Cities Skylines 2 traffic flow management is going to be pretty tricky to manage. We’ve seen already how the Colossal Order city-building game is introducing new road tools, services, and even natural disasters. But with the Cities Skylines 2 release date on its way, and all of us eager to see everything else that CS2 will deliver, it looks like directing cars, buses, and bikes around town is going to take a lot more focus. Cities Skylines 2 just hit rush hour.
We’ve learned a lot recently about Cities Skylines 2 maps, and seen how different seasons will affect energy consumption and citizen behavior. We’ve also had confirmation that natural disasters will appear in the base game in the form of tornadoes, forest fires, and hailstorms. When it’s raining, Cims will prefer indoor amenities like movies and restaurants. If it’s sunny, they’ll want to hang outside in parks and sports arenas.
But weather isn’t the only thing that will dramatically influence your citizens’ actions. Something that was missing from the original Cities Skylines, and that always felt like it would add a welcome strand of realism, rush-hour is now here for Cities Skylines 2 traffic. At certain times of the day, citizens will follow a schedule whereby they go to work and school in the mornings and return in the afternoons.
Naturally, this means you need to manage your road network to account for heavier traffic flows at certain times, and also provide sufficient public transport to meet demand traveling to and from the commercial and school districts.
Also, changes to Cities Skylines 2’s services demand more attention to road maintenance, particularly during the winter. If you aren’t putting enough money into repairs and snowplows, you can expect accidents – and accidents during rush hour could be a very huge problem indeed.
The more I think about it, the more I’m also regretting asking for all these new features. I feel like I had my tactics sorted in Cities Skylines, and perfected the art of building a city that could more or less run on its own. Now, by the sounds of it, I’m going to actually have to do some planning. The life of a virtual mayor is never easy.
Check the full Cities Skylines 2 system requirements so you know you’re ready for launch day. You might also want to try some of the best management games on PC.