Just received my copy of ProTrain's newest add-on, "Cultural Heritage Semmering Railroad", and thought I should give you a brief illustrated review.Although I only did a few short check rides starting from various places on the route I think it is safe to say that this add-on is definitely on par with ProTrain's celebrated Leipzig-Dresden package. The route as presented in this add-on has a total length of about 71 km (44 miles), starting at Wiener Neustadt and terminating at Muerzzuschlag.
However, the actual "heart" of the Semmering railroad is the 41-km (25.5 mi) section between Gloggnitz and Muerzzuschlag with its large number of viaducts and tunnels and steep gradients, representing one of the biggest engineering challenges of the 19th century. Construction of the real semmering route started in 1848 and was completed in 1854 under the supervision of Carl Ritter von Ghega. Ghega rejected the use of iron constructions, which is why bridges and viaducts were built from a total of 65 million bricks and 80,000 square stones, contributing much to the impressive durability of the route.
The total elevation difference between Gloggnitz and Muerzzuschlag is 457 metres (1,499 ft), with the peak height being 898 metres (2,946 ft) above sea level. There are sixteen viaducts with a total length of 1,500 metres (0.932 mi) and fifteen tunnels for a total of 5,400 metres (3.35 mi). The steepest gradient on the route is 2.5%, while the smallest curve radius is 190 metres (623 ft).In my opinion, the route is very nicely detailed and scenicked, which is why there is the danger that you might spend more time gazing at the scenery than at the cab instruments .Rolling stock includes the ÖBB class 1110 heavy electric freight engine (which has the best sound of all, IMO), class 1142 electric multiservice engine, class 4020 electric commuter/regional trainset and class 1044 electric multipurpose engine. You also get a selection of passenger coaches and freight cars which are, in my opinion, done just as nicely as the engines.
However, I do have a minor gripe with the 1044, whose cab is not quite finished yet (in fact, there is a large BETA label in the lower right corner of the front view cab graphics) and which uses the basic Acela sounds. If you happen to have one of Kami Kiafar's original freeware 1044s, you might copy over the Cabview folder from there, or you might wait and see if there will be an upgrade for the PT 1044. However, this issue is not a show-stopper in any way.
If you're into European railroads in general and/or mountain railroading in particular, this route is definitely what you want. In my opinion, ProTrain have again proven their worth, and, on a personal note, made me eager for their upcoming Geislinger Steige package, which will be released in early 2003 .
Below are a few shots I took on my check rides...1) Class 1110 double leaving Muerzzuschlag. As I said, the 1110 has the most impressive sounds of all engines from this add-on...a deep, sucking roar which reminded me of NALW's turbine engines ...2) Cab shot on board a 1142 looking at a tunnel3) Another cab shot from a 1142 approaching Wiener Neustadt4) Looking down at a passenger train pulled by a 11425) Class 4020 regional trainset departing Wiener Neustadt(two more shots in following message)
Dominik MannProud German railfan - Visit www.tssf.de www.bahn.de : Official DB web site
http://mercurio.iet.unipi.it/ : The European Railway Server
Attachments
http://www.train-sim.com/dcforum/User_files/3dfb16b135fee556.jpg
http://www.train-sim.com/dcforum/User_files/3dfb16c2360fb301.jpg
http://www.train-sim.com/dcforum/User_files/3dfb16cd3622309d.jpg
http://www.train-sim.com/dcforum/User_files/3dfb16d83636d68a.jpg
http://www.train-sim.com/dcforum/User_files/3dfb16e3365a579c.jpg
Printer-friendly page | Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
