Complex Star Junction

From OpenTTD

Railway junctions 3-Way junctions Basic 3-Way Line Merge Half Cloverleaf Half Spaghetti Compact 3-Way Compact 3-Way B-M Junction Ultimate 3-way 4-Way junctions Basic 4-Way Roundabout Cloverleaf Spaghetti Star Complex Star Branch-Merge Over-Under Tetrathorp Pre-Signaled Roundabout Advanced Roundabout Right-of-way Roundabout Enormous junctions Double Cloverleaf Dual Tetrathorp Dual Branch-Merge Quad Branch-Merge 8-Way Star Other junctions Right-of-way Depot Dual tunnels Right-of-way Lane Change Unuseful juctions Crossover 3/4ths junction Ultimate 3-way junction for 4 tracks

This junction was originally mislabeled as a Complex Roundabout, or CRAB, even though there is no roundabout loop. The tracks on split before they merge so trains are less likely to encounter a red signal. It does not give preference towards any track.

It is a complicated version of the Star Junction, with the branches very long and intertwined. A larger Star junction will have the same effect.

Pros:

• Handle a large number of trains at a time.
• Traffic Jams are unlikely.
• Trains don't have to loop around like they do in a cloverleaf.
• Tracks split before they merge, avoiding traffic problems.

Cons:

• Trains have to slow down to climb a slope.
• Takes up a huge amount of space.
• Costly to build.
• Indirect path.
• Larger trains slow down due to hard twist and turns.