Was just wondering that's all, all points understood - oh and I also
travel for the 1320 odd seconds from Walthamstow to Oxford Circus
daily, and indeed having thought about how 'bouncy' the ride is and
unstable then if anything maybe some bubble wrap would be better for
the passengers !

Also - the flipdown seats, do the designers really think that during
rush hour people will actually stand and not flip them down - I can't
recall being on any train with those where people have not always been
seated, in fact have seen on numerous occasion people squashing others
aside to be able to flip them down...

....and as for the perches - they are acceptable on the Central, but
all the others seem to require you to have the posture of a deformed
baboon (ok at 6'5 I'm not average height), even Mc Donalds ditched
perch type seats years ago I seem to recall.

C


On Mon, 17 Jul 2006 17:14:47 +0100, Paul Corfield
wrote:

On Mon, 17 Jul 2006 12:31:00 +0100, Craig wrote:


Hi,

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5186896.stm

Just wondered if anyone else thinks it would be far more hygenic, more
pleasant & acceptable if the decision to no longer cover seats on new
trains in fabric was made.

Maybe as other mass transit systems use, eg, New York, a hard rigid
plastic. Still comfortable to sit on given that you are only on it
briefly !!! and not holding hidden all kinds of gunk that must be
embedded in the fabric.....

No thank you. I've travelled on systems with both metal and plastic
seats and would not wish to have those inflicted on London. IIRC Tim
O'Toole - in an internal comms exercise - said that things like fabric
seats on trains is a positive aspect of the tube that sets it apart from
other systems. If I wish to slide from one end of a side seat to the
other under acceleration then I'll go to Hong Kong. Can you imagine
sitting on metal or plastic seats in this weather? The other systems
with such seats have air conditioning.

You may only travel for seconds on the Victoria Line but I can assure
you that many, many others travel for at least 20-30 mins each way
between the top of the line and Central London and people want a seat.

One of the better aspects of the current stock is that they have
reasonably comfy seats with a decent amount of space and without
enforced orthopaedic surgery. One of the acid tests of the new stock
for me will be whether we have comfortable seating or whether we have
the horrible cramped upright seating a la refurbed District [1],
Northern and Jubilee Lines. Another poster offered some interesting
remarks about tip up / perch seats and remarked on the MR article on the
new stock. While I take the point about needed something to lean on /
against the plans seems to create somewhat gloomy looking divisions
inside the cars. From a passenger security viewpoint that will create
issues and I hope something more practical emerges.

[1] whoever designed the "armrests" on the refurbed stock should be
shot. Bloody horrible and uncomfortable.