Things have changed in the last half-century: the gold has gone, Australia has become a nation, agriculture and (increasingly) manufacturing have become the economy’s foundations. The landscape has changed with increasing population, and many gold towns are now ghost towns, replaced by thriving regional centres.
You have a chance to replace the aging 5’ 3” broad gauge with a new standard gauge (4’ 8½”) system, matching the Commonwealth (trans-Nullarbor and Central Australian) and New South Wales systems. You will face a wide variety of at times competing demands. Your task is quite simple – meet the demands!
Note that your priority is to build and run the system. Victorian Railways is government-owned, so there’s no competition. (Society being what it is, there are still rewards for accumulating personal wealth.) You’re scored on a point system. The scenario moves through a series of phases, each with its own quota for medals. Minimum time is 30 years; after that, at the end of each phase you can elect to continue or to claim your medal. Keep an eye on the status page (press ‘A’) to check your progress.
A hint: steel yourself! You won’t get far without a good ferrous industry. This scenario is abour building and running a railway, not about breakneck tycooning, so don't be disappointed if this isn't your style!
Start date: 1855 (compulsory) Location: New South Wales, Australia Author: Peter Bennet, Melbourne, Australia (bennet.peter.j@edumail.vic.gov.au) Version 1.1: December 2004
Sydney is located on a fertile plain, but hemmed in between the Pacific Ocean and the Blue Mountains, a rugged sandstone range running parallel to the coast. For many years after the colony's foundation no Europeans had even crossed the ranges (although of course the indigenous population travelled freely among them). When they were finally penetrated in 1813 a vast expanse of excellent grazing land was discovered, and by 1855 there are large flocks of sheep out on the Western Plains. So far the cockies have relied on slow, unreliable bullock wagons to bring out the clip, but there is a desperate need for better transport.
The Sydney Railway Company has just gone bust trying to build the colony's first railway. As usual there were various factors, but the main ones were lack of a skilled workforce (competition from gold rushes, first in California and then closer to home in NSW and Victoria), overambitious plans and the expense and delay of shipping materials and equipment from the Old World.
Now the Government has taken over the works and appointed you to get things going. Your goals:
Bronze: Connect Sydney with 19 other towns, including Bathurst Transport 5 loads of goods to Bathurst Silver: Complete bronze conditions Connect 25 towns Transport a total of 10 loads of goods to either/both of Goulburn and Musswellbrook Gold: Complete silver conditions Connect all 36 towns Transport a total 5 of loads of goods to either/both of Queanbeyan and Wellington Transport a total of 150 loads of wool to either/any of Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong
Restrictions: This is now a Government railway, so no share or company dealing Construction materials are limited: you get 100 cells of new track each year. This can be increased by an extra 50 cells for exceeding each of these targets within a calendar year: 10 loads of wool 20 loads of lumber 5 loads o steel a quota of total loads, which increases each year (the increment depends on game difficulty level) (Note: you get an extra 50 cells for each of these targets, so a maximum of 300 per year.)
Geographical note: I've made the map as accurate as I can, but I started with a heightmap from the Mapbuilder which is probably not detailed enough at this scale. Most of it looks right, but I had real trouble resolving the area around Springwood, Katoomba and Lithgow and ended up shifting these slightly to make the climbs more real. If anyone who knows this area (which I dont') is offended by its inaccuracy, I’m happy take submissions!
Railfans note: the ZigZag Railway near Lithgow is a famous and spectacular railway construction, long bypassed by the main line but still running a preserved railway. Check out its website at http://www.zigzagrailway.com.au/
