted this picture is the farmland we would be acquiring and replanting trees (in the green area) as a natural noise barrier. Although we know many farmers would be adverse to freeway traffic behind their farms, we have offered to buy up their land for housing and commercial development and find them more suitable lands to set up their farms farther away from the urban cores of Johnson City and Braun City.

Option 1b Exit 3



Exit 3 in this option is much simpler than option 1a’s, involving a simple folded diamond.
Option 1b exit 4 and 5



This option’s exit 4 and 5 are just as complicated as option 1a’s, except there is more space in which to execute it. The interchange was designed for minimum weaving, as we aren’t exactly sure what traffic levels to expect. Notice the access to the Avogadro rail station from the I-601 to I-2 west ramp.


Here’s where we’ll end today’s meeting. I would like to ask each of you to consider which option you’d like to pick between 1a and 1b, although it’s not mandatory, but just so the Transit Department can get an idea of what the council thinks. Option 1a is the solid line on the reference map we gave you, and 1b is the dotted line.

1: Wicked stuff!

2: Definitely go for option 1b.

D: Those look very complex!

Nice

Qorten:
1. Thanks.
2. Your input is appreciated.

Carl: Thank you.



Welcome back. We hope you had enough time to think about the first section because we’ve already started building the beltway before giving you all the budget specifics and billed you for it finished the second portion of the proposal for your viewing.

Phase II, as you may recall, involves extending the Capital Beltway from I-1 to I-2. The next section we will look at is Phase IV. We will look at Phase III last as it is geographically later than this section. Phase IV connects I-2 to I-1 north of Johnson City, crossing over the Baltimore River.

Option 1a exit 6



Exit 6 will provide direct access to West Johnson City via a modified diamond interchange. The interchange was originally was going to be with Melbourne Rd, but it was decided the interchange would be too close to the interchange with I-302/I-2.
Exit 7



A simple diamond with the Great Northwest Road was recommended here. This might need to be upgraded in the future.
Option 1b exit 6



The specifications for this interchange are exactly the same as for option 1a’s exit 7 as is the road the interchange is for. The only difference is the wide curve to the east the beltway will take here.

Because of the different number of exits on option 1a and 1b, the next set of exits will have two numbers associated with them.

Exit 7 or 8
This exit isn’t going to be constructed with the rest of the beltway, because it simply isn’t needed yet. However, due to our country’s exit numbering protocol, we are trying to avoid massive renumbering by reserving this exit number ahead of time.

Exit 8 or 9:



This exit is for Route 19, to access New Baltimore to the north. The layout of the interchange is due to the New Baltimore river crossing.

Exit 9a-b-c/10 or 10a-b-c/11



This quartet of exits is for National Highway 3/Great Northern Rd, I-1 and Louvenia Pike. The unusually shaped interchange is due to the geography of the area. Interstate 1 is wedged between the city’s freight rail line and Paradise’s commuter rail line, and moving either one could prove costly. As a result, we had to get a bit creative with this interchange.



The alternate version of this interchange is what would be constructed if it were decided if a toll were to be put on the river crossing. The toll plaza would require westbound traffic crossing the river to collect before the plaza, eastbound traffic exiting after the crossing to exit after the toll, and westbound traffic exiting before the bridge and traffic heading eastbound on the beltway to do so more east than the former two things.

We at the Commonwealth Transit Department appreciate your input and will be back with our third portion of this proposal soon.

Very nice. I would use more of the 45 Degree and 90 Degree curves though if you have room.

Chip: will do.

Today marks the age of a new era. The Commonwealth is getting new route shields!



The five on the left are the new interstate route shields and the ones on the right are the new national highway route shields. The green on black interstate shield is for interstate business routes and the black/white on white/black are for business nat highway routes.

Ooooo New Shields! :DD

Carl: Thanks!

Sandy screwed me over so the only thing I did recently was start a new region. This is by far the biggest chunk of land I've ever started a region on, so I made a pic to compare it with what I've got of Paradise so far.

Warning: Picture is 12500 x 6600. Exercise caution when clicking this link.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/kj3400/Paradise/region/paradise_all_2012-10-31.jpg

It's starting to come together. D: Are you seriously going to try to render the entire island in simcity?

Yes. But not one entire region, that would be laptopicide.
I think 9 or 10 regions should get the islands and maybe 4 for Ikiana, but I'm not definite on the latter. I don't have any drawn up plans for Ikiana at this point.

Update time!

Part 3 of my extremely long for some reason beltway update deals with the northeast section of the new beltway.

After the Transcontinental Freeway interchange, the beltway proceeds to curve northeast, north of the newly constructed stadium complex. There’s no special interchange for the stadium, though if there is a need for one, there is plenty of space to fit ramps.



Exit 11 or 12:



A simple diamond with the now 2 lane Government Pkwy is all that’s planned for this interchange. Traffic levels are low enough now that this is all that’s needed at this point.

After exit 11/12, the freeway proposal diverges into its second pair of route options. The preferred option continues northeast, while the alternate option swings back southeast.

Option 2a makes it way toward NH 192.

Exit 12/13:



This interchange, besides providing access to and from west NH 192 from the west on the beltway, it also provides local access to Gateway, the airport industrial area and cargo loading depot. The road here (Gateway Av) will be upgraded to a divided highway at the interchange.

Exit 13/14:



This is where the beltway/NH 192 multiplex begins. The exit provides access to Airport Blvd for the rail station, parking facilities and hotels, as well as an alternate route to the airport. The interchange is rather unorthodox, having NH 192 merge with the beltway in the middle. But traffic levels are projected to be divided rather evenly between the beltway and NH 192, enough so that this setup is acceptable. The other reason for this will be discussed a little later.

Exit 14/15:


This exit… is already built, in its entirety. I’d show a picture, but there’s no point considering nothing about it is changing except some widening on the beltway portion. This exit, of course is the main access point to the airport, it being the terminus of I-302.
I mean I suppose I could show a pic...



Exit 15/16(clockwise):



This is the reason NH 192 is allowed to enter and exit on the left at exit 13/14. The multiplex is only for the I-302 interchange… As with the western interchange, NH 192 exits and enters on the left. This interchange also provides access to northbound I-5 for eastbound beltway drivers.

Exit 15/16 (counterclockwise):



The beltway begins its multiplex with I-5 at this point. The interchange is a simple fork, with priority given to I-5.

Exit 16/17:



The current situation is an at grade junction with Rt. 7. That would be changed to a diamond interchange.

Option 2b travels farther south of NH 192, effectively forming a bypass of Gateway and Sunnysidington.

Exit 12/13:



A simple folded diamond.

Exit 13/14 A-B-C-D:



By far one of the longest stretching interchanges in the proposal, this interchange will provide access to the Airport Expwy as well as I-302. Full access is provided between all roadways.

Exit 14/15:



This t-bone interchange will provide access to both directions of I-5. Priority is given to I-5.


One more part to go, I promise. Then we can get to the fun stuff.

No replies... meh

So, I'd like to wish everyone a happy new year, and because I can't think of anything else to say, let's start the final update of this arc.


The last section of the Capital Beltway will seem rather short. After all, most of it is already in the form of I-5 and the section of the Beltway between I-1 and I-2. It also means that except for the interchange with Rt. 7, the I-5/601 split, the section between I-2 and I-5, and minor modifications to the Beltway/I-2 interchange, this section is built in its entirety.


These last set of exits have three sets of possible numbers. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll’ve noted that there were four options and four combinations of those options and three sets of exit numbers shouldn’t make sense. Well, it does, because two of those combinations end up at the same number.







After I-601 joins I-5 wherever (depending on which options you choose; more on that later) one would assume that more traffic would equal a need for more than 2 lanes. Well, that might not be necessarily true. The region’s development thus far has been vastly uneven, which means areas only miles outside places like the capital are empty or lightly settled, and traffic is light enough so that I-601 and I-5 would probably be reduced to one lane each in the merge.



I-5 crosses a rail line, which will be the continuation of Pararail’s Cyan Line when the town of Woodbine requests a station. With the signing of I-601 and the extension of the Cyan Line pending, this crossing will need to be grade separated. There’s not much to explain here though. Overpass, no level crossing. Questions?


Exit 16/17/18:



Currently an at-grade junction because the low traffic levels on I-5, this exit is slated to be upgraded to a diamond, the very minimum needed for interstate standards. The definite widening of the stretch of multiplex would start here, which means the bridges to the south of here would need to be replaced with wider bridges. Of course engineering difficulties mean that bridge with an odd number of lanes or and, for one-way networks, anything over 2 lanes, is impossible for some reason. 2 lanes, sure, 4, fine, 6, cool. But 5 lanes, holy crap, call in the scientists, we got a problem here. But that’s a problem for another thread/team *cough*NAM Team*cough*.

Exit 17-18/18-19/19-20:



This recently built interchange is not going to be rebuilt, obviously. But there will be some widening efforts here, as development to the south is expected to creep east soon. This interchange is with the old road, Rt. 4, connecting Woodbine and Norwood to the new freeway, Rt. 33/the GER, which partially terminates here before ending at a T with a soon to be numbered route, probably 15.

Exit 19/20/21:



This is where the I-5/I-601 multiplex ends. This is just one of the two options for this interchange. The other is basically a mirror image of exit 14/15 in option 2b. The only reason there isn’t a definite decision for a partial or full interchange is because of the partial interchange where I-2 joins I-5 for a short time and it’s assumed these two forks could be considered a pair.

Exit 20/21/22:

This last stretch of Beltway is a straight shot, and so not important enough for a picture, passing north of Schulm Air Force Base (recently renamed due to confusion as to what ‘force’ the base was for). There are no plans for an exit here now, but the Department of Defense is looking into whether it would be needed later on, but previous communications have indicated it’s probably going to happen. This would be the region’s first military-only exit. It looks like the Transit Department is going to have to come up with new signage.

Exit 21/22/23 A, B(cw) A, B, C(ccw):



The interchange with I-2 is only half finished now that the plan for extending the beltway appears to be getting the green light. This interchange (which will be complex enough to get a name now) will be getting a fourth side and all the ramps associated with that side. Of course, the existing interchange was only ever a temporary setup in the first place, but only a small portion is being destroyed. There are possibly plans to have more ramps from I-601 to exclusively access the air force base, but once again, like with the I-5 interchange, plans aren’t definite, and probably won’t be needed, especially if exit 20/21/22 is constructed.

The last three exits you have already seen, as they are Phase I, but I’ll indulge you again.

Exit 21/22/23 C(cw), 23/24/25 B(ccw) :



The partial interchange with Airport Expwy. Weaved in between two interchanges so close, it doesn’t even get its own number, instead borrowing from the two surrounding it. It does its job well though, linking the new expressway to the airport with people from the southwest of the capital, although the west-north slips are going to need widening soon.

Exit 23/24/25 [A(ccw)]:



A standard diamond interchange with Rt. 6, partially seen in this picture, slightly complicated by the slips from Airport Expwy joining in on the west side.

Exit 24/25/26:



The nation’s only SPUI with Government Pkwy, which used to be NH 3 this far south, until the Transit Department realized it had made an error on the map between the bypass and the line the beltway now occupies. Problem was, the signs for the Beltway were made with this error, so they were pretty embarrassed at that.

So at this point we’ve come full circle as the phrase is said. That’s the beltway. Now when you’ve unstuck your face from the table and wiped the drool off your face,please note the poll. Since it's a two part question and this forum can't do that, you can just tell me in your comment. It’s time to decide. First of all whether you think the beltway should be built, and if so, what options. Of course, if you have any other ideas, by all means, choose other and let us know. We live to serve, and lay down massive strips of asphalt and concrete.

I do hope you enjoyed this arc that lasted much longer than it prolly should have. As a bonus, I’ve mapped out our hypothetical trip for you to enjoy and depending on the options picked, will show it again later.



Enjoy!

D: Moar roadgeekery xD

If I get time, I will leave this page open for a half hour and see if any of the pictures load.

lol True

Nice stuff