Train scheduling 2.0

[p4ssAxYNaZYPwS-hZWzj]

TL;DR

Selecting train stations with some kind of wildcard-character system/based on parts of the name of the station.

What ?

For the train scheduling changes coming in 2.0 would it maybe be possible to make it so that one can select a train to go to a station based on only part of the station name? I.e., if I name station A "Iron plate dropoff | Stone dropoff | ...", a station B "Iron dropoff" and station C "Iron plate dropoff | Copper wire dropoff" that I'm able to make it so that a train can go to any station with "Iron plate dropoff" ion the name (if it carries iron plates).

Why ?

It could increase the value of Factorio because it would add more options to designing a train network.

[MeduSalem]

Probably they could make that.


But I have kinda to ask the question why do you want to make your life harder by using such "shared" station names in the first place?

I mean, I can only think that you want that because you want all the platforms of a huge station to be used by all trains going there, whether it delivers plates, cables or whatever.

But in practice you will only "save" a negligible amount of platforms doing that.
And what is worse, if all platforms are blocked by trains offloading for example iron plates, then there is none dedicated available to offload cables. You would have to wait on the iron plate trains to finish first. And that can possibly cause a deadlock because your machines start stalling, waiting for cable, but the trains with cable cannot unload because the trains with iron plates also cannot unload because the belts are all full backed up with iron plates since the machines stopped working waiting for cable. What a nightmare.


Wouldn't it be just easier & better to do it like you have to do it currently and just name all the stations where you want Iron Plates... "Iron Plate Dropoff"? And one for Cables "Cable dropoff" and whatnot.
That way you will always have dedicated platforms for each resource type and you will not run into a situation where trains with resource A block trains with resource B.



Anyway, with trains 2.0 they will allow a single train to basically do absolutely everything and do stuff conditionally, with those interrupts and whatnot. Even though it will be one hell of a schedule. And I am kinda on the fence if that will be worth it, or if it will still be rather the meta to have dedicated trains for each resource because that is the safer way to avoid messing something up. ^^

[FuryoftheStars]

A tags system I think would be better.

And why is this in General instead of Suggestions?

[sparr]

FYI you can overlap train stations already. I do this in some of my tiny rail grid factories. Put 3 stops on the same rail right next to each other. Name them "Iron Dropoff" "Stone Dropoff" etc. Then line the track with inserters to unload all the possible wagon locations. Balancing unload gets a bit harder as you go past 2 overlapping stations (or 4 with bidirectional rails), but it's doable with some tricks.

[Koub]

And why is this in General instead of Suggestions?

Because I was at work XD.
[Koub] Moved to ideas and Suggestions.

[Illiander42]

FYI you can overlap train stations already. I do this in some of my tiny rail grid factories. Put 3 stops on the same rail right next to each other. Name them "Iron Dropoff" "Stone Dropoff" etc. Then line the track with inserters to unload all the possible wagon locations. Balancing unload gets a bit harder as you go past 2 overlapping stations (or 4 with bidirectional rails), but it's doable with some tricks.

You can do better than that if you use long enough trains.

You fork the rail after the unloads, and have one station per fork at the right distances to have the wagons be in the same places for all of them.

[FunMaker]

I like your ideas to handle multiple types of cargo at the same station. But for me this is not a real solution to the problem. These are nice ideas of bending the game to have it doing what you want - but it looks weird from my expectations. I am all for a tagging system or something that makes it possible that one station (pickup & dropoff stations) can handle multiple cargo types with the new train scheduling system.