Atlantic Express (game level)

* Entered From Adonis_Luxury_Resort
* Connected to Ryan_Amusements
* See also Rapture Map
* See also BS2
* See also Transportation_Systems
* See also Amended_Game_Level_Maps
AE_Lev_fixes << map fixes still needed
AKA AE Depot The Primary Atlantic Express System Hub and Maintenance Facility and HQ
Note - This Level map Set has widely separated levels which are interconnected as per any building complex.
On the Level 5 diagram there is a Side Profile indicating relative spacings of the level maps and station track levels ( It was a bit of a tight fit even with as much separation as there was between levels. Of course, it was my choice to mutate that weird Traincar storage 'loft' into a more proper train storage station ... On one side is the profile of the "AE Tower" which was a 4-story office complex for the Atlantic Express ( with some additional Foundation levels ). Typical floor spacing is 16 feet with sufficient space (4 feet) between levels for the structural 'floor plates' so to give horizontal strengthening to the exterior walls as well as some space for the various false ceiling utilities/ventilation. (( Note- These floors are offset from the other levels as they are further apart so to accommodate the taller Train levels. )) 
Level 3 is actually made up of two stacked track levels : an Upper (3U) and a Lower (3L) which have the same layout ( as indicated on the Side Elevation Diagram ).
Level 1B is an odd split level which has different heights of some overlapping interior spaces. In the Repair Bays, it is just that upper deck platform, while in the 'Roundhouse' (Hub) they are stacked with a second storage track level ( There is much more difference between Level 1 and Level 1B ).
--- --- --- --- ---
--- --- ---
The Atlantic Express system was more a Commuter system ( more like a city Subway ) rather than a long distance passenger railroad ( though it would have some longer lines out to communities/locations that grew outside Rapture. ) Thousands of workers 'went to work' using it every day, and to be effective that took many carloads of passengers criss-crossing throughout the City.
A few Detail problems with the Original Level Map :
* The Workshops don't have any overhead track rails to move the Traincars about.
* The workshop floors aren't flat to be able move the Traincars on some kind of wheeled support ( a logical alternative when there is no overhead track ).
* The track-way ceilings have pipes crossing at lower heights than a Traincar's height ( sitting on the ground ) which would block any possible movement of Traincars in or out of the workshop.
* Several cranes are (poorly) suspended from the skylight windows, AND they as shown have no way to traverse ( are not 'traveling cranes' ) or a way to transfer a Traincar/sub-assemblies between the various rooms/thru the large doors or on/off of the rails. ( They have now been 'corrected' to actually operate as inferred. )
* Some Workshop 'tracks' run in a direction ( and have a significant altitude difference ) which makes it hard to connect to the 'Switching Hub' (turntable).
* The original Hub and its storage/access tracks - that 'Hub' switching crane is very odd, that turntable below is very odd, the few stacked storage (?) bays are very odd ( It is like the level designer 'heard' of such things, but doesn't actually know how they are supposed to operate ).
* That 'Switching Hub' for the Traincars is a very strange/inefficient system to 'switch' between alot of tracks ( Track switches can do that just fine ( Picture of monorail switch - http://faculty.washington.edu/jbs/itrans/bomb12.gif , http://faculty.washington.edu/jbs/itrans/sipem3.gif ).
---
There is a large height separation between various 'floors' in the Atlantic Express map, varying more than 140 feet between the 'Short Line' Station at the top and the 'Hub' at the bottom. That does cause problems when the topmost track should somehow connect to the maintenance/hub tracks on the lowest level. It would take a 16 percent grade ( 1 in 6 -- steep enough for those geared Traincar wheels to really grind ) running 1/6th of a mile to physically climb between those levels.
Areas represented on the Map have been relocated a bit -- so to put the Workshop balcony floor on the appropriate map 1B, instead of on the Airlock floor (2) which really has a 40 foot height difference. Two new maps are added for the new "Grand Central Station" Concourse and Station Track floors (3,4), below the Top Tenenbaum station floor (5).
The level's original small Station (Tenenbaum's haunt) has two dead-end tracks. Departing Traincars would have to first back into the Station for loading. On arriving, they would have to go somewhere else to be 'turned' for the return trip in the lines opposite direction ( and/or head to the 'Hub' for servicing between trips ).
The original map shows the Traincars in the Station pointing to the left (as viewed), and THAT Trains direction should be East to be going towards Ryan Amusements ( which is indicated to be Eastward on the AE map in BS2 - 
http://images.wikia.com/bioshock/images/e/e8/AtlanticExpressTrainMapAnim.gif  
So the entire level map would have to be reoriented 180 degrees to be the conventional 'North is Up" ( so the Train can depart to the right (as East towards Persephone) ).
There are 2 wrecked Traincars on the upper Station's 2nd track -- Both aimed outward, one plowed UNDER the other -- Kinda hard to do with that blunt rear-end those Traincars have, and 'in Reverse' ( and at the low speed needed to negotiate the Airlock passage -- with not alot of distance to 'work up' any real speed ... ). They must have been sabotaged by other Factions to cut Sofia Lamb off from other parts of Rapture. The inner airlock door on that 2nd track is destroyed/heavily damaged, which makes using that Airlock (and thus the track) impossible.
Workshop 6A and 6B-- Where are Workshops 1-5 ??? A logical place would be repair bays off the 'Hub' turntable ( which were added ). Its a bit odd that there should be a 40 foot height difference between "Workshop 6A" and "Workshop 6B". A connecting track has now been added. The Mk2 facility would have its own set of much larger workshops for the newer Mk2 replacement equipment.
--- --- ---
The AE Depot is the old Mk1 primary facility ( largely superseded around 1953 ). The later Mk2 facilities were elsewhere ( at the yards near "Freightyard" ). As with Real Railroads : the 'turntable became a 'Chokepoint', and linear facilities ( here we are without one ) were adopted as an 'improvement'. This facility was retained to service the remaining Mk1 segments of the AE system.
-
The Roundhouse :
A single 'Hub' turntable ( Used to send traincars in different directions - acting as a huge 'Switch' ) is a chokepoint and liability. If it breaks down, access of everything passing to the rest of the system is then blocked/disabled. So, REAL use of such a mechanism would be restricted to non-routine things, like access to many servicing and repair bays.
With the stacked tracks in the Traincar Hub, the level above's track girder can be used for a small(ish) repair crane, which because of the doubling up means there is 'Crane' access for every track space ( handy for all kinds of repairs ).
--- --- ---
Its Something Strange :
That Traincar 'loft'(?) that you go past in the ascending Elevator (directly above the 'Switching Hub'/Roundhouse) is a bit odd. Is it for storage, or repairs ? Its mechanism does not make much sense either way ( It must've simply 'looked good' to the Game Devs for filler in the Level ). The design does not seem to have any way to lift Traincars from the Hub area, and the one large door ( which appears blocked by girders ? ) is about 110 feet above the Hub floor below, making it a little bit inconvenient. Repairs would be more appropriate in a setting like the existing 'Workshops'. Storage could be done like this :
   
https://rapturerebornmmorpg.wikia.com/wiki/File:Elevatorparking.jpg 
But a flat yard of tracks would be much simpler ( and there is no real lack of space around Rapture ).
--- --- ---
A Proper Station :
So I have taken that whatever its supposed to be (loft thing), and converted it to a proper multitrack RR station type layout capable of handling multiple trains simultaneously, going 'To All Points'.
A multi-tracked, multi-leveled 'Union' Passenger Station ( allowing convenient transfers between trains ) would be logical ( and was/is common in the Real_World ). I would convert it to that ( and this showy monstrosity would thus be constructed fully visible to impress Passengers as Rapture's "Grand Central Station"). SO, as redesigned, Rapture's old Grand Central Station had 3 levels -- a Concourse level and 2 track levels each with 4 double-ended tracks heading out to the City's many corners ( the primary City destinations in the early days ). Steel grey would be replaced with Chrome and fancy glass ( and those big turning wheel thingees will look impressive in chrome plating --- Not really sure what their function is beyond decorative ). Ditto for a proper 'Big Station' Train Board and a full System Map ( maybe some high-tech one that shows moving train locations ).
The odd weaving track tubes seen on the new track levels ( diagram shown is one level of two -- a total of 8 main Station tracks accessible from the Concourse ) have track switches to allow trains to arrive/leave on varying Station tracks. This allows failure redundancy ( needed in a busy Station ) and common access to the Traincar repair/servicing facility ( note that the 2 middle tracks on right-side can access any of the 4 station tracks on that level ). These track tubes (tunnels) are full of air ( not water or water at the outside sea pressure ) because many connect back to the Depot's maintenance/repair/service facilities and Traincar storage/turntable. Each route as it heads out for its destination in Rapture is the site of the required airlock that transitions to the high pressure sea water environment ( and some near-parallel routes share the same airlock and have a track switch outside select the right track path ).
The are now Deluxe Service Lounges in the Station - in the Ryan-Amusements-bound track there was a special loading access to the Traincar's passenger doors. Atlantic Express offered First-Class Service with various special accommodations and services ( Bar service and Stewards, Hot Towels and the Daily Papers ?? ).
This must be for the longer range services because Rapture's trains would be for a relatively short-ranged subway type system, with trips in minutes and not hour. So, a separate deluxe waiting room (only here) seems pointless. See my extended map outside the city. But Seriously : How many customers would there be to warrant all this ?
 
Rapture's multi-track multi-level Central Station may have looked a little like This : This is the old Los Angeles Subway ( underground station for the Pacific Electric Trolley system )
Later, as Rapture's 'center of gravity' shifted Northwards and the Atlantic Express was rebuilt to a Mk2 system, a new Grand Central Terminal was established elsewhere, and a number of the original routes out of AE Depot were abandoned and pulled up/salvaged. Splicers in the post-Ryan era used the derelict Station as a flophouse - some living in the abandoned Traincars still hanging on track there. We make use of the secondary Station on the Top floor, which was used for the lesser route that traversed the various entertainment venues in South Rapture ( The "Short Line" that Prentice Mill retained after the AE Bankruptcy ).
The Grand Station would have a Big Train Board (a proper one) showing all the scheduled trains - Listing all Trains and Track assignments for Destinations throughout Rapture. Since trains can frequently be delayed, a well designed Station can assign a train to/from destinations on any track. Once the track is assigned, the passengers waiting in the Concourse would then know which track to go to. And if the system operated much like a typical subway/commuter system, there would be 'a rush' as the riders run to get a seat ( or have to become a "strap-hanger" for their trip ).
--- --- --- 
'Hub' converted to conventional RR 'roundhouse' scheme - Which is now used to access a multitude of storage/repair/service tracks for repairs, servicing and storage.
--- --- ---
I fixed the 'Switching Hub' to be a proper logical arrangement (track turntable) and eliminated the needless double stacking of access tracks, and that bizarre crane device. The 'Hub' now has 8 bays all at the same level - simpler, easy to access the Traincars for servicing/inspections/maintenance. Tracks coming into this Hub connect from the various 'Workshops' on different levels in the facility, to the Passenger Stations, to idle car storage tracks, and to the incoming/outgoing train lines.
The Elevator we take going to the Manager's Office -- is NOT for passengers ( as it goes down to maintenance levels ... ) I've added several needed passenger elevators to access the Station Concourse and the Track levels and the Upper Station. There was also the need to add a link for this station to a local 'cluster' of buildings ( Access to the Plaza at the 'Street' level ). The First Class accommodations include a special elevator between the First-Class Lounge and the Concourse/Upper Stations.
I had some 'puzzle fun' trying to Fix various inconsistencies with the game's original map, and then to match them to my additions/adjustments. Some sections have been displaced a bit to clear the problematic window views ( Windows were inset too far when there was a level above stick out further above ). 
Originally, there was no worker's walking path between level 2 ( Airlock/Workshop ) and level 1 ( Workshop/Hub ) evident ( a burning hole in floor doesn't count ). I added a stairwell for workers and an industrial sized elevator for moving large mechanical components.
All Workshops are modified to now have a proper train track, so that the 110+ ton Traincars can be easily moved about, and now with several tunnel connections added between the different tracks/levels ( required for repair access for the equipment ).
There is now a normal ( by walking, or better via Adonis Spa's golfcarts ) path across from the AE Depot to the Adonis Health Spa complex ( a viaduct - not everyone comes by Bathysphere ... ). In BS2 we find many Splicers there, so it is logical there would still be a working connection to other parts of Rapture.
Basement levels which you have seen on other amended maps have been somewhat omitted on this map set. But they would exist with the same form with the extension of the external structural walls into a mass of Foundation concrete, with numerous tunnels to drain water seepage/leakage and to hold various utility machinery ( or just to save on concrete in those large volumes of filler ) -- Lots of 'dank dark tunnels' which Players love to explore.
Added - a Submarine Dock near the airlock facing Adonis - 4 bays. The AE used submarines for track inspection/construction/repairs/emergency, as well as off-system transportation. Various track building/repair sea-equipment would be stored nearby. Some 'rich' customers who ride about in the larger 'luxury' submarines ( which cannot fit the Metro styled facilities ) also use this Dock.
Workshop 6B now has got a proper overhead crane. The AE traincars are far larger/heavier than the Bathyspheres ( they weight at minimum the weight of the water the cars body displaces -- see buoyuancy ). The Mk1 train cars weigh something like 115-120 tons when lifted out of the water.
That 2nd small (upper) Station track goes someplace else ( "Fontaine Court" is shown on Schedule boards -- but that is in a different direction -- Northwards ). Perhaps that track went to another City building cluster like Rapture University (north-east), or to another City transit node South-East of the AE Depot. If the 'Short Line' had been a busier route, it might have warranted a double track ( but none of the other Stations along our BS2 route are double tracked ).
"Fontaine Court" is shown on Schedule boards -- but THAT is in a different direction -- Northwards ( from the station ordering ) - which would have been a logical continuation with a 'through' track. But fixing THAT would have be a very drastic change of the played in are of this level.
Those other buildings seen out the windows indicate a good sized City 'cluster' is in the Atlantic Express Depot's vicinity. The AE Depot would be a convenient transportation hub originally, and many businesses would want to take advantage of that ( and so, locate nearby - like the Adonis Resort ). The rocks/glowing Sea_Life outside the many windows apparently are decorative 'sea gardens', as the seabed (for effect) is often shown 100 feet below the window in some views ( a common terrain shortcut the game developers used so they did not have to render the additional seabed detail for those outside window views ).
That see-thru Grid (glass brick) in Station Managers office floor -- Is OVER "Grand Central Station". NOW The floor of the new (added) main Station Concourse is ALSO glassbricked so that the trains/tracks below (on 2 levels) can be seen. Cleaning all those see-thru floors must have kept someone busy ...
Some Traincar maintenance was still going on when Delta makes his appearance. The staff and infrastructure needed to (re)manufacture most/many vehicle parts is long gone. The few train lines that Sofia Lamb controls within her territory ( trainlines going to elsewhere were blown up by other Factions to isolate her bothersome ambitions ) are making due by cannibalizing parts from other Traincar units ( like that shell of one we saw ), and doing what little repairs can still be managed. We witness the results.
The AE traincars (Mk1) NOW are my resized ones ( the originals are ridiculously tiny caricatures with far too little space inside ) which have been lengthened to 40 feet long and 10 feet wide ( as their extreme dimensions, with the interior dimensions being somewhat smaller ).
--
Like on other (of my) Game Level Maps, you see a number of different transportation systems converging in one area -- Trains, Trolleys, Submarines, Bathyspheres ( even elevators and walkway Viaducts ). Many are in close proximity to each other to minimize interchanging between them.
I've Added a large Bathysphere Station (on the top level) -- as 5 different Metro Bathysphere lines converged here ( as well as transfers from The Adonis Luxury Resort's small Station ). The AE Depot may have lost much of its importance as the AE Train system's Central Passenger Station, but the businesses and other buildings nearby kept it important as a destination and commuter interchange point. 
The Metro Station has the large "Metro Gardens" as part of its Station to impress customers with the superiority of its deluxe service ( at least to the rich(er) people who can afford to use the Bathyspheres ). The Metro Gardens would also serve as sources of fresh air ( may be the reason Splicers hanging around ... ). Imagine what a mess that place would be after 10 years of neglect.
The large Bathysphere Station (in story) was tacked onto the roof at a later time during the Metro Consolidation. NOTE - the supports for that 'tacked on' Cable Hub Structure ( Cable Mechanisms, airlocks, 8-holer station dock, Maintenance area, etc ... ), which is all ontop of a seabed ridge ( and the majority of the tracks transit that ridge heading to many other parts of Rapture).
With 5 Bathysphere lines converging, it has a good sized (an 8-holer) Metro Station facility ( a substantial installation of underwater cable machinery and the 'sphere' guideways that allow through traffic to transfer directly between lines when needed - mininizing delays). Fortunately, much of that system operates at normal sea pressure and does not require as much of the massive bunker-style constructions most buildings do (as there is no pressure to hold out of an interior).
A Street connection to the local cluster City 'Plaza' (Trolley hub) is represented. Numerous building around the Depot need to have access to the various Stations. Atlantic Express Depot became an important commercial center in Rapture's earlier days, while the rest of the City was still being built.
A test track was added to test repaired Traincars (and redesigns in the early days). The 1000 foot test track submerges the cars (normal atmosphere in the closed tunnel) but can be drained quickly in case of failure. The Workshop tracks were stretched in a few places - such as for a Traincar painting/cleaning facility which the large AE system would require.
Added - The Atlantic Express Workshop map from the DLC Protector Trials (now a Painting/Cleaning Shop for the Traincars) as Workshop 6C. There would have been several hundred Traincars running on the AE system, at its maximum extent. The shops indicated on the map (and the ones now at the 'Hub') would have been kept busy with routine repairs. Workshop 6C is (logically) reached from that train door going East in Workshop 6B.
The Cable Drives in the Bathysphere Hub likely are hydraulics driven, as are the cable tension adjusters and guide attachers/engagers.
-
Fixed : The ceiling window workshop 6B required a shift up to clear it to open water ( it is on a level well below other higher levels which overlaid the same space ).
I slipped in an access door behind the Vita-Chamber machine's cubbyhole - covering an unused section in the game-seen Station's later derelict days -- after most of the AE passenger traffic was discontinued and the new machines ( or when the Vita-Chambers could be made widely available ) happen to fit the space.
---
A Jet Postal (transparent) mail chute is near the original airlock, with mail (one assumes) still whizzing by. Who is still sending this stuff around Rapture ? And is that much of the Pneumo system still working ?? The Pneumo system was built pretty robustly ( years after Rapture was started ) apparently, so many parts of that system could still be working all these years later, despite lack of maintenance and much abuse.
The Jet Postal]] Station adjacent to ""Workshop 6B" spews food goodies ( part of the Lamb-land supply apparatus ? ) :
* Beef-E ( Meat ? may even be a cardboard tube 'can' )
* C.J. Greens ( canned veggies - even Splicers need a balanced diet )
* Coffee Thermos (or equivalent) - thermos may not be real glass lined vacuum ( those broke if you even looked at them wrong ...)
* Dr Hollcroft's Cure-All ( stuff must've worked to still be in business, maybe with a few special additives by Lamb )
Those supplies are all YOU (Delta) need to survive there and harvest Splicers for cash, ammo and other stuff (maybe useful for the Harder difficulty modes to build up for less controlled situations later).
So apparently, there are still assembly lines being run somewhere to produce this consumables stuff ( old pre-chaos items would have either been eaten long ago, or would be old and rather far gone for anyone to safely eat ). A supply chain still works, as you can't just fill these packages with chipped concrete ( well, you can, but it only fools people for so long ). The packaging itself takes raw materials to create ( Kelp-based cardboard ??? Old cans/bottles/boxes would be recycled. )
-
The 'Railroad' facility likely had the an early version of the Pneumo system to move parts and supplies and paperwork around withing the complex. It might be said that its utility inspired the building of the Rapture-wide system.
"Sea Gate 12" ( adjacent to the Cafeteria storeroom ) ... Where are the rest of them ( 1 thru 11 )? What are they for ?? Not the most convenient way to keep watch on outside pipes transitioning inside-outside ( a BAD place, where thermal expansion and corrosion make the pressure seals vulnerable, requiring extra care and maintenance ). This outside-water shaft may have been originally used to install large equipment/machinery down into the facility ( or as I have now made it : A shaft through which important equipment/machinery is lowered to a Machine Shop below, now accessed through a work Airlock ). Later it could be used for where Smaller Tool machinery/equipment/attachments could be delivered by Mini-Sub to get repaired/sharpened/maintenanced/etc ...
-
The AE Business Tower is located above the airlock we first enter through ( it is seen during that little ocean walk we do to cross from the flooded Demeter's Banquet Hall ). It is a typical small 4-story office 'tower' used for various business related activities (The Atlantic Express was one of the largest businesses and employers in Rapture in the pre-Metro days). This map does not show all that building's in-between inhabited levels, as the map floors shown have height to accommodate the tall Train-sized interiors you mostly walk through in the game.
See all that rubbish and rubble blocking your movements in various directions, as you walk around out in the Ocean - don't let it fool you. There is alot of outside machinery also, all over out there, that keeps Rapture going. It all needs alot of maintenance -- meaning alot of walking about, manhandling equipment, hauling repair supplies, and inspections to find the next problem/failure. It is a good thing all those Big Daddies are still at work out there, or everyone who stays inside would be in big trouble. If New Rapture ever figures out how to rehabilitate the people who were made into those Cyborgs, they had best have enough trained people who will know how to take over those jobs ( as there once was before ADAM came along ). Of course, Sofia Lamb's minions dumped alot of wreckage and debris just outside the airlocks, instead of properly hauling the stuff away, and it has accumulated. It is not making the Maintenance Cyborg's jobs any easier and several such sites are slated for cleanup by the New City to facilitate renewed maintenance.
The "Traincar" we see under repair (or whatever) in the "Workshop 6B" is actually a Freight unit - not the type of Traincar we ride across towards Persephone in the game. Such units were 'locomotives' ( no window in the front and their shape matches those blueprints we see in various places ) that pulled other 'freight' cars that would be left at locations for loading and then taken to a destination for delivery. Huge amounts of construction materials were moved about Rapture that way, while it was being built. Such 'freight' movements remained important to the City's functioning, even after the AE Train Passenger traffic largely ceased.
---
An amusing spot in one of the Workshops has a Splicer campsite with a bucket containing some kind of presumably edible Sea Life, a fishing-pole-like tool ( not sure how one fishes out into the oceans pressure - perhaps was used on interior submarine pools or equivalent ), and a string of what looks like decorative lights. But on closer inspection, there are bottles containing some sort of glowing Bio-luminescent things. There also is the other common accouterments of a mattress/suitcase, empty food tins, etc ...
It may be an interesting experience for the MMORPG players to roleplay a Splicers life, having to deal with day to day survival, as well as finding something to do to fill the long years. They may have to also deal with the warped reality caused by ADAM insanity -- Possibly of many flavors and magnitudes for different individuals ( various special visual effects and even object substitutions or indicator -- more fun/creativity for the Player Asset Creators ). Maybe the player should have to live that way a short time before they are caught by New Rapturites and go thru the Rehabilitation/Cure that makes them into new Citizen Ex-Splicers.
---
I could have added a level 6 diagram, that besides showing the tall interior of the Upper (small) Train Station we use, should also had another floor of offices for the Railroads Operation staff and maybe a substantial 'Presidents' office for the owner Prentice Mill. Likewise, there should be more than a little staff accommodations for the large Metro station ( and the high ceiling of the Bathysphere Dock and the Metro Gardens, with its trees that outdo much of what you see in Arcadia ).
--- --- --
I was going to do an overview diagram of the extended Atlantic Express facilities built adjacent to the older Mk1 facility -- The larger Mk2 expansion started in 1950 to meet expanded passenger and freight traffic requirements and to correct structural limitations/deficiencies of the original installations. But much of it would be similar in shape ( turntable, repair tracks, etc ... ) except just bigger. So instead, here is a list of the various facilities added adjacent to the original/earlier AE Depot (circa 1946) represented in the modified level maps. 
Facilities still in use are : The Metro Bathysphere Station, the Trolley Hub (off map), the Submarine Docks, various offices, the connecting link to The Adonis Resort, "The Short Line" route (upper station) and a few other operational parts of the dwindling Mk1 system). The New Grand Central Terminal Station was relocated to be more central in Rapture, after the Northern end of the City grew substantially -- as did areas outside Rapture city limits (the 'Suburbs').
Mk2 Additions :
* Two Mk2 Turntables - to handle the increased number of 'locomotives' and Passenger Traincars on the expanded system ( as well as simply physically larger Traincar equipment ).
* Car/Locomotive 'Shops', construction building and repair facilities, including a foundry and large machine shops ( also used to fabricate/construct alot of large machinery for Rapture - to construct machinery and equipment for other industrial/commercial uses, which became a viable secondary business ( part of the reorganized company after the bankruptcy ).
* A 'Freight Yard' - with long multiple storage tracks for Sorting out freight cars, and to Store idle cars not in-use ( my city map shows this yard extends about half a mile eastward from the AE Depot ). They were in under-seabed air tunnels. Some 'Private' passenger cars would also stored there.
* Warehouses and trans-shipping Freight House facility - Storage and Sorting/Repacking of freight into cars for various destinations ( some larger manufacturers would rent space to use as a central distribution point for their products. ) These did alot of work handling all the mass of possessions of the immigrant influx ( which peaked in 1951 ) and the following industrial/commercial growth of the City. Thy would continue to be used after the Metro Merger.
* Repair and maintenance equipment storage and prefabrication center ( used to build the improved (Mk2) track components ).
* A new System Control, Office and Administrative complex.
* The Railroad Personnel Training School
* A transfer line (shuttle) between the old main Mk1 station (and its connections) and a newer Mk2 Station.
Numerous realignments of trackage were made during the rebuilding period, some to keep the original track operating while the new Mk2 track was installed, others were abandoned because their use was superseded by the 'Street' Trolley Systems ( the original City construction use was long gone ), others rebuilt to get at |new traffic sources, some shifted to avoid problematic/unstable terrain.
The AE Freight System continued running past the time when the Passenger business bankrupted, and even continued after Ryan's death. The central facility was locked down and cut off when Lamb's minions occupied the old AE Depot and some sections were flooded. Some remnants in other sections of the City still operate where the people have the will/ability to make repairs in a few Remote Facilities. New Rapture hopes to reactivate, rebuild and join the still intact segments in its long term plans.
--- --- ---
Train Schedules - Note "Fontaine Court" looks to be BACK along the line in the opposite direction that we travel in BS2. It is not strange for the in-game AE map to really be only a subset of the big Rapture-wide system, and that we are only shown parts relevant to the game.
"Fontaine Court" ( Which we see on the train board in the 'Short Line' progression ) was a destination in the opposite direction which we travel from AE Depot. I place it near Neptunes Bounty as an area that Fontaine got control of and developed as a nearby place for his workers to live. It could be reasoned that having a route running from there to the 'low' entertainment venues of Paupers Drop and Sirens Alley could still be viable, and thus was not abandoned ( as was most of Rapture's local passenger train service ). Perhaps it was just Prentice Mill wanting to 'play trains' with a remnant of his system - He never was totally out of money.
What were those 'Cancelled' stations listed beyond "Fontaine Court" ??? Perhaps again the line had run on to Neptune's Bounty and Port-of-Rapture to tap into the commuting workers of those places. But those locations were later cut off by Factions opposing Lamb's Collective -- Like the Fishermen at Neptunes Bounty who had had enough first of Fontaine and then Atlas and were sick of people who wanted to 'help' them. They had the food everyone wanted and thus could bargain with other Factions like Ryan's old group at Hephaestus to counter Sofia Lamb's ambitions.
In the opposite direction there are 'Cancelled' Stops before Dionysus Park. One is probably Paupers_Drop ( not sure why it has that indication ) . But what was the other stop ? Some old building cluster that had its station destroyed or flooded or is infested with flying piranhas or giant flesh eating cockroaches, or somesuch.
In the MMORPG you could go there to find out.
The scheduled times shown to transit these stations is a bit suspect. The City just isn't that large, and unless the AE Traincars go at a walking pace ( we've seen them move faster than that with us inside ) they should get to each next station in only a few minutes. Waiting a long pause after arrival at each station isn't logical, unless the Traincars have to be 'charged' more frequently for some technical reason caused by recent deterioration ( passengers would NEVER originally have put up with those lengths of times, which they could swim faster than to reach their destinations ). Perhaps it is just Sofia Lamb keeping her minions in their place.
-
Sofia Lamb starts talking at you straight off. Like many a Collectivists she lovingly wants to 'kill you for your own good' and 'the good of society'. She will remove those in her way the way that Communist Dictators became the biggest Mass Murderers in History ( who outdid the Nazis by far ).
--- --- ---
==Observations==
Sofia Lamb : "Out of your pain, paradise was born" ( Oh, this is 'paradise' ? )
-
Piles of Crap Outside the Airlock Entrance ( Along the path from previous Level ) :
All the junk outside where you enter the AE Depot looks like a garbage dump for stuff to in-future be recycled - concrete and metal, old machinery and scrap. As a transport hub, that dump likely would make a nice central spot for the old Mk1 track frames and such.
-
Gallon cans of oil everywhere (not those drill fuel cannisters). It is a mechanical building/repair/maintenance facility, so that seems logical. Supplies of such materials ( lubricants, hydraulic fluids ) get used up and need to be replaced. Longterm Rapture would have to ship in from the surface world ( besides requiring complex refining the nearest undersea crude oil sources are over 300 miles away. )
-
There is a Nice Bucket of tasty barnacles seen near the initial entrance. They likely could be cultivated in an Airlock, which allows access to the outside by leaving the lights on and adding a bit of sewage to the water to encourage bacteria to grow -- so to attract the small things barnacles eat (they are 'filter feeders'). They taste like rubber-bands, but at least they are nutritious.
-
In lev 1B the in water segment ( after you fall into the level down that shaft ), you find a bunch of corpses, likely more of Sofia's 'Unbelievers' disposed of (?).
-
The Traincars would have been the perfect objects for Lamb's followers to scrawl their loony slogans onto, but was never done in the game. They would also have made an interesting traveling 'Prayer Meeting' for Father Wales to employ, as well to be shown as a primary transport for Lamb's "dole" of gruel and such to all 'The Family' members.
Tenenbaum lived (at least for a while) in the AE Station Ticket Office ( interesting that second (nearby) ticket booth which has NO entrance door ... ) with a number of Little Sisters. There is a door to the side there that must've had access to restrooms/water/etc ... Where/how Tenenbaum got ahold of food and other necessities is not explained, and she must have had a way to other parts of the City. She goes around rescuing Little Sisters herself, so must have some effective means of neutralizing the various Rapture denizens she runs into. Perhaps some kind of Dartgun ( or a thrown globule/orb ? ) that disables Splicers and even Big Daddies ( and maybe Big Sisters ), which would be of great interest to New Rapture in the MMORPG.
All those fancy controls and lighted indicators in the Traincar's cockpit -- like it is a space capsule. Hmm, no little window thru the passenger compartment door to see into the 'cockpit' -- Those are usually there to instill some confidence in the passengers that the operator isn't dead or drunk or both. ( And for the crew to check on the passengers ).
--- --- ---
Atlantic Express Depot/System Level Designer Didn't Exactly Know/Care How Real World Structures Work :
* In those workshop/repair bays - There is No rail for the cars to hang from or anything underneath they might rest on if taken off the rail. ( There is no obvious way to get the car in and out of the bays ).
* Overhead cranes hanging from a window ( the same overhead cranes with no track for the crane to move on ).
* The Paths where the cars would traverse ( between the workshops/repair bays and the rest of the facility ), there were big pipes in the way where the track should be.
* Not sure why they need such big heavy metal doors BETWEEN the repair bays ( again with NO rail/track the traincars could be moved thru on, and the floor is not flat -- If they were supposed to have some kind of wheeled trailer for a traincar to sit upon ).
* The 'switching hub' -- which could be one way to 'switch' ALL possible tracks leading off that 'turntable' - all tracks in the facility and going elsewhere. But such a mechanism becomes a choke point ( can't handle enough units quick enough during busy periods and then only one traincar at a time ).
* Not sure of the point of that big turntable ( without any mono-rail ). That simple fixed crane makes no sense, as it cannot slide the cars in and out of those storage tracks ( radiating from the center - halfway up the wall - and the stacked tracks ).
* The workshops/repair bays don't connect into the big turntable ( are tangential to it and are on a different level ).
* The wheels supporting the turntable are supposed to be underneath the 'bridge' instead of sticking far outside its circumference. ( and Wood decks on RR turntables went out in the 1870s - they are a maintenance headache and weird when they use so much metal decking everywhere else ).
* You go up the elevator and see a bunch of cars hanging up inside the building structure (storage ??) , but girders block movement in all directions for them, and out the one visible door ( and no way to lower them to the 'switching hub' ).
* With no other switches, all the stations with only one track thru them would make for a pretty odd system - allowing only one way traffic.
* Real switches do exist for monorails ( It is just a matter of having a section of rail that can be bent to match one of two possible rails ) http://www.monorails.org/tMspages/switch.html
* There are substantial rocks outside the upper office window which are immediately above the repair building you just went up thru ( and they are not the 'decoratives' we see on other buildings ) `. The Usual "Rocks Outside Windows" obscuring the view of those fairly expensive large windows and when the construction of the building presupposes the ability to EASILY move rocks if desired ( It was more for the game to have something in foreground and to cover the view transition ).
* In the Atlantic Express stations, the Curved Mono-Rail heading out thru the doors and down into the Ocean are perfectly shaped/placed to scrape the bottom out of the traincars when they move that way. Caricatures can be taken a bit far.
* "It is only a game ..." - Then WHY have any attempt to make something look even half real. ( It is supposedly a sci-fi genre game ... ). Funny thing is : 'Doing it Right' usually takes only a little extra effort - just a little knowledge and then an intention to do things correctly.
A proper design for this Turntable 'Hub' would be a dozen or more track radiating from the center ( doubled up if tracks are stacked and with the 'bridge' acting as a elevator ) for storage and some tracks to connect to the workshops/repair bays. The turntable 'bridge' would have the same monorail to support the traincar it held and would closely fit upto each storage bay's rail when rotated. One of the bays might be an elevator to take traincars to that upper building section ( though why need that in a facility that could have sprawled horizontally on the ocean floor ). Some of the tracks coming off the 'hub would go to the AE station tracks.
A small turntable ( about 50 ft for Mk1 cars we've seen ) would likely be located at the end of the line ( at Abyss Lookout ) rather than have a track loop and switch ( outside the station in the ocean ) to turn the AE traincars for the return traffic direction. The Short Line route we take in BS2 did not carry any significant amount of traffic, or it would be double tracked to allow simultaneous movements in both directions. As it is, that route is only about a mile and a quarter long.
All the facilities seen in BS2 were for the older style Mk1 type equipment/track. The unseen Mk2 facilities ( to which most of the AE system was rebuilt ) were even larger .
--- --- ---
==Oddities Noticed==
That floor you drop through must've been set up as a trap, because mere wood is not strong enough - particularly for something that is supposed to be a 'security' station. There being a shaft directly under it going down several floors is likewise a bit odd. It really is not clear WHY there should be a shaft plunging several levels down UNDER a control room ( the fall from level 2 to 1B ), or why the floor should be wood unsupported by metal reinforcements (( Which BTW, DONT instantly fall through at the whim of a writer's fire. ))
Pathfinding is pretty lame for some activated Splicers - Blocked view by corner ( uses a narrow line-of-sight (LoS) instead of a proper bounding box, and apparently there is no secondary logic to handle the endcase ). 
That Seagate thing ( seen in the Worker Cafeteria ) seems to have been added just to have a few more windows ( level dress up ).
"We are but stones to pave the way" Seen in the Drafting Room ( I doubt Sofia actually included herself in that 'We'. )
Beef-E Tins delivered in the Pneumo Room - Sofia's recent production "NOW WITH MORE 'UNBELIEVER' !!! " ( Yes, a use for those corpses, finally ).
Huge rotating things in the Turntable 'Hub' area - Those gianourmous animated chain-driven object things ( implying Air Circulation Fans, but mostly being there as 'dress up', to add some easy to render motion.)
Those Big Statues within the AE Turntable 'Hub' would be sheet metal. It is a extravagance for a workspace, a product of level designers who don't seem knowledgeable about appropriateness of decoration ( that is a work area, not a public space ), and that there is a thing called "Cost".
That entry room ( we go thru into this Game Level ) is a Diver Suit drying area ( for the canvas diving suits ). Mines used to have similar 'pull up above between working ' drying process. This facility was intended to date back to when Human Divers were used in Rapture. The problem is cannot transition between Rapture's Depth and the inside Sea Level Pressure without killing the diver. And if divers could handle it better with ADAM Tonics, the problem was THAT could only be possible halfway thru Raptures history ( After ADAM was discovered ).
--- --- --- --- ----
.
.