I’m a big fan of Lance Mindheim‘s modern-era modelling. If you haven’t had an opportunity to check out his website featuring his HO scale East Rail and Downtown Spur layouts, please take a few minutes to do so.
I’ve looked at a couple different prototypes over the years for such a layout. The Port Terminal Railroad Association in Houston has several scenes that would fit the bill. The CSX Sarnia Subdivision is another, with the advantage that I actually worked at one of the industries served by the line for several years. In the end, both are a little too large in scope for a small layout.
Then, I found the Trillium Railway in Port Colborne, Ontario. Cobbled together from several railway lines in the Niagara region, the Trillium Railway was tailor-made for the Mindheim approach.
Paul Duncan’s Niagara Rails website contains a wealth of information on the PCHR including its history, its current state and a large number of photographs. Trillium Railway‘s own website contains a great amount of detail on its locomotives, current customers and current trackage. In addition, there are numerous photographs and videos floating around railway photo websites and Youtube. The southern part of the Trillium Railway, also known as the Port Colborne Harbour Railway, has the highest concentration of industries so I will concentrate on documenting it first.
Don’t worry; I haven’t abandoned garden railroading. The Marchlyn Quarry Railway is in the plans to scratch my “narrow gauge live steam” itch, while the Trillium will allow me to explore the “operations prototype-modeling” arena. I currently don’t have room for either, so I’m just collecting information and equipment for both right now.