Chris! wrote:

In my experience everyone is as bad as each other at clogging up the
downstairs bit. If you try and get a bus from outside a suburban
train
station at about 6pm the whole downstairs section is clogged up with
suites whilst the upstairs is empty

pedant mode on

It would be lovely if they would install sofas and armchairs instead of
those uncomfortable plastic seats...

/

In article , David Cantrell
writes
I've not counted them, but I'm fairly sure that *any* of the double
deckers, including RMs, have more seats. Which would show that TfL's
claim that Bendies are more comfortable is a lie.

Comfort is not just seating.

Certainly I've
always got a seat on proper busses, and never on Bendies.

I've never been on a crush-loaded bendie, while I have been on
dangerously overcrowded "proper" buses.

Idiots falling from the back of RMs is just Mr. Darwin at work. I
never fall off because I am capable of holding on to the pole.

The one time I saw someone fall off, it was (IMO) bad driving which
would have made it hard for anyone to retain a grip.

--
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Tel: +44 20 8495 6138 (work) | Web: http://www.davros.org
Fax: +44 870 051 9937 | Work:
Please reply to the Reply-To address, which is:

Rupert Candy wrote to uk.transport.london on Mon, 16 May 2005:


Chris! wrote:

In my experience everyone is as bad as each other at clogging up the
downstairs bit. If you try and get a bus from outside a suburban
train
station at about 6pm the whole downstairs section is clogged up with
suites whilst the upstairs is empty

pedant mode on

It would be lovely if they would install sofas and armchairs instead of
those uncomfortable plastic seats...

/

I'm so glad I wasn't the only one who thought that.....
--
"Mrs Redboots"
http://www.amsmyth.demon.co.uk/
Website updated 3 April 2005

Mrs Redboots wrote:

I'm so glad I wasn't the only one who thought that.....

Chortle...though, having seen some of the things people try and
transport on the 3, it's not impossible!

On Mon, 16 May 2005 11:26:48 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
wrote:

I think staying downstairs for a short hop is fine. Clogging the lobby
or sitting on 'Priority Seats' when fit and spry, for miles and miles is
not.

Remember why some perfectly fit people do sit on priority seats - the
others don't have enough legroom on many bus designs.

Personally, I'll go upstairs for a journey of over 5 minutes. Below
that I will tend to stand in the wheelchair area, moving in the
unlikely event of an actual wheelchair user boarding.

If I'm carrying an awkward load, or if it's an older bus design with
no legroom upstairs, the 5 minutes may increase substantially.

True the point is that those that can, often don't.

Because it's awkward, especially if you're carrying anything. On a
bendy, you don't *need* to.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
When replying please use neil at the above domain
'wensleydale' is a spam trap and is not read.

On 16 May 2005 04:25:46 -0700, "Rupert Candy"
wrote:

Actually Network SouthEast went through a real fad for this type of
displays in the 90s - as well as the Networker generation of trains
already mentioned, the Class 321 and 456 got them, and there were
several 'static' installations - examples I can remember include above
the ticket windows at Liverpool St and Cambridge (both of which became
illegible very quickly), above the platform entrances at Liverpool St
(in varying states of legibility but all still there) and on some
platform indicators (Barking seems to ring a bell). On Networkers they
were replaced with LCD displays, and on Class 456s they were replaced
with old-fashioned blinds (still in use)!

I think it was a BR fad. Such displays also appeared in the form of
the old departure boards at Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Airport
and Euston (and probably others), not to mention the Class 323
Regional Railways EMUs.

None of them lasted well, and many have been removed, including many
of the 323s which have now gained the hugely superior LEDs, and
Manchester Piccadilly which has gained a new display - astonishingly
this is another LCD one!

I think the motivation was that they looked modern. There's a good
reason why the rest of Europe remained with flipboard technology on
stations for so long.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
When replying please use neil at the above domain
'wensleydale' is a spam trap and is not read.

(Neil Williams)typed


On Mon, 16 May 2005 11:26:48 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
wrote:

I think staying downstairs for a short hop is fine. Clogging the lobby
or sitting on 'Priority Seats' when fit and spry, for miles and miles is
not.

Remember why some perfectly fit people do sit on priority seats - the
others don't have enough legroom on many bus designs.

I accept this argument for bigger people & actually some buses don't
have enough legroom for me -I'm 5ft 5½in tall. I don't accept this
argument in the case of many small to average-sized locals though.

Personally, I'll go upstairs for a journey of over 5 minutes. Below
that I will tend to stand in the wheelchair area, moving in the
unlikely event of an actual wheelchair user boarding.

If I'm carrying an awkward load, or if it's an older bus design with
no legroom upstairs, the 5 minutes may increase substantially.

Awkward loads are awkward for all. Stay downstairs by all means. My
point is that some unladen, fit passengers are not very considerate of
others.

True the point is that those that can, often don't.

Because it's awkward, especially if you're carrying anything. On a
bendy, you don't *need* to.

On a bendy, you're more likely to have to stand for much of the journey.
I really *need* a seat, don't always like having to ask, and know that
if I go upstairs, I can be _certain_ of a seat.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

In message , Richard J.
writes
Personally, I get bombarded with enough advertising already.
I agree. I really hate being bombarded with this on PT journeys. It
makes the journey substantially less enjoyable for me. But then maybe
it *is* just ,me?

Far worse are the video news displays on the Cross City Line trains in
Birmingham, where you get an edited version of that day's "Central news"
(the Midlands equivalent of "London Tonight". Now that really *is*
intrusive).

The real need is for a decent display of next/this stop, with
occasional updates of destination and journey times to there and key
intermediate points.
The RV1 had GPS updated screens giving all sorts of useful information
about attractions near stops when it was first introduced. They seem
to have vanished, though.
--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

On Mon, 16 May 2005 21:25:18 +0100, Ian Jelf
wrote:

Far worse are the video news displays on the Cross City Line trains in
Birmingham, where you get an edited version of that day's "Central news"
(the Midlands equivalent of "London Tonight". Now that really *is*
intrusive).

Agreed. Hamburg's U-Bahn has such displays, but with semi-static
information which would compare with a Powerpoint presentation. When
a station is being announced, its name and a photo of its entrance or
a significant building nearby is shown. A nice solution.

The RV1 had GPS updated screens giving all sorts of useful information
about attractions near stops when it was first introduced. They seem
to have vanished, though.

Those weren't bad, and had a nice classic display. However, they
weren't as visible as larger text.

The best ones I've seen were on Hamburg's buses. They were 2-line LED
displays which would show a variety of information across the two
lines, including the number and destination, next stop and
"advertising" or other messages from the operator. These were driven
from the ticket machine, but the drivers rarely forgot to advance
them. Keep it simple, and it'll work.

For those familiar with the Citaro, they're located in the black area
on the bulkhead above the driver, exactly where the "Stopping" sign is
found on the bendies.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
When replying please use neil at the above domain
'wensleydale' is a spam trap and is not read.

On Mon, 16 May 2005, Neil Williams wrote:

Hamburg's U-Bahn has such displays, but with semi-static information
which would compare with a Powerpoint presentation. When a station is
being announced, its name and a photo of its entrance or a significant
building nearby is shown. A nice solution.

I know - why don't TfL get Loyd Grossman to do video descriptions of each
stop? He does such a wonderful job at Covent Garden!

tom

--
How's it going to end?