Companion mod for TSC and TSW
Drive Connected. Drive Immersive.
ThirdRails is a live radar network for Train Simulator Classic and Train Sim World, powered by a free companion mod that connects drivers to a shared railway world.
It shows trains on a shared radar, displays routes and timetables, and lets drivers see each other moving across the network in real time.
ThirdRails goes beyond simple tracking. It adds awareness to the simulator, showing trains moving across the network, sharing routes and timetables, and creating a sense of presence between drivers.
Real-time radar, live timetables and dynamic announcements transform isolated simulator sessions into a connected railway world.
Simply Start Tracking
Live Operations Overview
online
Product Status And Stats
Track the current release, what is live now and how the network keeps growing.
For release details, see the roadmap ↗.
What is ThirdRails
A shared layer for railway simulation
ThirdRails is a companion experience that sits alongside your simulator and turns solo driving into a connected railway network. From the radar to ride history, it helps players see more, coordinate more and feel part of a living system.
What began as a simple map to track your own train has gradually evolved into something much larger.
At first there was the Local Map, a way to understand position, route and progress. Then came Radar. For the first time, other drivers appeared. Movement became shared and the railway world started to feel alive.
Today ThirdRails focuses on awareness and immersion. Real-time radar, shared timetables, announcements and ride history add structure and context to every drive.
ThirdRails does not replace the simulator.
It extends it, adding shared presence and awareness to the railway network around you.
You can join the network by installing ThirdRails on your simulator PC. It runs as an additional layer alongside your sim and connects your Train Simulator Classic and/or Train Sim World rides to the live railway radar.
Once connected, your train appears on the shared network map where other drivers can see your journey in real time. View Tracking Guide ↗
Features
Core tools for a connected railway session
Live Radar
Track trains and player activity across the network on a shared live radar.
Whistle Board
See community updates, notable runs and activity from drivers across the network.
Ride Logging
Automatically record your sessions and build a history of where you drove.
Dynamic Announcements
Hear spoken announcements triggered by your timetable, location or custom events.
Cross Device Radar
Open the radar on desktop, tablet or a second screen while you drive.
Train Awareness
Understand nearby traffic and locations to get a better sense of railway flow.
Live Radar
A clean operations view built for sim drivers
The ThirdRails radar gives players a shared live view of the network, helping them understand where activity is happening and how traffic flows during a session.
Inspired by real railway operations radars, the radar is designed to be readable at a glance. It works as a second-screen companion that helps drivers spot nearby trains, follow route movement and stay connected to the wider simulation network.
The integrated station network provides geographic context for every journey, showing stations, routes and key locations across the map. Waypoints and timetable-aware tracking help drivers understand where they are in the network and what lies ahead.
Together this creates a clear operational overview: not just where your train is, but how it fits into the wider railway world around you.
View Radar Guide ↗ | Open Live Radar ↗
Whistle Board
Social updates, ride history and shared moments
Whistle Board adds a community layer to the simulator, making it easy to see what others are running, revisit recent rides and discover activity across the network. Weekly rankings and standout runs highlight the most active drivers, inspired by the spirit of Strava-style leaderboards.
Whether you are tracking personal sessions or following interesting services from the wider player base, the board is designed to feel lightweight, social and useful rather than distracting.
Recent rides, weekly highlights and community rankings make it easy to discover active routes, see who is driving what and celebrate notable runs across the network.
Visit the Whistle Board ↗
Extended Gameplay
More context around every journey
ThirdRails connects live timetable data, route context and dynamic announcements to the radar experience. By combining real-world schedule information with in-game positioning, it creates a richer operational context for every journey.
Timetables
Live timetable data from real live sources provides realistic schedule context and helps drivers understand how their run fits into the wider network.
Announcements
Trigger manual or automated station-style announcements based on your timetable, route progress or custom events.
Shedule Waypoints
Automatically generate route waypoints with distance and ETA indicators so you always know what lies ahead on the line.
Learn
Tutorials and guides
Whether you want to run a RealDrive, work with timetables or explore the full feature set, you'll likely find the answer here. Tutorials currently link to the original ThirdRails guide pages while the new documentation expands.
Learn
Browse the full collection of tutorials and documentation from the original ThirdRails guide site.
Open tutorials ↗Help
Find answers to common questions and troubleshooting tips for installing and using ThirdRails.
Open help ↗Station Network
Learn how the ThirdRails Station Network can be used with waypoints to get f.e. automatic announcements
Station Network guide ↗
Download
Download
Join the railway network by installing the latest version of ThirdRails. All you need is Train Simulator Classic or Train Sim World.
Get your free copy from the download page.
Support
Community-supported development
ThirdRails is built and maintained with a lot of passion for the train simulation community. Running the Radar, Whistle Board and supporting services requires servers, development tools and ongoing maintenance.
We display a small number of ads on the website to help cover part of these costs, but if you enjoy using ThirdRails and want to support the project, a small donation is greatly appreciated.
A contribution of € 10,00 or more makes you a ThirdRails Friend, unlocking extra features within the tools.
Current extra benefit:
Professional Dashboard Designer
Recurring donations help the project grow and allow new features to be developed.
You can support the project via PayPal or Ko-fi.
You will receive within 24 hours a key based on your Paypal e-mail address.
If you donate via Ko-fi, please include your e-mail address in a private message.
ThirdRails About
Independent project for the train simulation community
ThirdRails is an independent project created for the train simulation community. The goal is simple: connect players across Train Simulator Classic and Train Sim World through shared tools such as live radar, ride tracking and community features.
The project is developed and maintained by Roland Beenhakker under the Beensoft label.
For questions or support: