New Elevated *Network* Facelift Mods

[MIncroabl]

Due to popular demand, I have begun work on converting the El-rail Facelift Mod to monorail:



I'm opening this thread mainly to keep myself motivated, as I have a very low opinion on the default Disneyworld-runaway monorail (I honestly don't know what you people see in it..  ) and the conversion is quite monotonous work.

That said, I've also started a project that I personally find much more interesting:



I'm also planning on revisiting the old mod to add some features I omitted before (e.g. oneway road intersections).

[DFire870]

Ooh, great work! Personally I sometimes use the monorail for airport trams, but other than that I never use it because it's not very realistic.

Although, I'm glad you're working on the elevated highway too. I think what would work well with the elevated highway is if you had some of the textures be parking lots. Even if they're not functional, it would look great in high-density areas.

-- John

[RippleJet]

I'm opening this thread mainly to keep myself motivated, as I have a very low opinion on the default Disneyworld-runaway monorail (I honestly don't know what you people see in it..  ) and the conversion is quite monotonous work.

Pitäähän kaikille kirjoittaville apinoille tarjota mahdollisuus nauttia kyöstin taidoista!

That was just to spur his motivation!

That said, I've also started a project that I personally find much more interesting:

[Pat]

Sweeeeeet 2 more new faces, talk about getting a brand new SC4!!!  Thank you MIncroabl....

[rooker1]

This is great news, about the el highway, that is.


Robin 

[Krio]

Thanks to MIncroabal, I will actually might use monorail some day

and RippleJet: 

[MIncroabl]

RippleJet: 

I think what would work well with the elevated highway is if you had some of the textures be parking lots. Even if they're not functional, it would look great in high-density areas.

Not a bad idea at all, though the parking lots would look a bit odd, as the parked cars would probably be cut off from roads. I'll keep your suggestion in mind though, as I have to create brand new prop setups for the highways.

[Kitsune]

Looks great - I'm really glad to see it get extended to el highway!

[rushman5]

Awesome, now my ghettoed elevated highways won't look so, countryish!

[DFire870]

Not a bad idea at all, though the parking lots would look a bit odd, as the parked cars would probably be cut off from roads. I'll keep your suggestion in mind though, as I have to create brand new prop setups for the highways.

Oh yeah, that's true... I use frontage roads so for me the parking lots would be connected to the roads. Perhaps you could rotate the parking lots so that the entry/exit points run along the length of the elevated highway, so when a road/avenue crosses underneath the parking lots would have an exit or whatever.

-- John

[snorrelli]

I don't know if it provides motivation but I personally am thrilled  you are adapting the mod for monorail. One of the reasons monorail looks so unrealistic is the supports running through the middle of cities on plain grass. Of course the default monorail skin is also hideous. I would never use it if it weren't for the few custom skins that are out there...

[Filasimo]

i actually dont use the dinky monorail style but rather the HSRP mod just for aesthetic reasons

[Andreas]

Personally, I love the monorail - of course with a custom skin as well. I can understand that some people think of Disneyland in the first place, but with a proper setup, it can be a very effective mean of transportation. Also, the number of BATted stations is rather (way too) low, so you don't get much variety in the game. Regarding the parking lots beneath the highway, that would be very appropriate indeed - and even more appropriate if Shadow Assassin releases his "urban highways". As for the road access, just look at the in-game buildings and where Maxis has placed those parking lots and garages.

[figui]

i love this new project!
as i almost never use monorail, i'm mostly interested in el-highway mod.

mauricio.

[MIncroabl]

I was pretty happy to discover that the conversion process is much faster than I had originally thought. It takes me about 25 minutes to convert one full set, including the additional prop lots. This has allowed me to complete the industrial part of this mod in record time:





As it can be seen in the pictures, most of the intersections are complete too. The rest of the mod won't be complete overnight, but I can guarantee it'll be faster than the previous one, as I don't have to create anything new.

Regarding the parking lots beneath the highway, that would be very appropriate indeed - and even more appropriate if Shadow Assassin releases his "urban highways". As for the road access, just look at the in-game buildings and where Maxis has placed those parking lots and garages.

Yup, I've noticed that. That's why one of my projects a year or two ago was that I created new exemplars for every Maxis building and lots to go with them. I may even have a solution to the road connection issue too.

[Filasimo]

hey mincroabl:

dont forget to make a sandstone version! 

[Krio]

25 minutes
You're fast! I wish I could produce quality bats as fast as you produce quality mods

[MIncroabl]

dont forget to make a sandstone version! 

The props used are the same as in the el-rail mod, so sandstone is guaranteed.

25 minutes

Well, all I have to do is change 3 properties and one IID in every exemplar of the el-rail mod, so it doesn't take that long.

[Andreas]

25 minutes
You're fast! I wish I could produce quality bats as fast as you produce quality mods

Well, you'll have to keep in mind that the original mod needed more like 25 hours per set to create...

Looking great so far! But now it clearly shows that the in-game monorail supports don't exactly win a beauty contest. It didn't look that bad on the green grass, but concrete on concrete is quite an eyesore. Not that I would mind, though.

[snorrelli]

Well I think it looks great! Big improvement... can't wait...