Contracts

**Contracts** in *Rail Route* are an important part of Endless Mode gameplay. They are also how you get of money and experience points to expand your map and research new abilities.

The list of offered contracts is filled with “randomly” generated offers over time and you are free to decline those that do not match your needs.

The generator is using the configuration from the map, especially the weights which are defined for every station and every train type (defined in the Map Editor). These are the probabilities that the contract for a given train type and station will be generated but are actually hidden in normal game play.

The generator also gives a boost to the stations that are already unlocked (at least one platform is bought) or are neighbours to already unlocked stations.

You start with only three available offered contracts, but can research to allow for ten contract offers at a time, and also boost how fast you get those offers.

Currently there are three types of contracts :

* Recurrent contracts give you green points and will run every hour, 24 hours a day. These are Commuter, Urban or Intercity Contracts
* One time contracts give you red points and only run once. These are IC or Freight Contracts
* Coachyard contracts give you one red and one green point. These are recurrent, will run every hour and are Commuter, Urban or Intercity Contracts

## Recurrent Contracts

These contracts are the most common and they form a significant part of the traffic you need to operate. They repeat every hour, 24 hours a day so the longer you play the game the more you will recognize your traffic patterns from the contracts you have accepted earlier, but you will quickly realize that the situation is different every hour, especially when you add in one-way contracts, intercity trains or change your track layout.

### Trial Train

A trial must be completed before accepting the contract. The contract offer will list the start and end station and possibly one station in between these two, It will also give a target average speed. You will need to route the train most efficiently to cover those stations in the fastest time to ensure that when the trial is over you get offered the most money (time is everything).

You MUST complete the trial run within one hour's game time or you will not be offered the contract!

NOTE : Trains marked as freight or IC will only stop at the stations mentioned in the contract listing as "stopped for x minutes". All other stations will be marked as "passing". Trains marked as "com" are commuter trains and will stop at every station that you route through. Station stops will severely impact your total route time, so if there are multiple possible routes, try to keep to the shortest, and make sure you get to your end point within one hour!

On completion of the trial your run will be assessed and if successful the contract adjusts the payments (according to rail network performance) and offers you a contract. If you accept then the game creates the timetable for all future trains in the recurrent contract. This train will then run every hour with arrival and departure times for each stop and the platforms set in the contract. Times and platforms can be changed once you have the appropriate upgrades.

### Automation and trial runs

Sensors do not know about intermediate stations, they only know what the next instruction of the train tells the sensor where to route to.

Take the example to the right, a new contract from Ruhleben to Berlin Hbf. The most direct route is via Charlottenburg, but the train doesn't have an instruction for this, so my departure sensor at Ruhleben would need an instruction for Berlin Hbf to automate appropriately.

Between Ruhleben and Charlottenburg it's likely there will be an arrival sensor, but for the trial run the train doesn't know about Charlottenburg. You CAN set the arrival sensor to have an "ANY" route, but again this train doesn't know it needs to go to Charlottenburg so that arrival sensor will NOT react.

You **could** set a routing sensor to the same signal and route to Berlin directly, but it's likely you will want to reserve this for IC trains (ie those which will go straight through Charlottenburg) so the best bet is to set the trial manually. As soon as the train stops at a platform the train's running order will update as shown.

Because Berlin IS listed, the arrival sensor WILL react if the ANY option is set

### Optimizing the contract

There are two useful upgrades in the **System Upgrades** for contract modification.

#### Platform Adjustments

You can change a platform the train is routed through. Once you have bought this upgrade you can select the train (either by clicking on the current one on track or by clicking it in the timetable):

1. Click contract adjustments at the bottom of the contract listing
2. Click the station stop which you wish to change platform for
3. Select the platform number at the bottom

This will change the platform stops immediately, so remember if changing the contract with the train en route you may need to change the routing of the current train manually to avoid contract charges

NOTE : This will only change the platform for trains which are yet to be dispatched. Any train on the map, or any train which is waiting to enter the map can only be changed directly. Changing any train already dispatched will automatically update any future trains

#### Timetable Adjustments

You can shift arrival and departure times for any stop on the route or shift the whole run. You can shift the times ±15mins each time.

##### Changing an individual station stop:

1. Select the train either by clicking on the train on the map or select it from the list at the bottom
2. Click "Adjust Timetable" at the bottom of the contract listing
3. Click the station stop which you wish to change times for
4. If you wish to move the time BACKWARD, set the arrival time first by clicking the - symbol on the left, once this is at the desired time reduce the departure time by using the - symbol for departure. NOTE : You can only reduce the time until 1 minute after the previous stop. Shift the previous stop as needed.
5. If you wish to move the time FORWARD, set the departure time first by clicking the + symbol on the right, once this is at the desired time increase the departure time by using the + symbol for departure. NOTE : You can only increase the time until 1 minute before the next stop. Shift the next stop as needed

##### Changing an entire run:

1. Select the train either by clicking on the train on the map or select it from the list at the bottom
2. Click "Adjust TImetable" at the bottom of the contract listing
3. Click "Schedule" on the left of the option box
4. Click the + or - next to "Shift all" to move all stops back or forward one minute

These unlocks are useful after the early stages of the game when you open up more platforms and may wish to redirect your initial contracts to these new platforms, or when you upgrade to faster tracks and want to reduce the contract times to reflect the faster travel times between stations. Just remember if you're late arriving you will be penalised, and if you set your departure too late the platform will be blocked for longer than needs be...

#### Making more money

To ensure your contract is as optimal as possible when it comes to earning money, make sure to set the station times correctly as this determines the money you are offered for that contract.

Your payment for a contract is based on the time the train is in motion. Station dwell times (when the train is stopped loading passengers) is NOT counted. Reduce the time of travel as much as possible to get the full contract value. You may think that the time an IC is set to pass off the map doesn't matter, but you could be getting thousands more for each run by adjusting them every time you upgrade your track!

NOTES :

* Freight runs do not incur time penalties for late running. They also usually have very very low average speed requirements (often as low as 2 or 4kmph)
* When being offered a contract it lists the average required speed, so if you have two contracts offered with the same money but a lower average speed it may be beneficial to take the lower speed contract when building up your track speeds, or needing to find a complex path around other trains

#### Cancelling Contracts

You can find yourself in a situation where the contracts you have on your books are no longer suitable because of an improved layout, upgraded track speeds or automation .

You can reject the contract by selecting a train on that contract (either by clicking on the current one on track or by clicking it in the timetable), then clicking "Contract" at the bottom then clicking the Bin icon on the right.

If you have already completed the defined amount of operations stated in the contract it’s without a penalty fee.

## One-Off contracts

These contracts are purely one offs and will be for freight or InterCity (IC) trains, they also tend to have higher payments offered than recurrent contracts. To be offered one off contracts you will need to unlock freights or InterCity trains from the upgrades option. Each train has a target average speed, and InterCity trains also have a fine for each minute of delay. If you're too slow you could lose more than you gain!

If you look at the picture to the right, the top offer (#688) has a loop symbol in front, this means it's a recurrent contract, the bottom offer (#623) is a one time InterCity contract as shown by the red arrow.

#### Freights

These trains have a timetable which will include an entry station (where the train enters the map), at least one stop where the train will unload and then either the train will complete (only two stops listed), the train will go onto one other stop (third stop shown as arrival and departure times) or the train will pass from the map (third stop shown as *passing*)

Freight trains "dwell" in platforms a lot longer than passenger trains! You will need to allow for this train to be en route for a long time, so be aware your passenger trains may need to route around it. Also note, freight trains are not subject to fines for late running, so if you have somewhere else to put them (a loop line) or an out of the way platform not used by passengers you can leave them there until you are ready to move them again. You won't lose money by doing so

#### Intercity

These trains have a timetable which will include an entry station (where the train enters the map), one stop and then the train will pass from the map with this third station shown as *passing*

Because these trains bypass local stations your routing will need to take into account that the next destination of the train may not be the next station on the line... Auto signals and sensors must be setup accordingly or you will need to path the train yourself

Almost any delay for IC trains will mean reduced payment or fines for late running, they're meant to be express after all.