The short-line in question offers some interesting features to be modeled.
An article by yours truly. It doesn’t propose any detailed track-plans, only a general configuration
http://railstuff.000webhostapp.com/MooseheadLake.html
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Welcome to the KitMaker Network
Question #1: You refer to Bangor and Waterville on you layout plan but these are not shown. Are these actual extensions of your layout room or just imaginary interchange points?
Question #2: In this double layered design what do you envision as you highest and your lowest track elevations given a ruling 4% grade? (Inches above the floor.)
Question #3: Your statement of a 12 sq. yard (108 sq. ft.) room size leaves us not really knowing the actual exact dimensions/proportions of your room. Are we talking 10 x 11 feet perhaps???
Also in what model scale? - I would suspect either HO or On30.
Observation: The Yard Masters at Burnham and Belfast are clearly going to be in conflict with each other in this arrangement when switching or building trains.
Bangor and Waterville are indeed imaginary interchange directions.
I haven’t specified the absolute highest and lowest track elevations, just the difference between them at 10", based on the linked article about multilevel layouts. Exact elevations are left for the interested modellers to decide according to their personal comfort.
The layout sketch I have included is accurately proportioned to 3 x 4 yard overall room dimensions, the mainline is also accurately placed on it.
As I have directly referred to the corresponding trackplan in Linn Westcott’s book (link included), I kept its standards for comparison’s sake, so the overall dimensions fit HO scale.
Thank you very much for the time you took to examine my work.
Myself, I think I would turn Burnham Junction 90 degrees so it runs along the bottom of the layout plan just above Waldo. Doing this would give you long yard leads on all three legs of the wye, enough that you might even turn whole trains if desired.
One lead from Burnham could still run above Belfast having one, two or three yard tracks with industrial building flats forming the background.
The other lead would extend to the right above Brooks, perhaps going as far as Thorndyke possibly offering the increased operating possibilities of some sort of mine up in the mountains.
This change would have the added benefit of separating your two Yard Masters so they could be working the yards at both ends of the line at the same time without having to occupy the same physical space.
One further comment though: I doubt that 10 inches vertical separation is going to be adequate for you to appreciate both track levels in this track plan. Once you consider the physical support structure, lighting valance and the lights themselves I believe your view of the lower level would be extremely limited. Regardless, I think it will be very important to consider the actual height of the lower level (# inches above the floor,) With only ten inches of separation I believe you would want to be looking just slightly downward onto the lower level, so perhaps set it at 48-50 inches above the floor with the upper level at or just below eye level.
Starting out this high above the floor allows the viewer to look upon the layout from a very natural viewing angle. This makes the trains appear larger and the detail can more easily be appreciated. (Much better than the more typical “eye in the sky helicopter” viewing angle of most layouts.)
Finally at this high level your “lift-out access bridge” might now become simply an easy duck-under."
As of today, I am afraid there are no easy “duck-unders” for me, I just got an annoying pain in the back.
Otherwise, I find all suggestions reasonable and I’ll try to work out some variations beginning next month.
If more vertical separation is necessary, I wonder whether a spiral can be avoided at all for any bilevel arrangement, no matter how short the freights are going to be.
Myself I would forego the idea of an unblocked entry door, and instead go for an “around the room twice” sort of track plan. This would give you a much longer main line as well as being able to achieve greater vertical separation between the levels.
I would still move Burnham to the bottom of the track plan giving your wye at least two long lead tracks. The third leg of the wye could project out onto a peninsula in the middle of the room giving more opportunities for industries, trackage and scenery.