Bellisseria Railways

The continent of Bellisseria has two large and unconnected railway systems. Both of them are buit ina similar fashion and share many common features. They are the **West Bellisseria Railway** and **Chalet - Newbrooke Railway**.

## Features

The railway network of Bellisseria is built suitable for Second Life Railroad technology. Trains follow an invisible prim called **Guide** to move forward. At switches, the prim changes name into *Alternative Guide* just the way it happens on Heterocera. So, basically, any train that can travel on the railways of Heterocera can also move on the rails of Bellisseria. The railway gauge is similar to that of Heterocera's railway network and the height of the guide with respect to the track is also similar. That means any train would behave the same both on the railway network of Heterocera and on the railways of Bellisseria.

The railway is designed with metal rails that are welded together. In many parts, the rails are curved. Railway sleepers are made of wood and are more realistically sculpted. The gravel platform is narrower compared to the rails of Heterocera. The track is laid in a more straightforward way. The rail network is built in such a way that double sim crossings are rare and there is no place where the railway crosses over a sim corner. Slopes are more moderate and curves are smooth. The entire railway network is built with the same materials. All tracks look the same. Small differences exist, but one needs a good eye to spot them at a first trip.

There are a few stations along the way. While some stations are large and have a distinct architecture, most of them are identical: a platform with a roof held on columns. A Rezz Zone is vital for deploying your personal train. Rezz zones are rare and at significant distance one from another.

The railway network has some unique features. First of all, there are sensors along the track which spot trains on a section. Signals are present and are connected to the sensors. There are waiting areas between sections. If there is a train on a section, the next train has to wait within a waiting area and will not be given permission to pass through. Because of this, one needs to wait a few minutes to pass through. Sections can be very long, of up to 2000 m.

Another major difference from the railways of Heterocera is that there are not many themed buildings and structures along the railway. There are no depots, no private buildings, no private stations. As mentioned above, with a few exceptions, stations don't have a varying architecture. There are long distances between stations or waiting areas.

There are a few long bridges along the railway. The vast majority are low, slightly above water, made of wood. Most bridges are made of wood, but there are a few modern concrete ones. A number of railway crossings exist, often with barriers or with bridges overpassing or underpassing the railway. There are a few tunnels too, the most impressive ones being along the Eastern rail, crossing beneath the sea level.

The railway network of Bellisseria is designed for higher speeds. Since the railway is designed so that two trains cannot enter together the same sector, it is recommended that trains do not move too slowly. There are a few double-track sectors but they are rare. Double sim crossings are rare and far more smooth than those on Heterocera. Still, tests conducted by SLGI team found that sim cross failures in Bellisseria are more unsafe. While in Heterocera sim crashes for a seated vehicle are between 2 and 3 %, in Bellisseria they rise to 7% (please note that these results gradually vary depending on the type of computer, connection and viewer you use, tests need to be done with the same avatar, same viewer, same computer and with the same connection).

The Bellisseria railway, having the Second Life Railroad standard, has a gauge of 2186 (that is, 2186 mm between rails). This is a highly broad gauge on real life standard, as the standard railway gauge (European, North American and Chinese) is 1435 mm and the Russian standard (which is considered *broad*) is 1520 mm.

## Measurements

Distances are shown in km. **S** means station, **R** means rezz zone, **J** means junction.

North-West Loop:

```
Quercus Alba **J**: 0.000
Deermoor **S**: 0.443
Campwich Forest **S**: 1.627
Placid **R**: 1876
The Beaten Path **S**: 2.721
Pugwash **R**: 3.099
Somer Ville **S**: 3.870
Timpson (waiting area): 3.988
Extraordinary **J**: 5.287
Beckwith Station (waiting area): 5.386
Phelips Place (waiting area): 6.715
Quercus Alba **J**: 6.910
Total double track: 0.876

```

Red Hook Branch:

```
Extraordinary **J**: 0.000
Chipewa Junction **S** **R**: 0.270
Shallow Springs **S**: 0.833
BaneBurry (waiting area): 1.556
Myles (waiting area): 2.517
Red Hook **S** **R**: 4.986
Total double track: 0.359
Chipewa Junction Branch: 0.081

```

East - West Connection:

```
Quercus Alba **J**: 0.000
Falcon Heights **R**: 0.283
Ravine Junction **J**: 2.105
Clayton Ravine (waiting area): 2.271
Hawkesblood **S** **R**: 3.085
Falcon Haven **J**: 3.337
Total double track: 0.140
Ravine Bridge Branch (not functional): 0.096

```

Axminster Branch:

```
Falcon Haven **J**: 0.000
Hillfar (waiting area): 0.305
Axminster **S** **R**: 0.862
Total double track: 0.075

```

Forest Common Line:

```
Falcon Haven **J**: 0.000
Gramsby (waiting area): 0.282
Bear Pause (waiting area): 1.521
Lakeview Oasis (waiting area): 2.767
Randelsham Forest **S** **R**: 3.781
Pupas Place (waiting area): 4.827
Gully Wash **J**: 5.227
Total double track: 0.299

```

North Forest Line:

```
Gully Wash **J**: 0.000
Moose Lodge **R**: 0.505
Happy Hollow **R**: 1.465
Moose Tracks **S** **R**: 2.389
Line end: 2.613
Total double track: 0.228

```

South forest Line:

```
Gully Wash **J**: 0.000
Ant Hill (waiting area): 0.179
Marmiera **S**: 1.146
Chorizo (waiting area): 1.483
Dancing Elk (waiting area): 2.713
Finnegans Wake (waiting area): 3.399
Bridle Path **S** **R**: 4.850
South loop: 5.289
Total double track: 0.314

```

East line:

```
Hydrant **S** **R**: 0.000
Some Pig **S** **R**: 2287
Thimble Pond Farms **R**: 4.724
Allrutti **S** **R**: 5.231
Drama Llama **S** **R**: 7.049
Camp Montezuma - Wiggleroom Gardens (waiting area): 8.275
Queeg (waiting area): 9.144
Lavon **S** **R**: 9.275
Artisan Spring **S** **R**: 10.802
Poplar Springs **S** **R**: 13.121
Muehlenbach **S** **R**: 14.896
Highland Fling **S** **R**: 16.229
Hydrant **S** **R**: 17.712
Total double track: 4.490

```

Total data:

```
West lines: 29.941
East line: 17.712
Total track: 47.653
West lines double track: 2.291
East line double track: 4.490
Total double track: 6.791

```

The measurements have an error of 3%.

The railway network of Bellisseria is huge. At 47.6 km, it is far longer than the railway network of Heterocera.

## Lines

There is no clear official reference from Linden Lab regarding the names of the railways. Residents have suggested various names over time.

### Main Line

Some authors name it *Main Line*, while others call it *Bellisseria Line*, *West Line*, *West Loop* or *North Loop*. This railway forms a large loop in the oldest part of the continent, crossing various land terrains. It gives access to Victorian Subcontinent in South and Primordial Bellisseria in North. This was the first railway to be laid on the continent, first as an experiment which later became a permanent railway.

### Red Hook Line

As an extension to South from the main loop, this railway crosses through the Victorian Subcontinent almost in a straight line, reaching the coastline and getting very close to Jeogeot. It is technically a branch line, with less waiting areas and less stations.

### East - West Connection

Connecting the Main Loop with the Forest Line, this railway is most known for the Ravine Bridge, which crosses a large body of water. Close to it, one can see the former bridge, which, according to a nearby billboard, was left unfinished for over 150 years.

### Axminster Line

A short branch spanning South, the Axminster Line partially separates the Victorian Subcontinent from Bellisseria Forest.

### Forest Line

This line separates from the East - West Connection and then splits in two. It crosses the Bellisseria Forest and according to most authors it is unfinished. Here, there are no signals, although trains can still run as most tracks have *Guides* laid down. One can find more pieces of wood along the tracks, which look more rusty. The Northern branch crosses a few tunnels and ends-up reaching the Void Ocean (where it is unfinished). The Eastern branch ends at a loop where trains can turn around. In past, the line was planned to extend further and tracks were laid, but were removed for unknown reasons.

### Newbrooke - Chalet Line

This railway describes a long loop along East Bellisseria. Some parts in North-West are double track. There are no branch lines spanning out of it. The railway runs, for most of its path, close to waterways, close to coastlines and at low elevations. It crosses a major waterway twice, through undersea tunnels. It is the longest of all lines and is unconnected to the Western railway network.

## Traffic

During our surveys, which lasted for 10 days at different hours, no trains have been spotted. Traffic must, therefore, be scarce. Using parcel info, which measures traffic (number of minutes an avatar was there during 24 hours), it appears that the number of visitors is on average 20. It is higher for parcels that include all Protected Land of the sim, that is, also roads, waterways and parks or gardens (in that case it can rise to 300). Given the average time needed for a train or a passing avatar to go through, one can estimate that there is less than one visitor every hour (and potentially less than one train every hour).

Land does not allow objects entry. So, Automated Transportation does not exist. Any passing train must have a rider. With a ridership of less than a train every hour, the railway network of Bellisseria is highly unused given its huge potential.

## See Also

* Second Life Geography
* List Of Railways
* Second Life Railroad (railways of Heterocera)
* Bellisseria