Is loop based train design totally broken?

[siggboy]

+1 and +1 to DarkHelmet and MrGrim. You guys understand the problem here.

The stations being used as turn-around points is not a problem. Some might consider it "unclean" because it's not the purpose of a station, but since the station is not used at that moment it does not make a difference.

What does make a difference, however, is that it's possible for the train to waste a lot of time. I don't think there's an upper limit of train stupidity; like what MrGrim reports I've seen trains move 500 tiles into the wrong direction (and back), to "avoid" a congested spot, when the correct thing would have been to wait at that spot.

There's probably no way to avoid this other than not giving a train a chance to actually do it -- and that's by not building turnarounds into your network, or make turnarounds plentiful enough so the detours will at least be short...

[MrGrim]

Some of that inititive that makes them go on grand detours would be great in situations like that.

LOL That made my morning. Thanks!