I have an S Bend on my layout, but it is subtle & looks good. It is a mountain scene.

I have a very gentle S curve on my "West River" section but I used flex track to get the effect I wanted.

Then there are more long straight bits after slight kinks in the track. The same with our longest straight road, after slight kinks then there are more straight bits.

I think something has to give, even in Z gauge!

S-curve in uppercase

In your case, an S curve was necessary in order to incorporate a return loop without crossing the road. The only places where I have seen S curves is where a rail line follows a river, as on the Rio Grande and Hudson river NY central track. As I said, railroads avoid S curves where possible due to cost. On a model railroad, it adds interest.

Have a look at the satellite view of the railway line through the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. It is constant S bends, plus tunnels. I have travelled this line a handful of times.

Originally it had a zig zag line to get over the Blue Mountains.

https://en.m.wikipedia.o...wiki/Blue_Mountains_Line

West of the Blue Mountains is a miserably cold place, not the hugh minus temperatures that other countries get, but the damp wet cold to the bones, which runs all the way up on the west side of the Great Dividing Range up to and into southern Queensland at times. Yes, snow in Queensland. God's own country, 'sunshine one day, perfect the next' as Queenslanders say.

The western line out of Sydney has some great little stations, you ask for the train to stop at the minor stations & on the station you flag the train down. This is the only main line west out of Sydney.

Blayney is a lovely little station in a miserably cold place which will freeze the nuts off a brass monkey.



The line through the this area is full of S bends. You have to put yourself into a meditative state or you will go mental if you are impatient.

I actually went from Sydney to Orange to look at out current new car, 268km one way. I jokingly said to the car dealer that Sydney to Dubai return is quicker. Went back to Orange a few weeks later to pick up the new car.

But at the end of the day all these S bends make this trip very slow. Electric trains stop at Bathurst, almost as cold!

The Portsmouth Direct line between Guildford and Havant in Southern England is all reverse curves because it was cheaper to build it that way to traverse the hilly terrain. After Guildford it has one tunnel, South of Petersfield, which is ‘S’ shaped as well. It came later than the main round of railway building when improved locos could cope with curves and gradients, nevertheless this (electrified) route has line speeds of 70 to 85 mph today and plenty of flange lubricators to reduce wear on the high rails. If you stand in the corridor connection between two coaches it can be quite alarming as the coaches suddenly move away from each other laterally and then line up again only to violently move away in opposite directions.
ChrisG

I believe every layout needs a bit of straight track & a few S bends to look better than your mistress (as a boat moored near us is call 'Mistress Again', when they sail her on the weekend they give her a good hammering and score medals!)

Even better, add a few S bend roads, it looks good and roads are easy to spray out of 150ml touch up cans with grey, white and black pre heated, pre mask the white road markings with Letraset if you can still get it or finely cut masking tape.

Z gauge: