--- |---|                                                      7, BITTON AVENUE
| D | K |  DEE KAY SYSTEMS                                     TEIGNMOUTH,
|---| ---                                                      S. DEVON,
                                                               TQ14  8HD


                                 R.T.C.   CREWE
                                 --------------


INTRODUCTION
------------

Crewe is situated on the WCML between Euston and Glasgow and is an important
North West pivot with routes diverging to N. Wales and Holyhead, to Liverpool
(at Weaver Junction 16 miles north) and to Manchester with important feeder
lines coming in from Stoke, the East Midlands, Shrewsbury and Mid-Wales.  You
are to control station operations at this busy location for a five hour shift
on a summer Saturday, getting traffic through the system as smoothly as
possible.

THE STATION LAYOUT AND OPERATION
--------------------------------
Crewe was a notorious bottleneck, with through expresses having to slow to 20
or 30mph to negotiate the maze of pointwork associated with the complex
junctions.  The whole layout was remodelled in a major engineering operation in
the summer of 1985 involving the near shut down of the station for seven weeks,
streamlining the layout and the raising of through line speed to 80mph.  A
schematic track plan of the revised layout is enclosed.  For simplicity many of
the inter-connections have been amalgamated in our diagram, and low level
freight avoiding lines and emergency platforms and loops west of platform two
are omitted.

Non-stop trains traverse the system on the through lines, which for simulation
purposes are dedicated to separate up (southbound) and down (northbound) flows.
Through stopping trains (both passenger and parcels) use the four main
bidirectional platforms, P1, P5, P6 and P11.  Holyhead trains to and from the
Chester line must obviously use P6 and P11 along with predominantly northbound
trains, with southbound traffic concentrated on P5 and P1.  Altrincham and the
Manchester locals share P1 with mainline trains, but other locals turn round in
dedicated bay platforms (P4 for Stoke line services, P7 for Shrewsbury line
services, P9 or P10 for the Chester shuttle, and P10 for Liverpool trains).
Main line trains for the south approach on the down fast or down slow lines,
but from the north we artificially segregate non-stop and stopping traffic to
the up fast and up slow lines respectively.  Therefore priority can be given to
through passenger services.  Arriving passenger trains may be signalled into an
appropriate empty platform once you are notified of their approach to Crewe.
There are booked platform service times, but to allow for contingencies and the
possibility of making up lost time you will be notified when trains are ready
to depart only then will you be able to direct movements out of the station.

The timetable is based on a mixture of workings in the summer of 1985 and 1986,
with a few additional relief trains.  Individual trains and services in
complete routes may be subject to operational delays beyond your control, and
you will have to cope with these using your discretion.


TRAFFIC MOVEMENTS
-----------------

Workings in the simulation have four character British Rail style reporting
numbers.  The first digit gives the category of the train, with 1 for express
passenger, 2 for local passenger, 3 for parcels and 6 or 7 for freight
workings.  The remaining details include regional or area destination codes and
allocated working numbers.  These appear on your screen as abbreviated
originating and destination locations (see appendix) and running information.

For each input route you are given up to 15 minutes notification of the next
arrival.  As each working nears Crewe you will be informed, you then have three
minutes to set up a route before the train is held at the station approach
signals.  The procedure for setting up a route is to press the SPACE BAR, and
then in response to prompts enter the appropriate two or three digit codes of
the desired input and exit points using the ENTER/RETURN key (pressing
ENTER/RETURN alone after either prompt restarts the simulation without penalty
and may thus be used to give thinking time or to take a break from play).  If a
route is correctly set for the working, and does not conflict with previously
set up movements, the train will be signalled in and in due course (with a
running time of typically 2 minutes) will traverse the route.  As a reminder
that a route or routes are set, a small square is shown on the appropriate side
of the station until all movements on that side of the station are complete.

Non-stop trains have for ease of identification reporting numbers prefixed by
an asterisk, they should be directed through the system from an input line
directly to the desired output line.  Category 1 expresses should be dealt with
as soon as possible to avoid checking the trains on approach, but through
parcels and freight trains are of low priority compared to other workings and
may be held for up to 10 minutes at the approach signals without penalty.

Passenger and parcels trains booked to call at Crewe should be directed to a
platform appropriate to the working.  As stated earlier locals must be dealt
with in specific platforms, where after unloading they automatically assume
their return workings.  There is only one express which turns round in this
manner, the 1K09 Euston-Crewe due at 1308 hrs and booked to return as 1A42 at
1400 hrs.  This can be handled in any convenient mainline platform, the
locomotive automatically runs round the train during the lay-over.
Euston-Holyhead trains change from electric to diesel traction (and vice versa
on return) in the platforms, you will be informed when this occurs.  When a
train is ready to depart you will be notified, it should then be directed away
as soon as possible by setting a route from the platform to the desired output
line (note a restriction here on the Liverpool locals which are only allowed to
depart on the down slow line).  Provided there is no conflict of route a fresh
train may be signalled in as soon as a platform becomes empty.


MOTIVE POWER
------------

The simulation may be used for spotting in that details of the motive power of
each working are given as you direct movements.  Most WCML expresses are in the
hands of Class 87, 85/2 and 62/4 electric locomotives.  Other electric types
appear, along with Class 33 and 47 diesels on passenger duties and Class 20, 56
and 58 diesels on freight turns.  As occasional Peak (class 45) may also turn
up, and there is a daily H.S.T. (Class 253) from Plymouth to Liverpool.  Locals
are in the hands of Sprinters (Class 150/1) diesel units or Class 303 and 304
electric multiple units, although a Class 310 EMU is also booked to appear.  A
plus sign in front of a power unit number denotes multiple motive power, the
number given being that of the leading locomotive or unit.


STARTING POSITION
-----------------

The simulation begins at 0930 hrs with a train in platform 9 forming the 1115
departure to Holyhead.  Locals to Altrincham and Derby await their departure
times in platform 1 and 4 respectively, and almost ready to depart is a
Liverpool-Paignton express in platform 5.  There is an early rush of traffic,
and if everything is running to time you may find it convenient to direct the
first arrival from the down fast line (the 1S47 working from Euston to
Inverness) across to platform 5 to keep the western through platforms available
for trains to and from Holyhead expected around the same time.

The simulation runs until 1430 hrs, when you are given an efficiency
performance rating.  Although things can run smoothly, you will soon appreciate
how little slack there is in the system and you may have to work hard to avoid
extreme delays to traffic.


LOADING THE PROGRAM
-------------------

SPECTRUM   The program is loaded by typing LOAD""

COMMODORE  The program is loaded by pressing the RUN/STOP key and SHIFT
together

BBC        The program is loaded by typing CHAIN ""

AMSTRAD    The program is loaded by typing CHAIN "Crewe"


                           APPENDIX 1 LOCATION CODES
                           -------------------------


MAIN LINES NORTH                                     MAIN LINES SOUTH

(UF, US on arrival)                               (DF,DS on arrival)
(DF,DS on departure)                              (UF,US on departure)

Abd  Aberdeen                                     Bir  Birmingham
Ayr  Ayr                                          Ble  Bletchley
Bar  Barrow                                       Brs  Bristol
Blk  Blackpool                                    Eus  Euston
Car  Carlisle                                     Pad  Paddington
Fid  Fiddlers Ferry power station                 Ple  Poole
Gar  Garston docks                                Plm  Plymouth
Gla  Glasgow                                      Pnz  Penzance
Inv  Inverness                                    Ptn  Paignton
Liv  Liverpool                                    Pts  Portsmouth
Prs  Preston                                      Wil  Willesden
Stl  Stirling
Str  Stranraer
Wig  Wigan                                       SHREWSBURY LINE
                                                       (SW)
CHESTER LINE                                      Abw  Aberystwyth
    (CH)                                          Cdf  Cardiff
Chs  Chester                                      Pwl  Pwllheli
Hol  Holyhead                                     Shw  Shrewsbury
Lld  Llandudno                                    Swa  Swansea


MANCHESTER LINE                                  STOKE LINE
     (MN)                                            (ST)
Alt  Altrincham                                   Dby  Derby
Man  Manchester                                   Gra  Grantham
                                                  Not  Nottingham
                                                  Oak  Oakamoor quarry
                                                  Skg  Skegness
                                                  Stk  Stoke
                                                  Tot  Toton yard

Parcels and freight workings have their originating locations replaced by
PCL parcels          COY  Company owned railfreight    MGR  Merry-go-round


Allowed Crewe platform codes are P1,P4,P5,P6,P7,P9,P10 and P11
