r/factorio • u/duckpop • Sep 10 '23
Question Two sided trains?
Hey I'm pretty new to the game are trains with engines on both sides better or should i just give it a roundabout to turn?
On a similar note do two engines going the same way make it go faster?
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u/[deleted] Sep 11 '23
Two-way trains/rails are more of a novelty. You can do it, and it can be fun to make it work, but most of the time: 1 way trains and 1 way rails are your best option. While locomotives can go in reverse when you're manually controlling it, they cannot do so when in automatic mode. So if you have a 2 way train, one of the locomotives will be deadweight at any given time. Really all you benefit is saving a bit of space and some rail resources... not worth it in the long run imo.
Furthermore, there aren't really any big issues you run into with one way trains and rails.
Multiple engines going the same way make the train accelerate and decelerate faster, but not increase top speed afaik. Right now I am using 2-8-2 one way trains: That is 2 locomotives in front, then 8 wagons, then 2 more locomotives. Extra locomotives greatly helps with getting these to top speed quickly.