The UFO-like tones of Desiro duty resonate through the suburban streets of Glasgow, get ready for more round-and-round running along the Cathcart Circle as the iconic and eye-catching Class 380 rolls into Train Sim World 4 on Thursday, July 11th!
A New Electric Train for Scotland…
One in, one out – 380102 coasts beyond the confines of Glasgow Central’s expansive roof on 2N22, the 09:35 service to Neilston, meanwhile, an unidentified 385 reaches its journey’s end with a terminating 2B83 from Lanark.
...or at least it was when introduced into service almost 14 years ago! Built in Germany and transported by rail to Scotland, the Class 380 was designed to be a modern and stylish capacity boost for ScotRail’s ever-growing electrified commuter network. Much of the train’s technology is derived from its counterparts within the Desiro UK family, although is distinct with a very different body profile and front end.
Adding more than 7500 passenger seats to the network, the tailor-made 380s were swift to enter service, with the gap between first delivery and first public use only being a few months. Since 8 December 2010, the fleet of 38 units (divided up into 3 and 4-car sets) have found use primarily around Glasgow. A handful of 380s also had the honour of being the first EMUs to operate the Edinburgh to Glasgow line following its electrification.
Prior to their delivery to Scotland, early testing and commissioning days for the Class 380 began on the Wildenrath test track in Germany, the very same which inspired our Training Center (above). In the early days of Edinburgh - Glasgow electrification, the 380s were the first EMUs to operate on the line (below). Use Scenario Planner or Free Roam at your will to recreate the E2G transitional times!
Train Sim World 4: ScotRail Class 380 EMU Add-on will be available from Thursday, July 11th for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Epic Games Store, and Steam for £12.99/€15.99/$16.99
Cathcart Circle Remastered
The Cathcart Circle Remaster will feature the following:
- TOD4 Upgrade (latest lighting, volumetric clouds & fog)
- Updated route scenery, landscape and foliage
- Updated track and signal visuals
- Updated the Class 314 with new lighting, rain effects and added GSM-R
- Updated Glasgow Central lighting, scenery, PIS and passenger spawn locations
- Updated all stations with new lighting and passenger spawn locations
- Added new lighting to the bridges around Glasgow
- Added scenery for the disused Netherton Goods, Crossmyloof and Dumbreck stations
- Added scenery and track for the disused Smithy Lye sidings
- Added scenery and lighting for Shields Depot
- Added interactable player bench at Glasgow Central and Pollokshields East
Above: 380005 pauses at Cathcart on a moody Autumnal afternoon, halfway through a clockwise trip around the circle on 2O40: Glasgow Central to, well… Glasgow Central! Below: The mixed atmosphere of cool and warm light cuts through the mist and onto the platform at Crosshill, all while 380002 slows on a night-time 2P15 to Glasgow Central, having originated from Newton.
The Cathcart Circle Remaster update will go live across all platforms early next week. As part of this, we will be updating the store pages soon to reflect the route’s new visuals. In the meantime though, you can pick up Cathcart Circle on Steam as part of the Summer Sale! Save 50%, get started with the Class 314 and get ready for the updates and Class 380 launch.
You can join the Railfan TV team on Twitch and YouTube for a preview of the EMU Add-On and the remaster at 19:00 UTC today, July 2nd.
With the big news out of the way, it’s time to talk services – buckle up and get ready to learn all there is to know about the brand-new Cathcart Circle timetable, this is going to be a long segment…!
Please note, this timetable is not part of the remaster, you need to purchase the ScotRail Class 380 to get this timetable as it plays such a pivotal role in transforming the experience – you will still have access to the original Class 314 timetable.
Timetable Deep Dive
Written by Product Marketing Coordinator James
For those of you who may recall, when we upgraded and extended Southeastern Highspeed for Train Sim World 3 – I went in detail breaking down all the differences and improvements that the new timetable offered. Get ready to read, as once again I’ve been let loose to do a timetable deep dive, this time covering Game Designer Joe’s incredible work to bring us an all-new Cathcart Circle experience.
A Recap
Cathcart Circle released with approx. 200 services for the Class 314 and was additionally accompanied with a few layers featuring a railtour, and an engineering-like service with some JNAs. The pathing and timing of the 314’s services were suffering a similar problem as original SEHS, the service start time was actually the booked departure time, making timekeeping a challenge.
At the time, with the 314 being the only ScotRail train in our roster, (and there only being 16 of them in reality), the decision was taken to not overdo their presence. As such, the whole timetable experience consisted of 8 3-car formations. This prevented things like rush hour variety, some services were missing, and of course, Glasgow Central felt rather empty.
Morning rush hour in the original Cathcart Circle timetable.
Times Have Changed
Fast forward to today, and thanks to releases such as ScotRail Express from Rivet, as well as the upcoming ScotRail Class 158 from Skyhook; the Class 314, combined with the likes of the Class 385, and of course the upcoming Class 380, can all now share Glasgow duties and represent a range of services. When opportunity calls, Joe and I get to work!
The ScotRail fleet has grown in Train Sim World! From left to right: Rivet Games’ Class 385, Dovetail Games’ Class 380, Dovetail Games’ Class 314, Rivet Games’ Class 170 and Skyhook Games’ upcoming Class 158. Screenshot by tester Josh Rubio.
The Research
First off, the reference that has been used for this timetable is something of a mishmash; those who know their train history will already be able to tell that the Class 314 retired (gulp) nearly 5 years ago! And, the era which Cathcart was originally represented (2014-16) isn’t necessarily suitable for the Class 385 to be present at all. Taking all this into consideration, we decided that the best approach was to do whatever was necessary to offer the busiest possible experience, even if it was a little anachronistic.
Reference for a majority of the timetable is based on the December 2023 WTT (Working Timetable), but with some additions from the recent June 2024 WTT. However, that also involves re-adjusting some services to match the route we have – for example – for months now the line to Barrhead has been electrified, but in our route, it is not, so that AI will be represented with diesels which we will get into later.
Diagrams and Formations
For electric traction, we are mostly following the simple pattern of; if it’s a 380 or 385 in 2024, then it’s that in-game, if it’s a 318 or 320, then that’s when the 314 is used, but not to the point where there’s too many of them. Lastly, the Class 158 will be filling in for the Class 156. That’s where the simplicity ends though, Glasgow Central is complicated, the way diagrams and different formations are used is wildly complex, and as a result, each multiple unit is essentially doing its own job throughout the day. There is no substitution involved with ScotRail services as that would result in many issues – trains like to couple at Glasgow, but that’s impossible if the wrong formation subs in!
There will be times when an AI comes in from another part of the ScotRail network, forms a few playable passenger services, and then returns to being AI – make sure to check the boards to find which service you can drive next.
The mix of timetables, available stock and tendency for things to change ad-hoc on the real railways mean this might not be 1:1 representation when looking at online resources on any given day etc. but this is a step-change from the original and as close as one can probably get to the general daily experience of the Cathcart Circle.
Class 380
Split into its 2 subclasses, the 3-car 380/0 and the 4-car 380/1 have various roles on the playable services and their diagrams shift around the network all day. For example, the 380/1s run the Neilston services during the off peak, but as soon as rush hour begins, they are displaced to run other services, including AI off-route, meanwhile 6-car Class 314 services run the rush instead. As for the 380/0, this spends most of its time running the circle service, or to Newton via both sides of the circle, and does so both in 3 and 6-car formations.
The Class 380 therefore has the following playable services:
- 380/0: 40 Newton services (via both sides of the circle)
- 380/0: 22 circle services (clockwise and anti-clockwise)
- 380/0: 8 Neilston services (2 return runs in the evening, complete with the turnback shunts in 2 parts)
- 380/1: 78 Neilston services (again, including the 2-part turnback move)
- 380/1: 8 Newton services (via the west side of the circle)
- 380/1: 7 circle services (primarily anti-clockwise)
- Both subclasses: 28 shunt services in and out of Shields Depot (in 2 parts)
Services which involve shunting or turning back have been divided into parts to ensure the AI operates them correctly; in the original timetable, where these were represented as a single service, the AI didn’t change ends so would shunt into the siding at Shields, then reverse all the way into Glasgow!
On a typically damp spring afternoon, 380112 operates the rather odd once-a-day 5O50 to Crosshill, where after a momentary stop, it becomes 2O50 round the rest of the circle back to Glasgow. Upon arrival into Platform 10 at 16:24, 112 will stable there until 17:24 when it becomes 2N34 to Neilston, with Paisely Canal and Wemyss Bay services also occupying the platform in the interim.
As you can tell by tallying up the total, the 380 plays a fundamental role in Cathcart’s operations! Now let’s move onto the train that started it all.
Class 314
With about half of the services taken up by the 380, the 314 now fills in the gaps, itself finally running in both 3 and 6-car sets! As already mentioned, places like Neilston outside of the rush hour rely almost entirely on the 380, but you will get opportunity in the morning and evening to experience this. In the meantime, the 314s spend most of the day on the rest of the Cathcart network.
The 314’s services are broken down like the following:
- 52 Neilston services (with 2-part turnbacks)
- 24 Newton services (via both sides of the circle)
- 9 circle services (clockwise and anti-clockwise)
- 12 shunt services in and out of Shields Depot (in 2 parts)
314205 and 380111 offer some warmth for the morning commuters of the Neilston branch (above). The “PEP” is the primary people mover along the branch in the peak hours, and this last one to run in the morning will be the first one to run along here again in approximately 7 hours’ time. 205’s day looks like this: following termination of 2N19 at Glasgow, it will operate a Newton return, then once around the circle in each direction, then Newton 2 more times - coupling to another 314 (itself having worked the Circle and Newton all day) when arriving at Glasgow to commence 6-car Neilston services in the evening peak, starting with 2N28 (below).
In all, that makes up the majority of the playable ScotRail services on the route. Aside from some additional services which were missing originally, and the increase to late-night half hourly Neilston trains with the June 2024 WTT, the numbers when compared to the previous timetable aren’t massively different. But what this timetable does finally offer is a more realistic variety throughout the day, and what is perhaps the star of the show in our next point, Glasgow Central.
Glasgow Central
As mentioned before, Glasgow Central is complicated, or perhaps a more accurate word to use is insane!
We wanted to make Glasgow a proper place to train spot, and that involves doing what hadn’t been done before, adding in all the AI to every off-route destination, and the first problem that presented, was platform sharing.
Despite having 15 surface platforms, the frequency at which Glasgow Central operates necessitates the use of platform sharing; that is when a train enters an already occupied platform. Odds are, when starting a service, your train will no longer be up against the buffers, but there will be another train behind you. Equally, on approach to Glasgow, you may find you need to request permission to enter and stop short of a different formation – this is not an indication of a coupling instruction, as the trains are still intended to leave again on different journeys.
As seen briefly in the June Roadmap, it is not unheard of to even have 3 separate trains in some of the longer platforms, and they are all timed appropriately so only the next-departing service has its doors open.
So even with all that space, you will often find that there’s multiple formations in practically every platform, as well as sometimes the need to queue and wait for your slot in a particular platform, and that’s because there is A LOT of AI present in this route now.
The AI includes:
- Half-hourly Prestwick Town services
- Hourly Barrhead services
- Hourly Edinburgh via Shotts (fast) services
- Hourly Edinburgh via Shotts (slow) services
- Hourly Edinburgh via Carstairs services
- Half-hourly Gourock services
- Half-hourly Paisely Canal services
- 2-hourly Carlisle services
- 2-hourly Kilmarnock services
- Hourly Ardrossan Harbour services
- Hourly Largs services
- Half-hourly East Kilbride services
- Hourly Lanark services
- Hourly Wemyss Bay services
These services are divided up between the rolling stock in as realistic a way as possible, and in fact, it is common for playable formation to become AI formations and vice versa. To get the full effect of this, you will need to additionally own the Class 385 and Class 158 (when it is available), as they fill in for gaps which the 314 and 380 could not do alone, but even without these, there will be plenty going on.
In this timelapse, observe the morning rush hour at Glasgow Central from about 06:00 to approximately 08:30 with all layers present - can you spot the railtour? Please note that the Class 158 is still WIP.
Also in the Glasgow area, and around Shields depot, there will be handful of ECS moves using layered stock, and this means the likes the Class 385, 158, and even the 170 each have a playable, albeit short ECS move. A nice note, the criss-crossing lines around Glasgow play host to most of these ECS moves, so keep an eye out while passing under other lines.
Headcodes
It’s worth noting that ScotRail’s services are setup a little differently than other TOCs in the UK. Unlike on Southeastern Highspeed for example, where each headcode group (1F, 1S, 2K etc.) incrementally increases throughout the day, and only repeating if necessary, ScotRail repeat their headcodes much more often, and as such, you can often find multiple services with the same name running at different times of day, and with different trains/formations.
Newton
Before we wrap up with ScotRail, we cannot forget Newton station. Newton’s layout is a 2-platform station, with 2 adjacent passing tracks, and several of the service patterns listed above, as well as additional traffic from Glasgow Central low level, will feature as AI here too! So in between the playable services, you will see AI which heads to and from Glasgow via Cambuslang; some of this AI will call at Newton, others will shoot by on the adjacent tracks.
As 380011 pulls into Newton, ahead of a returning service to Glasgow, a pair of 314s depart bound for Motherwell (above). A short while later, a pair of Class 385s race past Newton’s avoiding lines on a service from Lanark to Glasgow Central (below).
With ScotRail out of the way, it’s time to talk other layers!
LNER
While not the most frequent visitor to Glasgow Central – the LNER Class 801 Azuma shows up a few times a day and is visible both on the approach to the station, and also passing Newton station where appropriate.
At around 0615, an empty 801 from Polmadie depot terminates in Glasgow Central platform 2 to form 1E06, the 0648 service to London Kings Cross. Between 1315 and 1345 an empty stock move both from and back to Edinburgh will briefly pause in platform 2. Lastly, 1S23 from Kings Cross will terminate at 2125, returning empty to Polmadie at 2145.
Azuma Solstice. During the long summer days, 1S23 from Kings Cross can enjoy the last waning minutes of daylight as it snakes into Glasgow Central, having left England’s capital some 6 hours ago. On its journey this service calls at several stations including Peterborough, Newark Northgate and Doncaster, and can be driven on the ECML timetable!
Class 66 Work
In the original timetable, a single service was present which used the Class 66 and JNA wagons from East Coastway to represent an engineering works ballast movement. This is something that happens in reality, but the JNA wagon is not the right wagon for the job. Now, we are using the more up to date Class 66 and more appropriate MFA wagon from Southeastern Highspeed. We have also made it 2 services, so you can drive the ballast train into Glasgow then back out again. These services run in July and August.
We have also now added in seasonal RHTT services, using the equipment which didn’t exist at the time of Cathcart’s original release. 3S91 is the headcode for the RHTT circuit, and depending on its path it is both playable and AI throughout its run. The playable services operate between 05:30-07:20 and cover most of the route. As per other routes, these services run between September and November.
Lastly, making use of Rivet’s Engineering Express pack, there is a single service using the ONE liveried Class 66 where you drag a 385 on a 1Z99 rescue run to Shields depot. This service runs in May and June.
66587 makes a special one-off appearance on the Newton branch, inbound to Shields Depot with a poorly Class 385 in-tow. 1Z99 is the standard headcode for a rescue run (above). As the first rays of light cast over a misty Autumn sky, 3S01 is seen passing Pollokshields East on its RHTT circuit – upon arriving at Newton it will continue to clean up the rest of Glasgow’s network (below).
Railtours
They had to get in somewhere, who doesn’t love a good railtour! From the chance to drive something classic to the rare find when trainspotting, we wanted to retain this experience, but also make better use of newer stock and seasonal capabilities. As such, unless mentioned otherwise, railtours will be using the maroon Mk2 coaching stock from Flying Scotsman.
As one can imagine, with a full roster of passenger services now in Glasgow Central, it’s harder to find a spare platform which can accommodate railtour stock – so the following have been implemented to work in conjunction with the much busier traffic.
1Z55 Ayr to Bo’ness: Whistle while you work with this top n tailed Class 40 set that snakes its way from Shields Depot to Newton. Rare track awaits as you traverse the lesser-used curve that avoids turning around in Glasgow Central. This railtour runs in September and October.
1Z33/1Z40/1Z42: Glasgow is no stranger to tours at odd hours and this run is no exception! Under the shadow of night, run a Class 47 on the last leg of a tour into the city. After only a few hours kip, it’s an early rise for the excursion goers – take a trip around the circle in Crompton fashion, turning the set around for the 47 to depart back towards Newton and beyond. This railtour runs in May and June.
1Z97 Mossend Up Recp to Bo’ness: The railtour from the original timetable returns! Once a 2-part from Glasgow, to Neilston and direct to Newton, you can now also enjoy a third part to drive the railtour into Glasgow first. This formation uses Blackpool 47s as its base, although multiple locos can sub in as you wish, and it is now the same length as the tour that inspired it; 4 coaches instead of 3! This railtour runs in May and June.
1Z55 takes the dive; starting near Shields depot, the first thing this railtour does is crawl underneath the lines to Glasgow Central on the single-track spur which connects directly to the west side of the Cathcart Circle (above). Nestled among the countryside to Neilston lies the Waukmill Glen Reservoir Viaduct, at approximately 235 metres long it carries trains over water to and from the villages of East Renfrewshire. Today, a chopper takes the stage midway through 1Z97, ultimately bound for Bo’ness. Being uphill, the Neilston branch is tough work for a twenty!
Lastly, as seen in the timelapse, Flying Scotsman makes an AI-only appearance at Glasgow Central in the mornings of July and August.
Wrap Up
And with all that said, that is basically everything you can expect for the new ScotRail Class 380 Cathcart Circle timetable! To reiterate, this timetable comes with the Class 380 itself and is not part of the free remaster, but you can see the stark difference that we have been able to make with more trains, signalling and pathing improvements. Also remember that the full extent of the AI will also depend on Skyhook’s Class 158 which we will share more news on in the next roadmap on July 9th.
Combined with the remaster, Cathcart Circle feels like an all-new route – whether you opt for trainspotting at Glasgow, or running a full shift around and around the circle, we look forward to sharing this new experience when the Class 380 releases on July 11th!
From one UFO to another, look forward to a route experience out of this world and enjoy AI traffic encounters of the third kind. Get your Area 5.1 surround sound ready to play the unearthly tones of the ScotRail Class 380, landing July 11th!
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