This is the first of what will be a series of guides on how to play the game. Ideally, you should read them in order, but if you are already an experienced player, only the later guides will be of any use.

Busses

- Busses are ideal for short routes;
- They cause congestion, because they stop often, so refrain from using them for city center routes;
- Prefer their usage for connecting suburbs to cities themselves;
- Share stops between several routes, as that way people do not have to walk to make a connection;
- They are especially useful for bringing passengers to more profitable lines (tram and metro).

Trams

- Tram lines are ideal for longer routes, especially if they are running offroad;
- They can (as was just mentioned) be placed offroad, and run down the centre of avenues! Exploit this to your advantage;
- Avoid placing stops on roads, especially in busy city centres;
- They are especially useful for inner city routes, and for bringing passengers to metro stations.

Metro

- Metro lines are ideal for long routes, linking areas far away from each other;
- They can run both overground and underground. Prefer overground tracks (when possible) as they are significantly cheaper;
- Use metro stations as transport hubs: place them by airports, train stations and other places that are highly frequented, and have bus and tram lines bring passengers in;
- Don't be afraid of taking out loans so as to construct a metro line, even early in the game, it will be worth it in the long run;
- They are the most profitable form of transport, and your final network should be centered around several metro lines.

Water busses

- Water busses are very hard to make money from. Use them when large numbers of people need to cross rivers, and there are few road bridges;
- They are useful only if large numbers of passengers are to be using the lines.

Helicopters

- Use helicopters when you already have a substantial and profitable route built;
- They become very useful when you already have a large number of passengers that use public transport, as they are then prepared to pay a little more so as to shorten their journeys.

The higher you pay any one type of your staff, the better they shall work for you.
These are the main impacts of salary changes for your different employee categories:

Drivers

- High salary means that they will unload and load passengers faster, which results in less time spent at stops, and therefore shorter commuter journeys;
- Low salary means that they will leave the stop before all passengers have boarded, which results in angry passengers and crowded stops.

Inspectors

- High salary means that they will check more often and more efficiently whether passengers have tickets, which results in a higher income from fines;
- Low salary will result in the exact opposite.

Technical personnel

- High salary means that they will be more efficient at repairing broken vehicles, which results in a more reliable service;
- Low salary, again, results in the exact opposite.

Office workers

- High salary means that they will spread the word about how wonderful and useful your services are, which increases your reputation, and results in more people using your lines;
- Low salary means that they won't be as bothered to do their job properly, they might even speak badly of the company, all of which reduces your reputation and your passenger numbers.

General tips

- As you change the salaries, you will see a little happiness indicator. The first green 'happy' face only means that your employees are 75% happy with their current pay;
- Although it may seem fairly mundane, your employees' happiness really does affect your company's performance. Make sure to keep an eye on them, especially when the economy changes, as they will want more money in an economic boom, and will be satisfied with less during a recession.
- Check salaries at least 4 times a year, and in times of financial change (financial boom or financial crash, they will be announced on the news ticker tape at the bottom of your screen), make sure to check every month.
- Every time you check, change by however much you need to satisfy the criteria shown below.

Highest to lowest salaries

- Highest: Inspectors (don't be afraid to bring it up to 20, as they will pay back their income in fines)
- 2nd highest: Office staff (you can increase their salary above the first green 'happy' face, and they will reward you with increased popularity)
- 2nd lowest: Drivers (only increase their salary 2 or 3 times above the first green 'happy' face)
- Lowest: Technical personnel (only increase their salary 1 or 2 times above the first green 'happy' face unless you have many vehicles that have a high chance of breaking down, in which case, you can increase it another 1 or 2 times)

Passengers

- They can use as many forms of transport, and travel on as many different lines as needed to complete their journeys, as long as it is quicker than going by car;
- A passenger who does not pay once for their ticket, might do so when they next board a vehicle. They decide as they get on, depending on current pricing, socio-economic status and economic climate;
- An angry passenger will continue to use your services, but will lower your overall reputation;
- Passengers will walk short distances in between stops, to make connections, and to get to your services from outside the covered areas, if it is truly necessary;
- They will also use your vehicles for very short journeys, such as going a block down the road;
- Ultimately, passengers decide whether your services are worthwhile or not, so make sure to build your lines so as to please them!

Vehicle and station maintenance

- Vehicle maintenance changes the rate at which the vehicle breaks down, and how quickly its condition degenerates;
- Station maintenance determines how attractive your stops are to passengers.

Red News Sticker articles

- News items such as Traffic accidents, Protests, Military marches and Fires will show up in red on the News Sticker. This is because they all cause disruption to the road traffic and therefore to your services also.

Thank you for reading my guide! I hope it provided you with some helpful advice on how to play Cities in Motion. Comments, questions and suggestions are welcome below! Feel free to rate and favourite, it helps me to know what you think.

My next guide is out now: CiM Guide 02