Microstation-good for roadway and corridor model, bad for new users
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
Microstation is the product we use most often for transportation design-specifically roadway design-at my organization. I use the inroads add-in very often in my position to model storm sewer networks and draw out basin maps, though I also use Microstation's plain jane features for cutting sheets, annotation, and running corridors too. Microstation is the preferred program for most DOTs and municipalities in my region, so this is why I use it over AutoCAD Civil 3D.
Pros
- roadway and corridor modeling
- storm sewer and utility layout
- cutting sheets and production
- plan and profile annotation
Cons
- adding smart tables to the plans is difficult-I always end up using axiom
- tying utilities to a surface-rims, grates, and other features typically need to be assigned elevations manually
- profiles for pipes are difficult to draw and do not update automatically like they would in ssa
Likelihood to Recommend
MicroStation is THE program to use for roadway and corridor modeling. Most departments of transportation and municipalities in my region require that the models be delivered in the dgn format, so it is MicroStation or bust. It is an absolute pain to use some of the add-in features though. Things that are easy in other programs like making smart tables that update with the latest information usually necessitate the use of axiom or similar outside programs/add-ins. I design storm sewer systems, and it takes us 6 months to train up new hires on this software, because it is NOT intuitive. You need to know which buttons to press, since it is not designed to be easily command-based like AutoCAD Civil 3D.
