ExpressCart

ExpressCart

High-speed minecarts that outrun an elytra and never derail. You can link them into trains and stop them in an instant.

ExpressCart is a pure data pack: no mods, no plugins, and no resource pack needed. Craft an Express Minecart, put it on your rails and ride. Players and vanilla minecarts work exactly as before. Only Express Minecarts get the upgrade.

Works on Minecraft Java 1.21.11 and 26.1 – 26.3 (singleplayer, vanilla, Paper-based and Fabric servers)

Available in English (default) and German: download the file that matches your language.

Features

| | |
|—|—|
| Faster than an elytra | 60 blocks/s by default (an elytra with rockets reaches about 33, a vanilla minecart 8). Admins can set the limit anywhere from 1 to 500. |
| Never derails, never gets stuck | The cart follows the real rail geometry every tick, through curves, slopes and drops. Mobs and blocks can’t stop it. At the end of the track it simply halts. |
| Link carts into trains | Use the Coupler to link carts. Linked carts drive as one train with fixed spacing, even through curves. |
| Set your own speed | W/S raise or lower your target speed. Powered rails then push you up to that speed as fast as they can. |
| Instant stops | Space is an emergency brake. An unpowered powered rail works as a stop signal you can control with redstone, so you can build stations. |
| Mobs can ride along | Empty Express Minecarts pick up mobs they drive past, just like vanilla carts. |
| OP Express Minecart | Admins only: it accelerates anywhere, needs no powered rails and can’t be broken in survival. |
| In-game admin menu | One clickable chat menu for max speed, powered rail boost, friction, autopilot and a server-wide STOP ALL button. |

How to ride

| Key | Action |
|—|—|
| W (looking forward) | Raise the target speed |
| S | Lower the target speed / brake |
| W (looking backward, while stopped) | Turn the train around |
| Space | Emergency brake: stop instantly |
| Shift | Get out (vanilla) |

The action bar shows your current speed → target speed and how many carts your train has.

Powered rails matter: a normal Express Minecart only speeds up on powered powered rails. Away from them it slowly rolls to a stop. When you’re standing still, W pushes you at walking speed (8 blocks/s) so you can reach the next powered rail. Lay a few powered rails at the start of a line and a single one now and then to hold your speed.

Linking trains

1. Hold the Coupler and right-click the first Express Minecart. It starts glowing.
2. Right-click the second cart. It has to be on the same track, at most 8 blocks away along the rail.
3. Done! Both carts now drive as one train in the same direction.

Click the same cart twice to unlink it. Both trains have to be stopped while you link them.

Stations and signals

An unpowered powered rail stops every Express train right in front of it, at any speed. Power it with a lever, button or redstone clock and the train drives on. That’s all you need for stations, crossings and timed departures.

Crafting

Express Minecart: a minecart surrounded by gold, redstone and a diamond.

Coupler: shapeless, 1 tripwire hook + 2 iron ingots.

The OP Express Minecart can’t be crafted. Admins get it from the menu.

Admin commands

All admin features are in one clickable menu:

/function expresscart:menu

Installation

1. Download the file for your language: ExpressCart-x.x.x-en.zip or ExpressCart-x.x.x-de.zip.
2. Put the zip into your world’s datapacks folder:

• Singleplayer: .minecraft/saves/<world>/datapacks/
• Server: <server>/world/datapacks/

1. Run /reload or restart the world/server.

Only install one language version at a time.

Found a bug or have an idea? Let me know in my Discord: https://discord.gg/AtbYGvQWp8. Enjoy the ride!