Will, Where did I miss the "Norfolk Terminal" part?
Jim,
Yep, there is quite a complex Norfolk Terminal: a large coal wharf, passenger service at Norfolk Union Station, extensive throat tracks, industrial sidings, a yard accessible from both ends, and a 6-track stub-end yard. Presiding over the complex interlocking plant that controls movements in the throat at the center is a reproduction of Raleigh Tower and adjacent Boylan Bridge, neither of which, of course, belong in Norfolk, but what the heck? I didn't model Raleigh and wanted Raleigh Tower on the layout since I qualified as an mechanical interlocking operator there back in 1969. The scratch-built model of Raleigh Tower is as accurate as we could make it from drawings and photographs.
Since switching provides the majority of fun for me as an operator, I designed this area to make the breaking and building of trains as interesting and challenging as possible. I succeeded in the sense that I have yet to become bored with it.
