The Train Sim World Roadmap
Welcome to the roadmap for Train Sim World 5, where we share insights into our progress on new content, updates and future announcements for developments from both our teams, and our range of third-party partners.
If you’re joining us for the first time, this is a monthly check-in that will continue the conversation between our teams and all of our community, and share what you can expect coming up this year for Train Sim World, from both Dovetail and our external partner teams, including brand new announcements, updates and sneak peeks on our routes in-development, as well as new ways for you to get involved with mastery rewards and upcoming events!
Today we’re excited to announce a new year of Festival of Rail, full of new livestreams and content from Dovetail Games and our wonderful ambassadors. We share the release dates for Mittenwaldbahn and the Metrolink F59PHR locomotive as well as share all new screenshots for the development of Cardiff City Network and 'first route based in The Netherlands - Zwolle Groningen! We also have brand new details to share for the upcoming Thomas & Friends™ Visit the West Somerset Railway add-on!
Our Third Party Partner section has more news for the upcoming Santa Fe Gameplay pack from High Iron Simulation, as well as the next dev blog from Just Trains with their Class 86/2 add-on. Continue reading for more news on upcoming patches and updates from across the game and our community, including a brand new mastery reward we’re releasing soon.
Let’s get into it!
Festival of Rail 2025
We’re also excited to announce that Festival of Rail 2025 is kicking off from February 6th until February 10th, our Celebration of all-things Trains, bringing you all your favourite TSW creators onto our channels to help us promote the excitement of the railway, with additional content from our Dovetail teams too!
Expect to hear more about this further on in the week, but we’ll be hosting our Roadmap livestream a little later than usual to fit into this window. Catch us on Friday February 7th at 19:00 UTC where we’ll discuss all of this live and answer your questions in the chat! You can find a stream event link at the end of this article.
Content Up Ahead
Mittenwaldbahn: Innsbruck - Garmisch-Partenkirchen – Arriving February 11th
A retro setting, a classic locomotive and cross-border travel. Mittenwaldbahn is coming soon from the TSG team, releasing on February 11th!
Catch a glimpse of Mittenwaldbahn in our recently shared First Look video:
The route, set in 1989 and developed by Train Sim Germany (TSG), features cross-border running between Austria and Germany and introduces the classic Krokodil style locomotive to Train Sim World.
The might of machinery makes a molehill out of a mountain – step back into 1989 and embark on a daring climb. Featuring steep gradients, stunning scenery and the iconic ‘Krokodil’, head off on a nostalgic adventure between Germany & Austria!
Even with electric traction, traversing a mountain range is no small feat for a standard gauge railway. The Mittenwaldbahn features many tunnels and iconic bridges, with incredible ruling gradients as steep as 3.8%. Such lines offer challenge, but also scenic wonder; take-in the sights of the peaks and valleys, with the rails rising as high as 1.1km above sea level and Seefeld providing the summit of the route.
Read all the details in full on our Mittenwaldbahn – Coming Soon article.
Additionally, all new stock for Mittenwaldbahn will come with the Indusi safety systems, which will be explained in a Mittenwaldbahn manual coming around the launch.
New Changes to the BR 111
The BR 111 was put back into its 90s state for this route, now coming in an Ocean-Blue & Cream livery! With exterior and cab model changes, as well as a control and physics changes:
- PZB90 removed and Indusi i60 added
- Door controls systems removed
- Modifications to the Air brake system to bring it closer to the prototype
- Remotored and modified power system to get performance more in line with the prototype
- New controller for the electric brake
- Corrected number of notches on brake valve
- New audio for converter, brake valve and some controls
- Electric brake function added when emergency braking is initiated (Hilfsschütz notbremse)
- Function of Schleudern and Gleiten indicator corrected
- Minor correction to the function of some of the switches like the train light switch
The cab model in particular has had big changes, removing the newer door controls, FIS, changing the instrument and gauge layout back to it´s original 90s version. Here are two screenshots that show the difference between the modern and old cab.
Finally, we’ll be joining the TSG Development team for a Mittenwaldbahn preview next Thursday, 6th February from 19:00 UTC on our YouTube / Twitch channels. Join us then to see more of this nostalgic adventure between Germany & Austria!
Metrolink F59PHR loco Add-on – Coming Soon!
A North American classic revs up for Southern California service in Train Sim World 5. The Metrolink F59PHR loco Add-on will release later this month in February.
We first revealed this loco Add-on during the 2024 Season of Reveals. Players will be able to take charge across California, with regional passenger services out of Los Angeles, and hustling along either the newly released San Bernardino Line, or across the Antelope Valley Line.
Like the Train Sim World 5 Gameplay Packs, this release is only available for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Steam and Epic.
The Locomotive: Metrolink F59PHR
Derived from the GP59 freight locomotive, the F59PH was designed in the 1980s to deliver new passenger diesel equipment to emerging commuter networks. Kitted out with 3000 horsepower and Head End Power, the F59PH was among the top brass of locomotives, making them a clear candidate to work in tandem with modern cars and capable of handling busy schedules.
First settling into service in Toronto, Canada, the early 1990s saw a fleet of locos ordered for Metrolink to embark out of Los Angeles and run across their sprawling Californian network. As years have rolled by, so has technology, but despite two newer diesel types in traffic today, the F59PH hangs on as the F59PHR – a rebuilt variant which can meet modern emission standards, hence the “R” designation in the name.
As part of their age, the Metrolink F59PHRs still hang onto their classic white undercoat, a stark contrast to the silver sheen of their passenger equipment. The F59PHR comes accompanied with bombardier bi-level cars in their grey liveries and the accompanying Conductor Mode.
The Routes: San Bernardino Line + Antelope Valley Line
The F59PHR will be available to operate in timetable mode across both Metrolink routes available for Train Sim World 5. In San Bernardino Line, included in Train Sim World 5: Standard Edition, Metrolink trains power through the LA suburbs and out along the east-west route to San Bernardino via 57 miles of track and 15 stations (16 total).
At LA, trains pass by the freeway and run effectively alongside the road traffic, before branching out of the city. Built up residential areas and industry fade out into a landscape of smaller towns served by Metrolink’s commuter services, passing by Kaiser Mill and the Auto Club Speedway station, which only serves passengers on race days!
The Antelope Valley Line was part of Train Sim World 4: Standard Edition and is now available as a separate route Add-on for Train Sim World 5.
The real-world route has origins in the late 1800s and closed to passenger and freight traffic in the 1970s before being reopened as a commuter rail service in the early 1990s.
Trains also depart the impressive Los Angeles Union Station but this time head off in the direction of Santa Clarita to the north, before turning east toward Palmdale and north again to Lancaster via a brand-new station at Vista Canyon.
Using Train Sim World 5’s Route Hopping feature, players with both routes will be able to ‘hop’ between them at LA Union Station. This feature is also available at San Bernardino Depot for players that own Cajon Pass.
The result is potential gameplay sessions involving three Metrolink passenger locomotives and services across two of their routes – from San Bernardino through to Lancaster, with a break at LA Union Station.
Free Roam will also allow players to spawn in the F59PHR onto other USA routes in their collection or the Candian National Oakville Subdivision route Add-on, where these locomotives originally ran under another operator prior to their move to California.
Schedule and Scenarios
The F59PHR will substitute into passenger services on both San Bernardino Line and Antelope Valley Line, mixing things up with the F125 and MP36PH-3C locomotives. There will be three Scenarios to play on Antelope Valley Line. These feature:
- A service where one of the locomotives is taken out of service for scrapping
- A celebration of a service anniversary prior to the introduction of the newer locomotives
- A service involving the recovery of a failed locomotive
Train Sim World 5: Metrolink F59PHR loco Add-on will release later in the month of February for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Epic Games Store, and Steam for $16.99/£12.99/€15.99
Cardiff City Network: Radur & Coryton to Penarth & Bae Caerdydd
Today we’re bringing the colour with new screenshots for Cardiff City Network, following our initial loco models we shared back in December. Shown below is your first look at the revamped Class 150 in it's new TfW livery in Train Sim World 5!
Additionally, we've also got a sneak preview of the cab views from the Class 153!
The Class 153s were originally built as 2-car Class 155s, but as part of their rebuild to become single-car units, a 2nd cab had to be squeezed into the rear of each vehicle. This resulted in a much more compact environment for the driver, and with the frequent shuttles Cardiff City Network provides, you'll be spending plenty of time in each cab.
Spoorlijn Zwolle – Groningen
Following on from our first Welsh route, let’s talk more about our first Dutch route! We also have the first set of screenshots that show the NS ICMm “Koploper” in the route, with more details and a first glimpse inside the cab!
And here we have it - the cab of the NS ICMm “Koploper” in full detail, with an incredible view out the front to really emphasis the increased height!
We can't wait to keep showing you more for this incredible journey to the Netherlands, and you won't have to wait too much longer!
Thomas & Friends™ Visit the West Somerset Railway
Following our announcement in December, we’re excited to share new screenshots for the Thomas & Friends™ Visit the West Somerset Railway Add-on coming soon to Train Sim World 5.
As we’ve shared, this add-on will focus on a story-driven gameplay experience, with a fun narrative that follows the adventures of Thomas and his friends throughout their visit to the West Somerset Railway. In these screenshots, you may also notice that the West Somerset Railway route has received a few new updates to boost the foliage and improve the landscapes, we’ll share more details in the coming weeks.
Following user-testing feedback, and other learnings from watching players pick up Train Sim World for the first time, we’ve also made the driving controls much more accessible for anyone to be able to pick up and play.
You can take Thomas the Tank Engine, Annie, Clarabel, Diesel and the Troublesome Trucks on any route you like within Train Sim World using the Free Roam feature. We can’t wait to show you more, and as one final treat – here's a very short audio tease of Thomas' iconic whistle!
Stay tuned to our news articles and social media posts to get the latest on Thomas & Friends Visit the West Somerset Railway, coming to TSW5 this year.
A New Unnannounced German Route
Finally, we can confirm we have our next German route in development, which we've holding back from announcing at this stage, but keep your eyes out soon for what this may be...
Third Party Partners
Santa Fe Gameplay Pack for Cajon Pass – High Iron Simulations
Let's check back in with the High Iron Simulation team to here more progress for their first TSW5 release – the Santa Fe Gameplay Pack for the TSW5 Cajon Pass route!
High Iron Simulation: "This pack will bring Santa Fe railroading of the early 1990s to the Cajon Pass route and will feature two locomotives, the AT&SF EMD SD40-2 in blue-and-yellow freight colors, and the Santa Fe GE C40-8W in stunning Santa Fe “warbonnet” livery."
"Freight equipment will be highlighted by three all-new types of freight cars: A Santa Fe two-bay cement covered hopper, Santa Fe three-bay ribbed-side covered hopper, and an example of the iconic 86-foot auto parts boxcar."
"The pack will also include an existing TSW boxcar, 3-bay coal hopper, and auto rack in Santa Fe livery as well as the use of other, era-appropriate existing TSW rolling stock."
"The pack promises a robust – and authentic – operating experience. Timetable services will include numerous player-drivable services featuring mainline intermodal and freight trains, switching, and locals. The services are closely based on actual Santa Fe freight schedules and horsepower assignments of the era. Additionally, Union Pacific freight movements across the Pass will be represented in an extra layer using UP equipment from the Sherman Hill route DLC. The pack will also include a selection of scenarios."
"And as a bonus, High Iron is also pleased to announce another member of its TSW project team, with Jonathan Lewis of Milepost Simulations joining us to develop new Train Simulator Classic content under the Milepost Simulations brand."
"With a team of eight experienced developers, High Iron Simulations looks forward to providing the TSW community with a range of quality products, and soon the announcement of our first route under development!"
BR Class 86/2 & Mk2F Coaches from Just Trains
Earlier today the Just Trains team shared a new blog that dives into the details for the exterior of the Mk2F coaches and what makes the different types of what they are. Read the full details in the latest Just Trains development blog, or see an extract below:
Just Trains: "The Mk2 family of railway coaches were British Railways second design of coaches. They were built in the UK from 1964 until 1975 and were of steel construction.
"The Mk2F stock are air-braked and all have air conditioning. They are electric heated and so if they were not connected to a loco with an electric heater supply the heating did not operate. Using extensive research we have carefully modelled three types of the MK2 and have applied two types of liveries, BR Blue Grey and Intercity."
"Each piece of railway stock has a title applied to it and this title designates what type it is."
BSO: This stands for: Brake Second Open. This coach has a Second Class passenger seating area along with a Guards compartment and luggage area.
In the Guards compartment there is a hand-operated brake that is applied to keep the rake of coaches static when not connected to a locomotive. The passenger area contains a toilet compartment.
FO: This stands for First Open. This is a First Class only coach with a toilet compartment at each end. The "Open" part of the name means that the coach is not a compartment coach.
TSO: This stands for Tourist Second Open. This is an Second Class all-passenger coach with no compartments but with a toilet compartment at either end.
Thank you to the Just Trains team, we look forward to sharing many more details and screenshots for the upcoming Class 86/2 & MK2F Coaches add-on in the future.
London Overground Mildmay Line – New Screenshots!
We’re checking back in with Incredible Games as they have shared a selection of fantastic new screenshots from the Capital that offer a sneak peek at what's coming with this new Overground add-on!
Incredible Trains: "The Class 378 Capitalstar debuts a completely new and unique cab layout. Unlike its Electrostar cousins, the Capitalstar is designed without a traditional gangway and instead features an emergency door complete with foldable emergency stairs."
"Get ready for authentic urban life coming to your screen with TfL Routemaster Buses and London Cabs seen navigating across the route. Additionally, for owners of the Suffragette Line, repainted Class 710 units will make an appearance around Stratford—sporting liveries that represent both 9-car Elizabeth Line services and unbranded 5-car Greater Anglia services."
"A breathtaking view from a rooftop café reveals the magnificent skyline of the capital—a perfect backdrop for some relaxing downtime in-game."
"For those of you who own the Class 700, AI Thameslink services will be visible on the midline mainline, which intriguingly crosses the Mildmay line multiple times. This is just one example of the many AI services that will be populating the route, with a diverse range of traffic heading north from the capital."
Please note the images above show additional content from other Train Sim World Add-ons that layer on to the route, but are not included with the Mildmay Line add-on.
And don't forget to follow Incredible Trains on their social media channels for the latest news and exclusive insights:
Additional Projects in Development
Finally, just a short note to mention that our other add-ons in development we’ve not covered in this roadmap are still progressing well, and we will continue to share more news in the coming months in future articles and roadmaps.
Patches & Updates
Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn – Post Release Update
Following the release of our first TSW5 German route last week, we’re continuing to work on the known issues we outlined ahead of launch, as well as fixes for community raised issues since launch.
From our development builds, enjoy a few screenshots of much busier Mannheim and Kaiserslautern stations!
Key elements we’re looking at improving:
- Off-world PIS destinations may not display correctly.
- Some additional AI services for the BR 425, ICE 3M and BR 642 (from Maintalbahn) have not yet been implemented at Mannheim, Neustadt and Kaiserslautern.
- Playable and AI layers for the BR 628 from Niddertalbahn have not yet been implemented.
- Passengers stop appearing at stations along the route, or appearing on tracks.
We’re also still taking in more feedback, so please let us know if you have anything to let our teams be aware of in our Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn - Feedback Thread. Once we’ve got a date locked in to address these issues, we will let you know via our usual announcement’s channels – thank you for waiting patiently for these improvements.
We’ve also got a new feature we’re excited to announce, coming soon to Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn! For owners of Edinburgh-Glasgow, one of the new layers will be adding AI onto the Mannheim tram network. This includes outside Mannheim Hbf and the bridges over the Rhein to Ludswighafen.
This addition will make the route feel even more alive (with more screenshot opportunities!), and for those who do not wish to see them, you can remove them with the layer selector.
A New Mastery Reward — Introducing Route Posters!
We promised that we would be adding a new kind of Mastery Reward to replace decals and they are nearly here! Today we are introducing Route Posters! Similar to scenery tiles, these posters will appear in the world once you've unlocked them. However, the difference is that these posters will appear across all TSW5 routes in the region. To start with we have three regions: United States, Germany and United Kingdom. Here's a peek at the first two German Posters we're launching:
We'll be adding posters as new mastery tiers to all existing TSW5 routes, including the three core routes the game launched with, and all of those routes will support showing the posters along the route. Oh, and dont like one of the posters? Don;t worry, just like scenery tiles these can be individually disabled in the Mastery Rewards section of the UI.
In addition, we still have February's monthly challenges, which are already live!
Köln-Aachen Free Timetable Update — Add-on List
We’ve been talking about the upcoming Köln-Aachen timetable update for a little while now, coming soon to bolster the total service count with a huge new selection of playable and AI services. As a reminder, this will be a free update to owners of the route, and today we wanted to share all the add-ons that will add layers on to the route following the update.
- Bremen-Oldenburg
- Dresden-Riesa
- Frankfurt-Fulda
- Hauptstrecke Hamburg – Lübeck
- Hauptstrecke Rhein-Ruhr
- Linke Rheinstrecke
- LGV Méditerranée
- Maintalbahn
- Main Spessart Bahn
- Ruhr-Sieg Nord (DB BR 363)
- Salzburg-Rosenheim
- Schnellfahrstrecke Kassel-Würzburg
- FlixTrain BR 193 Vectron
- DB BR 101
- DB BR 218
- S-Bahn Köln BR 423
As a note, this is an aspirational list of add-ons that has yet been fully tested at this stage. This currently includes everything being added to the timetable, but there may be changes and potentially differences between Gen 8 and Gen 9 platforms. We will confirm all of these once we’ve completed testing and gotten the update ready to release to you all.
Fife Circle Sprinter Timetable — Update from Skyhook Games
We checked in with the Skyhook Games team, who are currently working hard on the Cargo Line Vol.3 Intermodal and Cargo Line Vol.4 Military add-ons. Both of these are progressing well, and their focus is now on the completion of timetable services for the supported routes.
Here's an update from their team on other developments and improvements:
Skyhook Games: "Looking at out back catalogue, we have been working on service updates following the great feedback we receive from players. On the list being planned for release with Dovetail are updates to Cane Creek, Horseshoe Curve, Cargo Line Vol.1 Petroleum and Vol.2 Aggregates, the ScotRail Class 158 and Midland Main Line."
"Follwing this, work continues with the Fife Circle Sprinter timetable (for which some images are hopefully provided below), while many of the improvements seen in the ScotRail version have also been implemented into the East Midlands Trains original and we look forward to releasing those very soon for all to enjoy."
Highlights include:
Conductor Mode for the Midland Main Line Class 158
TSW5 track shadow improvements to Skyhook Games routes
Particle effects returned to Ratcliffe Power Station on Midland Main Line
Player drivable Intermodal services using Cargo Line Vol.3 on Midland Main Line
Suspension Improvements added to Cargo Line Class 66 locomotives
Minor texture improvements to assets and rail vehicles on Midland Main Line
Keep an eye out for more details from the Skyhook Games team for their upcoming add-ons, and when we have news to share for the upcoming Fife Circle timetable update.
Community Corner
PC Editor Mod Manager Developments
We wanted share an update for our developments on the PC Editor, and what we're currently working on for future improvements to help support you all using it!
Back in January, we mentioned a new feature we're developing called the Mod Manager, and I spoke to our Tools Engineer Will, working closely on the PC Editor, for more details on what this will do.
Will: "The most significant addition will be the mod manager, a way for simplifying the cooking and packaging process. The intention is that in just a few clicks you can have a creation made in the editor working straight in the game. It consists of a window where mods can be defined and saved, with a button at the top to cook the mod."
"We are also adding a 'new-addon' wizard to help simplify the process of setting up plugins. This provides a list of template plugins such as a route or gameplay plugin and helps automate the initial process of setting up all the folder structures and some assets."
Thank you Will! At the moment, we're looking at getting these new changes into a build ready to be tested, and once we have the initial feedback we can use this to make any final adjustments and get this out to you all. It's important to note that these features won't be ready by next week, and will likely be something we prepare over the course of the next few months, but we'll keep you updated on our progress as we go.
Caltrain License Removal & Ending Sales
Today we have an update to share regarding the expiry of our Caltrain licence agreement and how that will impact related add-ons. Our teams are working with new licensors all the time to bring an authentic experience to Train Sim World with the inclusion of real-world brands. However, in rare cases our licences expire without renewal and whilst we do our best to work closely with our licensors, it can result in us needing to make changes to how we distribute and sell affected content.
This particular expiry impacts the following add-ons:
Train Sim World
- Train Sim World®: Peninsula Corridor: San Francisco - San Jose Route Add-On
- Train Sim World®: Caltrain MP15DC Diesel Switcher Loco Add-On
- Train Sim World®: Caltrain MP36PH-3C Baby Bullet Loco Add-On
Train Simulator Classic
- Train Simulator: Peninsula Corridor: San Francisco - Gilroy Route Add-On
- Train Simulator: Peninsula Corridor: San Francisco – San Jose Route Add-On
- TS Marketplace: Peninsula Corridor: San Francisco - Gilroy Scenario Mini-Pack 01 Add-On
- TS Marketplace: Peninsula Corridor: San Francisco - Gilroy Scenario Mini-Pack 02 Add-On
These add-ons will remain on sale until February 27th, after which they will be removed from stores. For those who are yet to purchase these add-ons, we will be running a last-chance sale on selected platforms. We will share more details about this sale closer to the time.
For now, it may be best to consider this the last opportunity to purchase these licensed add-ons. If you already own the add-ons above, or decide to purchase them before the February 27th deadline, you will not be impacted by the licence expiry and will be able to continue enjoying the official Caltrain branded content for the current version of Train Sim World that you are playing.
Our teams are also investigating potential ways in which we can bring the Train Sim World add-ons back after they are removed from sale, and we're working through this process with guidance from Caltrain. We don't have anything to confirm just yet, but once we have more news to share, we will keep you all updated. Thank you.