Re: [Melb] New trams have few seats

[John McCallum <mccallum@melbpc.org.au>]

David McLoughlin wrote:
 
> Vaughan Williams wrote:

> > > I even tried to tell them that the new Citadis and Combino trams will
> > > have fewer seats than even a Z despite being much bigger, and they
> > > didn't see the newsworthiness of that either. Even the five-section
> > > Combino Swantson Trams is getting will have about 20 fewer seats than
> > a B despite being longer.

> > Do you have any detailed specs on these, preferably in paper form? I
> > asked Swanston for them but they haven't sent them and I don't think
> > they will.
 
> Yes, a friend in Austria who posts here at times (Wolfgang Auer) sent me
> the specs for the Melbourne Combinos from the German professional city
> transport magazine Stadtverkehr, which reproduces Siemens material. It
> has drawings with measurements/specs for both the three-section and
> five-section Melbourne order that shows the seat layout. There are 28
> seats in the three-section one and 56 seats in the five-section one. The
> reason for so few seats from looking at these drawings, is that there
> are a lot of very wide doors on both sides of the tram, so not much room
> for seats.
 
> These trams are designed for European cities which have short routes
> with heavy loadings, and also usually turning loops so the trams are
> single ended and only have doors down one side, rather than for a city
> like Melbourne which has very long routes, with no turning loops, and
> thus trams need doors on both sides, yet the traffic demands a greater
> requirement for more seats than in Europe.
 
> A few of the seats in the five-section version are 4+4 but most are 2+2
> or sideways-facing (longitudinal like in the saloons of the W2s).
 
> There are no 4+4s in the three-section version at all.
 
Another reason for the lack of seats is the necessity to provide for the
longitudinal motors along each side of the motored sections. This
reduces the room to such an extent that only longitudinal seats can be
provided in these areas.

-- 
John McCallum
email: mccallum@unite.com.au
DTE Director and member Melbourne PC User Group