6. Cargo transport

Cargo transport works slightly different from passenger transport. First of all, cargo needs their own train and trucks stations; you can't use a passenger station to transport cargo. Second, different industries require different cargo items to be delivered to them. Third, cargo will be moved around automatically (and very slowly) even if you don't connect a line to it.As of this writing, cargo transport is still being tweaked. I will update this guide as things change, but here is how things work as of right now (September 2014).First, click on the "Cargo" data layer (in the bottom right of your screen) to see cargo move itself from one industry to another. This very handy data layer is ideal to determine where to create your transport lines, so use it wisely!Also, to see which cargo goes where and how much of it is produced, locate each of the industrial plants and click on them for more information. You'll want to focus on industries that are already producing something and moving that cargo to other, nearby industries or towns.The simple way of describing the industry chain in the game is as follows: raw materials are transferred to factories that produce goods, which are then moved to commercial buildings in towns and cities. In other words, a successful transport chain will move raw materials to factories and the goods from factories to commercial buildings in towns.If you do this correctly, more raw materials will be produced, which will lead to a higher production of goods, which will cause the towns and cities that are served with goods to grow faster.Every town has a certain demand for goods that you can view by clicking on the town name. By fulfilling this demand (i.e., transporting goods from factories to towns), you will grow the amount of goods that each factory will make. In other words: make sure that you transport goods to various different towns, as simply delivering the raw materials to the factories will not lead to higher production!Image below: red circle shows the requirement (in this case, wood); yellow circle shows the current and max production for this location - this can go up if you connect a line to this location; green circle shows a product being moved independently of your transport lines.It's sometimes a bit tricky to create a successful transport chain, so experiment away - you'll see how it all works soon enough. Some basic guidelines follow below.- You'll often find that certain industries are located far away from each other. In the beginning, try to connect only industries and towns that are relatively close to each other and are already producing items before you connect them.- Transport goods from one factory to multiple cities to make sure the demand on the factory is high and the goods production will increase fast.- Many industrial locations are located in hills. Use the contour data layer to determine how you can reach other industrial locations and towns; if the hill is too steep, you will have a very difficult time connecting a train line. If the distance isn't too much, try using road transport at first. It'll be slow, but cheaper to build (roads usually already exist) and vehicles have less difficulty travelling on steeper slopes. For more tips on hills and slopes, see the advanced tips below.- When building cargo stations for towns, try to put them as close as possible to the industrial districts (blue areas). The goods you deliver to your station will still need to travel further into town and the end location of all goods is always an industry building.- All cargo stations have a maximum capacity. Keep in mind what this maximum is; if more cargo arrives at a cargo stop than it can store, it will simply be discarded! Always use the cargo data layer to figure out which cargo is going where.- Keep an eye out on your cargo routes. You may want to add more vehicles or put more cars on your cargo trains when they increase their production! Each station will show much it holds, each industrial location will show how much it produces, and the cargo layer will show more and more cargo travelling from each location, so look at all of them from time to time.