RHW (RealHighway) - Development and Support

[Shadow Assassin]

It will have MIS merges. The textures are already there, and have been since the puzzle piece days of the MIS.

[MandelSoft]

Just another question: What's planned after version 21: El-RHW, wider RHW, both or something else?
My oppion is that the El-RHW should have a higher priority, because I miss the El-RHW more than the wider RHW. It doesn't matter that it's not draggable in the first case (just like the NAM overpasses). Please let me know.

Best,
MRTNRLN

[TEG24601]

I would like to see the ability to make RHW overpasses, and El-MIS, but isn't this is supposed to be Rural Highway? Last time I checked, there weren't many places that had miles and miles of elevate rural freeways, except in rare instances.  I would love to see the tunnels finished so they can be used in the game.

TEG

[nerdly_dood]

Well, it was supposed to be rural highway, but then again, why not make it so that you can use it in urban and high-traffic environments?  The Maxis highways are okay, but they just don't look right, even with the asphalt pavement mod.

[j-dub]

Their too narrow, and they goofed it up with the cement wall on the sides, when those could have either been shoulders, or had the lanes wider. They had the room, but then would the Rural Highway even exist if the developers got it right? The difference is still the RHW was first designed with 4 not 6 lanes. What about calling it regional, instead of rural?

[nerdly_dood]

Hey, now that ain't bad, i like this 'regional highway mod' name change

[Tarkus]

Regarding the "Rural" name, it's more or less a holdover from three years ago when the project started.  It's never really been an accurate description of the project, aside from the very early stages of development back in 2005, and quite frankly, it's always irritated me a little, since it prescribes a specific use.  Yes, it can be used in rural areas, but it works perfectly fine in suburban and urban areas as well, and will do so increasingly in subsequent versions. 

As long as I've been involved, it has been intended as an "all-purpose" network, hence why Version 20 added the MIS, in addition to expanding upon the at-grade intersection capabilities.  The eventual goal I have in mind is to allow you the capabilities to build anything from a Super-2, to a divided state highway with at-grade intersections, to a 10-lane interstate with stack interchanges, and anything in between. 

I've heard a few good suggestions over the years for new names.  A lot of them involved changing the main acronym, however, which, as much as I'd like to do it, it could potentially cause confusion.  And ultimately, I'd rather be developing this project than dealing with that confusion.  The "RHW" acronym, like it or not, has "stuck", though the "R" does not necessarily have to keep meaning "Rural".

j-dub, I really like your suggestion--it's the most convincing re-interpretation of the "R" I've heard.  I just may use that.

TEG, as far as tunnels go, it appears they are not possible for the RHW network, same as with Streets.  There's some hardcoded aspects to how they work, which we have no way around.

mrtnrln, to answer your question . . . the feature list for Version 21 still hasn't been finalized yet, if you know what I'm talking about . . . it may contain . . . surprises . . . or it might not, too.  

Back with more in awhile.

-Alex (Tarkus)

[videosean]

What about calling it regional, instead of rural?

Regional highway that doesn't show up in the regional view

[Swamper77]

It's not our fault that it doesn't show up in the regional transportation view. It's Maxis/EA's fault for not finishing the network in the first place.

-Swamper

[Haljackey]

Well, the RHW does look a lot more "rural" in comparison to the standard ground/elevated highway.  Initially, it was designed to be a inter-regional transport network, but has evolved tremendously in the past several months. 

Personally, I still refer to the RHW as the Rural highway, mainly because I have followed the project since day one.  However, with recent developments, I would rather refer to the RHW as the "Real" Highway.

Best,
-Haljackey

[Filasimo]

my two cents on the matter: " If it aint gone done broke, then it  no done be fixed" In other words, if it aint broke done fix it. The name is perfectly fine. Why change the name now to further confuse people who are new to the mod as the others have said in prior posts.

[deathtopumpkins]

Or just make it an acronym that stands for nothing in particular, as everyone just refers to it as RHW anyway (who has the patience to type out 'rural highway' [me evidently])

On SPUIs, we've got some here in VA, but I've never seen one with the intersection on top of the highway, ours are all under it.

On the American exit sign, great work!  , but does anyone else think that it's a little oversized?

[wes.janson]

Anyone who has ever driven the Trans Canada knows that the the RHW is pretty much the same thing. In Metro Vancouver area it acts as both a rural and urban highway; it just depends on whereabouts in the area you are travelling.

[TEG24601]

I only said that about it being rural, because I have never found a major city with a freeway like the RHW, they are usually like the Maxis Highways.  The Jersey barriers are accurate, the tight interchanges are accurate, the roadway coloration is accurate.  The RHW looks much like the more rural sections of Interstate Highway system, or some expressways.  However, I find the roadway coloration to be vastly inaccurate to real life.  In most situations, urban (Maxis-like) freeways are build of concrete, whereas rural are generally paved (except in Michigan where most freeway sections are concrete), and remain a dark grey, similar to the Euro texture.  Also, it is rare for a freeway/highway to remain 4 lanes in an urban environment, they are almost always 6 or more, again, like the Maxis Highways.  I see the benefit of the RHW, but in the urban settings, it looks out of place.

As for tunnels, I was under the impression shortly after the release of v20 that tunnels were possible, just that the entrances needed to be rendered.  I remember a thread about this, even showing working tunnels, with white squares for entrances.

TEG

[Filasimo]

  In most situations, urban (Maxis-like) freeways are build of concrete, whereas rural are generally paved (except in Michigan where most freeway sections are concrete), and remain a dark grey, similar to the Euro texture.  Also, it is rare for a freeway/highway to remain 4 lanes in an urban environment, they are almost always 6 or more, again, like the Maxis Highways. 

TEG

do keep in mind there is still alot of development going on with the RHW. also most cities use asphalt. only some major cities have concrete ie New Orleans, Houston, Chicago. you cant really say most cities use concrete it is about 50/50. also your last statement not true...sometimes some cities have only 4 lanes each direction in the downtown area and usually throughout depending on the size of the cities. not EVERY city has enough lanes to accomodate traffic needs.

[TEG24601]

do keep in mind there is still alot of development going on with the RHW. also most cities use asphalt. only some major cities have concrete ie New Orleans, Houston, Chicago. you cant really say most cities use concrete it is about 50/50. also your last statement not true...sometimes some cities have only 4 lanes each direction in the downtown area and usually throughout depending on the size of the cities. not EVERY city has enough lanes to accomodate traffic needs.

Short list of cities with a majority of concrete freeways...
Seattle
Portland
Spokane
Madison
Milwaukee
Chicago
Omaha
Flint
Detroit
Fort Wayne
Indianapolis
Minneapolis/St. Paul
Sioux Falls
Des Moines
Los Angeles
San Diego
Las Vegas

Of those cities I mentioned, only Sioux Falls has 4 lane freeways.  Admittedly, most don't have external jersey barriers, except in the downtown cores, but from my experience, few if any have medians.  I really do like the RHW, and have used it in my region, but it is just not appropriate for urban environments, that is why I said an elevated RHW should not be a high priority, as in an urban environment, the Maxis Elevated Highway is more realistic (IMHO).

TEG

[nerdly_dood]

The only concrete highway I know of is US29 north of Lynchburg, Virginia, and it is as smooth as glass, an excellent road, but interstate 64 near Richmond is concrete and oh my GOD, you do NOT want to drive there, it may as well be gravel at 60 miles an hour...  What I would like to see is something like the new textures Tarkus is making, but with the same grayness as the current textures, cause that's what it looks like where I live. (But the black texture helps it match better withthe other roads...)

I have been to Washington DC, which has mostly asphalt freeways, but also concrete as I just remembered, and most of them are 8- or 10-lane highways.  I think the RHW would fit them quite well.

I should point out that in Spain, and possibly more of Europe, ALL highways are asphalt, with black pavement that hasn't faded to gray because all their highways are excellent compared to the ones in the US.  That applies to bridges, too - around here, only one bridge is paved with asphalt, which is Memorial Bridge over the Roanoke River in Roanoke, VA, all others are concrete.

[Filasimo]

suit yourself and do keep in mind theres more cities than just those you mentioned, that probly accounts for 1% of US cities.  so as i have said before its 50 /50 and lets have this matter closed since this is albeit going offtopic whether or not a city has concrete or not its already been addressed and will no longer be spoken about. thank you

[Shadow Assassin]

I should point out that in Spain, and possibly more of Europe, ALL highways are asphalt, with black pavement that hasn't faded to gray because all their highways are excellent compared to the ones in the US.

Well, yeah. Why do you think the Euro mod is asphalt?

[Haljackey]

TEG24601:  Keep in mind that you have only made reference to a few cities in the USA.  The RHW applies to all countries around the world, and I can say from my own experience that the RHW can be made to fit any urban environment with proper placement.  (In SC4 and real life.)  Know that the RHW can go as wide as 6 lanes with the current release, and if you need more, expand it to a Multi-RHW setup with a collector/express system to accommodate the extra lanes.

Going a bit back on-topic, I have posted a update on my archives page (link in my signature) with a ton of pictures from the RHW network when it was in its initial stages of development.

Best,
-Haljackey