Odd transfer tracks

[oriolat2]

Since parks are closed and we are bored out of our minds with this covid-19 quarantine situation, let's start a topic about transfer tracks because why not?

So, I was thinking, what are the oddest transfer track systems on coasters? And what transfer tracks are oddly placed in a coaster layout (these tend to be placed right in front or right behind the station)?

Oddly-placed transfer tracks:

1. El Diablo (PortAventura): as far as coasters go, I think this one is clearly the only one with a transfer track in the middle of the ride's layout. It's right before the last lift hill (the ride has 3, urgh). I take it was due to space contraints, since the ride is located in the heart of the park, and there was no space left before or after the station.

2. Millennium Force (Cedar Point): the transfer track system is not odd (heck, it's just a sliding track) but the fact that it's shoe-horned between unload and load makes it kind of unique.

3. Hyperspace Mountain (DLRP): both stations (the ride features a dual loading station just like most high-capacity) Disney coasters have their own transfer track which can store different amounts of train. I think one of them can only hold 1 train and the transfer bay can hold 2 trains in a row. On top of this, the actual track is curved because of the ride's show building.

4. Dragon Khan (PortAventura): I think this and Swarm are the only B&Ms that have their maintenance bays not behind the station but rather beside it. This was due to the ride's design. Since the cobra roll happens to "wrap" around the last brake run, there is simply no room to have the maintenance bays placed. Because the station building houses both the station and the transfer bays, the ride's exit had to be placed to one corner. Clearing the station's exit platform of guests takes forever.

5. Swarm (Thorpe Park): this one I don't know why it was placed beside the ride's station and not behind the transfer track.

Odd transfer tracks:

1. Stealth (Thorpe Park): this one has a regular sliding track (like Millennium Force) and then it has a large S-bend before reaching another track spur leading to the maintenance bays. It seems so excessive!

2. YoungStars and spinners: these Mack coasters can store their trains with a vertical transfer track. I have never seen one in operation but it must be quite the sight seeing the whole station section lift.

So, what other oddities can you add to this list?

 

[Matt N]

You mention the Mack YoungStars and spinning coasters, but the Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach also has a vertical transfer track. It was apparently put in in order to save space:

While we’re at Pleasure Beach, Icon also has a rather odd one that slides part of the station track as well as the entire baggage hold and part of the exit walkway along with it:

 

[Professor]

Was going to mention the Big One as well.
Saddens me somewhat that the monorail was removed (never got to ride it), since a lot of careful planning seem to go into the Big One to make sure that and the train line were not affected. With today's ride removal attitude the Big One could have had a much simpler transfer track on the breakrun next to Avalanche I would have thought.
There is a video on YouTube from 1993 taken on the train I believe where you can see the Big One station being built.

 

[CrashCoaster]

Tennessee Tornado at Dollywood. Has a dip and turn out of the station, into the maintenance building, and then has another dip and turn into the lift hill. Also Saw The Ride - has a small turntable before the lift hill.

 

[roomraider]

The 5 way switch track on Eurosat is something unique and ingenious.

 

[CanobieFan]

Tennessee Tornado at Dollywood. Has a dip and turn out of the station, into the maintenance building, and then has another dip and turn into the lift hill.

I believe that had to do with the setup for the Mine Train Tornado replaced. I think they use the same station and storage bay.

And as people were talking about vertical/elevator lifts for transfers, that's how Lightning Rods is

 

[cookie]

Lisebergbanan's switch track hiding behind the mirror in the station is pretty dope.

 

[Heth]

Baron 1898 also has its maintenance bay beside the ride station rather than behind it. I believe the transfer track occurs in the pre-lift section.

 

[Hixee]

Saw this thread and immediately thought of Lisbergbanan. That's a masterpiece. The view from the 'other side' is pretty cool too, as the storage building has to be so big to account for the large number of long trains:

I've always thought the Iron Dragon setup was kinda funky. Traditional transfer track, but with a huge drop into the maintenance shed underneath the platfom:

Crappy screengrab from Cedar Point's own POV

5. Swarm (Thorpe Park): this one I don't know why it was placed beside the ride's station and not behind the transfer track.

Looking at the ride on Google Maps may give this away. The coaster is so close to the water that they likely couldn't have fit the shed in the more traditional locations (alongside the brake runs). There are probably all sorts of added difficulties building that close to the water in a swampy area like Thorpe, so not worth the bother. Plus, it may have made access through the bridge to the north a bit more complicated.

1. Stealth (Thorpe Park): this one has a regular sliding track (like Millennium Force) and then it has a large S-bend before reaching another track spur leading to the maintenance bays. It seems so excessive!

Probably something similar to Swarm here, is my bet. It could have fit, but maybe the additional construction effort as well as additional access complications, maybe meant it was cheaper and easier to just add a few more segments of track.

 

[JoshC.]

Python at Efteling has a nice drop into the maintenance bay which always tickles me whenever I see it:


(best photo I could find)

 

[toofpikk]

Yup - arrow really loved their dip under the station maintenance bays. Loch Ness features one too. Orient Express as well. I always wondered how they made it back out of the maintenance bays? Hoisted back out in reverse?

 

[Hixee]

Yup - arrow really loved their dip under the station maintenance bays. Loch Ness features one too. Orient Express as well. I always wondered how they made it back out of the maintenance bays? Hoisted back out in reverse?

Yes, I believe so. I recall seeing a winch at the end of the Iron Dragon's transfer track - I presume to pull the train out again.

 

[oriolat2]

I knew how these Arrow transfer sections worked but it still amazes me how creative they went to make the most of the space available. I would have loved to "ride" one of those trains going down the little dip into the maintenance shed.

Thanks @Hixee for shedding some light on the Thorpe coasters. I guess reclaiming swampy land must be more expensive, as you say, than just getting creative and buying a couple more track pieces.

Baron 1898 also has its maintenance bay beside the ride station rather than behind it. I believe the transfer track occurs in the pre-lift section.

I just love how Baron takes advantage of a layout section that's as necessary and mundane as a transfer track and turns into a neat preshow to increase capacity!

Now that I think of it, Disney can also get "very creative" when it comes to transfer sections:
- California Screamin' (Incredicoaster, urgh): on top of the dual loading platform, it has a large sliding table with 3 (?) pieces of track to catter for the 3 maintenance bays. It must be a pain in the ass to get trains in and out every day!
- Expedition Everest: also legenday for having an entire hidden section of track going quite far from the loading station, where there's a sliding track leading to the actual bays. (Top of picture)

Outside of Disney:
- Verbolten: I guess they had to be creative to house 5 long trains. That's probably why they had their transfer table attached to a sliding piece with maintenance sheds on both ends of the transfer track piece (See below)

- EuroSat/CanCan Coaster: honorable mention, although not a transfer track. There's a switch track to allow for VR-trains to be transferred on and off the main track. Shame this operation often causes trains to back up inside the dome killing the ride's pacing.

 

[The Undead Creature]

4. Dragon Khan (PortAventura): I think this and Swarm are the only B&Ms that have their maintenance bays not behind the station but rather beside it. This was due to the ride's design. Since the cobra roll happens to "wrap" around the last brake run, there is simply no room to have the maintenance bays placed. Because the station building houses both the station and the transfer bays, the ride's exit had to be placed to one corner. Clearing the station's exit platform of guests takes forever.

Oblivion has a similar setup with the workshop part of the station building.

The placement of Stealths workshop has less to do with it being on swampy ground, it was designed with a problem on Colossus in mind. The workshop on Colossus was originally only big enough for one train, it had to be extended to house both after a fault on one train that required a relatively simple fix caused a very long shutdown because the other train was in the workshop with a more extensive problem. All because Intamin, in their infinite wisdom have designed their trains in a way that makes it physically impossible to change a wheel on the running track.
The original idea was to have a third train on Stealth ready to go at short notice, so if you have to take a train off for repair, the ride would still run with 2 trains. In the end it proved to be too much work over winter to have 3 trains plus the rest of the ride overhauled by february. It was was decided that one train would be left off during the season for its annual service ready for the next season.
In order to accomodate the second transfer track, the workshop had to be rotated in order to fit between Tidal Wave and the Fish.

As for odd transfer tracks, I find transfers that you have to move by hand to not only be odd but a complete pain in the arse. I'm looking at you S&S. What is the logic behind a transfer track that requires the use of a hernia every time you move it?

 

[toofpikk]

While we’re at Pleasure Beach, Icon also has a rather odd one that slides part of the station track as well as the entire baggage hold and part of the exit walkway along with it

Forgot Arthur at Europa Park! Maybe Mack have a kink for attaching as much crap as they can to their transfer tracks. The whole preshow screen moves with the track, and can rotate to the different bays (can't remember how many there were, but it was more than 1) that sit behind the black screen which you conveniently typically miss due to the rotations of the seats. Was very cool to see it in action! Each car has its own remote so ops and engineers could literally use it to drive it to and from the main track. Was quite the impressive feat of technology considering how much its used (you'd be surprised)!

 

[CSLKennyNI]

^Not in action, but from 8:00 you can see some of the Arthur bays and turntable track in this video.

Already been mentioned but just want to give another shout out my personal favourite - the EuroSat CanCan Coaster turntable. Its just a crazy ingenious bit of tech. Fun to see in action and work with.

 

[CanobieFan]

.... and the Fish.

This would be... incorrect? Flying Fish was removed for a few seasons, Stealth was built in its place...and the year after Stealth opens, Fish returns to the parks in a new location. So Stealths placement of anything is irrelevant to Fish.

 

[JoshC.]

This would be... incorrect? Flying Fish was removed for a few seasons, Stealth was built in its place...and the year after Stealth opens, Fish returns to the parks in a new location. So Stealths placement of anything is irrelevant to Fish.

Whilst it's true Fish was replaced by Stealth and didn't return until 2007, the land that Fish is on is infilled land, and I'm fairly certain didn't exist in 2004/5 when plans for Stealth and its maintenance shed were drawn up (or if it did exist, it certainly wasn't usable).

So it's more they had to rotate the workshop to fit between Tidal Wave and the lake, I'd imagine.

 

[oriolat2]

^Not in action, but from 8:00 you can see some of the Arthur bays and turntable track in this video.

Already been mentioned but just want to give another shout out my personal favourite - the EuroSat CanCan Coaster turntable. Its just a crazy ingenious bit of tech. Fun to see in action and work with.

This looks quite complex to be honest. BTW, I might or I might not have been distracted by the hot EP-employee during the tour around the maintenance bays.

 

[MouseAT]

The one that comes to mind for me is the transfer track from the now removed Curse of Darkastle dark ride at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.



The turntable transfer tracks might not look like much, but they're located mid way through the ride, and were designed to operate whilst the ride was still in operation. The ride cars (shown below) were spaced out enough during the ride that not only were two ride cars never in the same scene at once, but also so that a vehicle could enter the transfer track, rotate, move into the workshop, and have the transfer track reset before the next car came through. The same could also be done in reverse to add cars to the ride whilst it was in operation, presumably as long as it wasn't already operating at capacity and there was a big enough gap between cars inside the ride area.



This did, however, lead to one infamous incident where the engineers accidentally removed the wrong car from the ride whilst it was operating. They apparently arrived in the maintenance bay to find a car full of rather bemused guests, wondering where they were.