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(erielack) Fictional EL What if

Hello All,

Happy Holidays to all.   I hate to post this to the list, but I would like 
some ideas about something I am working on.  I am developing a ficticious 
route for the Erie Lackawanna for the program Microsoft Train Simulator.  It 
focuses on a "what if" scenario that follows the following guidelines:

1) The EL was not included into Conrail
2) The EL gained access and expanded it's line into Chicago and through on 
its way to Kansas City. (note: this may not have been possible for the EL 
financially, politically, logically, etc., but say for some reason this 
hypothetical EL would have been allowed to build this route from Gov't 
grants, a investor who purchased the EL built it, whichever)
3) The route that I am going to build will be based on the BNSF Chicago to 
Kansas City route (terrain only).
4) There will be no correlation to the real town names, the cities, 
industries, etc.  I am going to make up town names and industries along the 
way.  (A lot easier to create from your mind then to try to replicate an 
exact line, which I am also doing).  Only relation is the terrain that I am 
recreating.
5) The time period is modern day.  So, I am going to create modern 
locomotives in old EL scheme.  SD70MAC, Dash9 unit, etc.

So, how does this affect my need for help?  Well, I need to create a 
realistic operation so I would like others input on what industries, trains 
and such that would be logical (if that is possible) on this line.   Would 
the line see Grain Trains (seems logical), Coal Trains (more of a Powder 
River Basin thing) or Autoracks?  What about continuation of old EL trains?  
NY-100?  What about industries on this line?  Grain Silos (obviously), Coal 
mines, chemical?  For argument sake you could say the EL either continued 
onto Los Angeles, CA or had a connection with a major western railroad to 
continue this line.

Any input on helping me out would be appreciated.  Thought about this over 
the weekend and I am going to start work on it.  This is just for fun and 
play.  Anything not to far fetched will be taken under consideration.

Thanks.
Mike Riley
ELHS #3207

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