A shift is a stream of arrivals, departures and pass-throughs. Your job is to select the right track and give the right order at the right moment: early enough to keep things moving, but never so early that you foul a block.
- Select a track with the number keys or the arrows. The selected track is highlighted, and the panel at the bottom shows its current order.
- Admit an approaching train. Press A once to set the signal to APPROACH, and again to PROCEED (or THROUGH, for a pass-through service). The train moves onto the platform.
- Let it dwell. Passengers board and alight. The track bar works down as the dwell runs.
- Release on time. When the departure is due, press R to send the berthed train down the main line. Release before its booked time and you have an early departure.
When a train is about to go late and you cannot get to it in time, press H to hold. A hold buys you one grace window on that move, a short reprieve so a late train does not wreck your on-time percentage.
- Holds do not stack. Use one at a time.
- You have a limited number per shift (shown on the score line).
- An A-grade "No Hands on the Bell" clears a board using none at all.
A PASS service does not stop. Select its track and clear it straight THROUGH with A. Never berth a pass-through. There is nobody to pick up, and you will just be holding a platform you need.
Expresses run through the busy terminals constantly. Watch for them in the timetable ahead of time.
Every control is always live, including the unsafe ones. Four orders will trip a lockout:
| If you… | …the interlocking locks the track. Cause: |
|---|---|
| Release a train before its booked time | EARLY DEPARTURE |
| Release onto a main line already in use | DEPARTURE CONFLICT |
| Route a train into a junction already in use | ARRIVAL CONFLICT |
| Clear a train onto an occupied platform | PLATFORM CONFLICT |
When a lockout trips, the track shows FLT and stops working until you file the incident report correctly. That is Section 3.
Higher grades bring rain, snow and hard freezes, plus pre-programmed station faults and delays. They tighten dwell times and shrink your margins. You cannot stop the weather. You can only give yourself more room by working ahead of the board.
Clear the timetable, or reach the end of the shift hours, and you are graded on services cleared, on-time percentage, late minutes and lockouts. Clear every board at a grade to unlock the next tier of the roster.