Last month on my trip to Salzburg primarily for music at the Festival, I did take a day trip to St. Anton am Arlberg. I had two reasons; one being that my Sister has been there but the other was to try out in real life Microsoft Train Simulator's Orient Express run Innsbruck-St. Anton set circa 1925 (1.0 Win 32).
In a word, the "Sim" is quite accurate. The real life route parallels the Inn River Innsbruck to Imst through a level valley. Never mind the present day Rail Jet moves along at 125mph, while the max the steam powered "Orient Express" can make is 60. Ascending to St. Anton along the Inn, first to Landeck, then Eastward to St. Anton, the real life Rail Jet maintains a steady 40mph, but at times the Sim's "Orient Express" drops to 4mph providing the player with "think I can..." moments.
Major landmarks, such as several monasteries, on the Sim are there in real life. Many of the stations still have structures as depicted by the Sim, albeit with some platform upgrading.
Now the only place there are major differences is approaching St. Anton. The Sim depicts the train struggling up the final grade to an imposing St. Anton "hauptbahnhof"; in real life, there is a tunnel and in a short space of daylight is a nondescript St. Anton station. The West portal of the Arlberg Tunnel (I didn't ride through it) now begins right at the station, the Sim has it some half mile to the East. Considering the accuracy of the Sim, likely there has been a line change.
Final difference; in real life, the Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof is a run through station with no change in direction of travel (often the case in Europe). The Sim depicts it as a stub "terminal".
In a word, the "Sim" is quite accurate. The real life route parallels the Inn River Innsbruck to Imst through a level valley. Never mind the present day Rail Jet moves along at 125mph, while the max the steam powered "Orient Express" can make is 60. Ascending to St. Anton along the Inn, first to Landeck, then Eastward to St. Anton, the real life Rail Jet maintains a steady 40mph, but at times the Sim's "Orient Express" drops to 4mph providing the player with "think I can..." moments.
Major landmarks, such as several monasteries, on the Sim are there in real life. Many of the stations still have structures as depicted by the Sim, albeit with some platform upgrading.
Now the only place there are major differences is approaching St. Anton. The Sim depicts the train struggling up the final grade to an imposing St. Anton "hauptbahnhof"; in real life, there is a tunnel and in a short space of daylight is a nondescript St. Anton station. The West portal of the Arlberg Tunnel (I didn't ride through it) now begins right at the station, the Sim has it some half mile to the East. Considering the accuracy of the Sim, likely there has been a line change.
Final difference; in real life, the Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof is a run through station with no change in direction of travel (often the case in Europe). The Sim depicts it as a stub "terminal".
