Mark, I always get concerned when someone says they have a small space where they want to run O72 curves, especially for a passenger train. Unfortunately, O72 doesn't leave much room for anything else when it comes to things like logging and coal operations. Since your better half suggested joining up with the ceiling layout in the other room have you considered expanding the ceiling layout into the new space and using it for your passenger run? You could come into the new space where there'd be a cityscape on the wall, perhaps with bas relief storefronts, etc., and a passenger station. Moving the larger equipment off the main layout would free it up for the logging and coal operations, perhaps on separate levels. Using O54 or even O42 curves gives you a lot more space for loop2loop, folded dog bones, etc. Here's a very early design I did for 10.8x12 using O31 ScaleTrax to show how much or how little track will fit that space. I don't have it in SCARM, but could convert it easy enough and change it to GG/Ross O42/O54, but I offer it just for idea value. FWIW, the bridges were going to be lift-outs and the blue would have been a fold down panel.
