Core Concepts 🚂

Welcome to UK Railway Tycoon! Your goal is to build a sprawling, profitable rail empire. Here are the basics:

• Money: The core of your business. You earn money from ticket sales and lose it on everything from staff salaries to train maintenance. If you run out, it's game over!
• Routes & Franchises: You must bid for the right to run services between cities. These are called franchises and they last for 4 years. Winning a franchise costs a lot, but it's the only way to earn ticket revenue.
• Traction (Trains): Your fleet. You can buy brand new trains (which take 7 days to arrive), cheaper second-hand units (which arrive instantly but are in worse condition), or lease modern trains for a monthly fee (instant delivery, maintenance covered).
• Staff: You can't run a railway alone.
  • Drivers: Every train needs a qualified driver to operate. A driver must be trained for the specific class of train they are driving.
  • Engineers: Hiring engineers reduces the cost of maintaining your fleet. The higher their skill, the bigger the discount.
  • Customer Service Managers: Good managers provide a passive boost to passenger satisfaction.
• Next Day: This button moves the game forward one day at a time, calculating all your income, expenses, and triggering random events.

Passenger Satisfaction 😊

This is your company's reputation, shown as a percentage. If it hits 0%, the government will revoke your license and the game is over. Keep it high to attract more passengers and earn more money! Here's what affects it:

What Increases Satisfaction ✅

• Fair Ticket Prices: Setting prices at or below the "ideal price" for a route makes passengers happy.
• Good Staff: Drivers and Customer Service Managers with high 'Customer Service' skills directly improve your rating.
• Reliable Service: Using modern, well-maintained trains provides a better passenger experience.
• Positive Events: Sometimes you'll get good press, which gives you a free boost!

What Decreases Satisfaction ❌

• High Ticket Prices: Passengers hate being overcharged. Setting prices too high will quickly damage your reputation.
• Overcrowding: If you don't provide enough capacity on a route for the number of people who want to travel, they will get angry. Assign more or bigger trains to busy routes!
• Unstaffed Trains: A train assigned to a route without a qualified driver is a "ghost train" service, which severely impacts satisfaction.
• Poor Train Quality: Running a fleet in poor condition will directly lower passenger satisfaction.
• Negative Events: Signal failures, bad weather, and strikes will cause major drops in satisfaction.