I also have free housing going. So rent shouldn't be an issue.

You need to move the houses closer to the actual industrial area, and the parking garages will only work for rich people or better. You cannot make a residential-only island; it doesn't work that way. People will move into houses which are close to their jobs. The shacks are a clear indication that you need to build houses in that proximity.

But they get free cars and free housing? Why would they need to be rich or better?

Because that's the requirement for the parking garage. As far as I know, there's no way to make it free. And your citizens want to live as close to work as possible (I mean, who doesn't?).

The game favors distance over quality.

You can create a huge area of housing in the central island area and use a travel to go out to the work areas. I have been able to do this a few times.

However if any of the workers plop down a shack near that work area they will not move into that housing.

Originally posted by JennyTheGhoul:

Because that's the requirement for the parking garage. As far as I know, there's no way to make it free. And your citizens want to live as close to work as possible (I mean, who doesn't?).

Free Wheels edict allows poor citizens to use it, it does not allow broke citizens allegedly. I saw one game doing the Chocolate Factory map a citizen get in the garage while only being well off.

Originally posted by Bored Peon:

Originally posted by JennyTheGhoul:

Because that's the requirement for the parking garage. As far as I know, there's no way to make it free. And your citizens want to live as close to work as possible (I mean, who doesn't?).

Free Wheels edict allows poor citizens to use it, it does not allow broke citizens allegedly. I saw one game doing the Chocolate Factory map a citizen get in the garage while only being well off.

That's probably just the guy who works at the parking garage. The worker does not need to be rich.

If it is possible to make it usable for all classes then I haven't been able to figure it out in about 50 hours of playtime by now. Free Wheels does not make them use it or at least not in my game. Perhaps there's something else involved as well?

Originally posted by Jindosh:

That's probably just the guy who works at the parking garage. The worker does not need to be rich.

Nope, it was a worker at a lumber mill. I was watching him trying to figure out where the hell all my lumbermill workers were. He was walking back form an entertainment then hopped into a car and drove the rest of the way. The onyl thing I can think of is if the wealth status did not update form well off to rich when I increased the budget at the lumbermill.

It's messed up I agree. Not the way I'd like to see the game work but right now people would rather live on top of a mine in a shack than some quality housing that's about 10 squares away... even if they have access to transportation.

All I can say is there are a lot of people playing that aren't (or are no longer) having this issue. Typically, I find that if my workers are building shacks near work, my residential area is too far away. Give them a couple of bunkhouses/tenements and an apartment, a grocery, and a chapel in closer proximity along with a bus line or parking and then keep destroying the shacks until they get the picture.

Honestly, I've quite using cars and am linking bus routes (with free ride selected). I understand the devs are planning an upgrade which will hopefully include more than two stops per line.

Originally posted by Bored Peon:

Originally posted by Jindosh:

That's probably just the guy who works at the parking garage. The worker does not need to be rich.

Nope, it was a worker at a lumber mill. I was watching him trying to figure out where the hell all my lumbermill workers were. He was walking back form an entertainment then hopped into a car and drove the rest of the way. The onyl thing I can think of is if the wealth status did not update form well off to rich when I increased the budget at the lumbermill.

You're right! I found a poor woman who parked her car, but there are a lot more rich people using them. That's probably why I never noticed it before.

Originally posted by killedinaction47:

It's messed up I agree. Not the way I'd like to see the game work but right now people would rather live on top of a mine in a shack than some quality housing that's about 10 squares away... even if they have access to transportation.

You must not realize quality of housing determines how long a worker has to rest.

Also you do not collect rent on shacks, collecting rent is a big income.

Shacks can not be electrified for TV propaganda.

Housing quality is one of the easiest solved happiness to help your support.

That is why the distance mechanic and living in a shack is crap. There is a lot in the game that depends upon housing quality, the it all gets thrown out the window because the game chooses distance over quality.

https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1709836566

The apartment building is empty. The well off nun should be living in that, not the bunkhouse designated for broke wealth.

Do you have a parking deck and a vehicle factory?

My experience in both Tropico 5 and 6 is that the most optimal strategy is provide more wealth, ignore accommodating the poor.

High paying jobs leads to higher value housing, which means happier citizens that pay more taxes.

Low income jobs and low income housing leads to logistical nightmares, loss of massive amounts of potential revenue, and everyone is unhappy, yourself included.

Making things free and using cheap infrastructure and policies just promotes a more miserable time for everyone participating. No one wants to live in low-income housing. It's not a positive development. In fact, people will just stop wanting to participate because your policies suck at that point.

Originally posted by lPaladinl:

My experience in both Tropico 5 and 6 is that the most optimal strategy is provide more wealth, ignore accommodating the poor.

High paying jobs leads to higher value housing, which means happier citizens that pay more taxes.

Low income jobs and low income housing leads to logistical nightmares, loss of massive amounts of potential revenue, and everyone is unhappy, yourself included.

Making things free and using cheap infrastructure and policies just promotes a more miserable time for everyone participating. No one wants to live in low-income housing. It's not a positive development. In fact, people will just stop wanting to participate because your policies suck at that point.

I remember in tropico 5 once you get the airport your city just exploded with cars and traffic jams as seemingly everyone now has a car and uses it.

in t6 despite having all this free car nonsense, i rarely see any traffic jams come to think of it i dont think i see any cars other than teamsters.