Train consist · freight car capacity · power-to-weight
Transport Fever 3 train consist planner
Combine locomotives and up to two freight car types, then compare cargo capacity, mass, power and platform fit.
Your scenario
Example values are illustrative. Replace them with observations from your save. Inputs stay in your browser.
Your planning result
Total freight car capacity
The consist fits within the entered platform length.
- Total consist mass
- 240 t
- Total locomotive power
- 2,000 kW
- Power-to-weight
- 8.33 kW/t
- Whole consist length
- 148 m
- Platform length minus consist
- 52 m
Calculation method & limits
Capacity and length are sums across vehicles. Total mass adds locomotive mass, empty freight car mass and your observed cargo payload in tonnes. Power-to-weight = total kW ÷ total tonnes. Cargo units are not automatically converted into tonnes. A positive platform length is compared with the whole consist; enter 0 to skip the check. This does not simulate speed, acceleration, gradients, traction, braking or compatibility.
Check a consist with the Transport Fever 3 train consist planner
A Transport Fever 3 train consist planner helps check the geometry and basic arithmetic of a proposed train before buying the full formation. Combine locomotives with two freight car groups, then compare total capacity, mass, length and installed power. Enter values from the vehicles in your current save. Cargo units and payload tonnes are separate inputs: a unit of cargo is not automatically one tonne. The train consist planner is especially useful when a mixed formation must fit an existing platform, while a different calculator handles hourly transport demand.
How to use this Transport Fever 3 calculator
- Enter locomotive count, mass, power and length. For each freight car group, enter its count, capacity, empty mass and length. Set an unused freight car group's count to zero rather than inventing a dummy load.
- Add the total loaded cargo mass in tonnes separately. The Transport Fever 3 train consist planner combines empty vehicles and payload to calculate a power-to-weight ratio.
- Enter the usable platform length to check fit. A zero platform value skips that comparison. Check the resulting length margin alongside actual station layout and vehicle compatibility.
A worked planning example
One 80-tonne, 2000-kW, 20-metre locomotive and eight 20-tonne, 16-metre freight cars produce 240 tonnes empty, 148 metres length and 160 capacity when each freight car holds 20 units. Power-to-weight is about 8.33 kW/t. Add two 25-tonne, 20-metre freight cars with capacity 40: total capacity becomes 240, empty mass 290 and length 188 metres, leaving 12 metres on a 200-metre platform.
What to do with the result
The train consist planner shows summed specifications and a fit check. It does not convert the ratio into a guaranteed speed, acceleration or hill-climbing ability. Verify track compatibility, traction, cargo category and station access in the game. Use the line planner to estimate how many complete trains are needed; use the vehicle comparison calculator for fleet costs. Platform fit is a necessary construction check, not a complete Transport Fever 3 timetable assessment.
Calculator questions
Does the Transport Fever 3 train consist planner predict acceleration?
No. The power-to-weight ratio is a comparison metric, not a full traction model. Actual acceleration also needs information beyond this calculator's inputs.
Why is payload entered separately from capacity?
Capacity is a number of passengers or cargo units; mass is measured in tonnes. Enter the loaded mass from the relevant vehicle or cargo observations rather than treating every unit as a tonne.