A virtual tour inside the new Tyne & Wear Metro trains has been released, with various views from inside the carriage and cab of the trains.
The new Metro trains design was created by Newcastle firm Octo Design who worked with Zurich's Nose Design Experience, with ideas and suggestions from over 3,000 Metro passengers.
Featuring linear seating an open plan spaces, the new carriage designs will help cope with busy days on the Metro.
The ‘London Underground' style layout was well supported by passengers, with dedicated space for wheelchairs, cycles and luggage.
In addition, the carriages will be air-conditioned, have information screens throughout, heated floors, WiFi and USB charging points.
To access the virtual tour, visit https://tyneandwearmetro.nose.ch/
The new trains are being built by Stadler of Switzerland in a £362m programme.
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Omitting the horizontal grab rail means most standing passengers have nothing to hold on to. Not satisfactory on our fast moving system, for more elderly passengers.
Unless wheelchair users are permitted to occupy the doorwell of the non wheelchair carriages there will not be enough wheelchair spaces in the segregated carriage for disabled people travelling on the metro on many journeys particularly at peak times and weekends. Denying ordinary commuters and wheelchair users access to the bicycle/luggage carriage seating will place unnecessary inconvenience to commuters at peak times (we have an aging population requiring more seating). Will wheelchair users be permitted to use the doorway spaces in the non wheelchair carriages (as we do now) when the wheelchair carriage is full? Carriages set aside for people carrying luggage/bikes ‘only’ along with underseat luggage spaces could make unattended baggage less noticeable, a possible safety issue on this fleet?
I am pleased that the job has gone to Stadler as they build excellent trams. I do not like longitudinal seating especially for the long journeys on the Metro. I find that I cannot see out of the windows and this makes for a not very pleasant travelling experience. This type of seating is also not very nice for anyone with a back problem. These new trains are designed for crush loading like London underground trains
Stadler will be kept busy with more new rolling stocks to be manufactured and the new Tyne and Wear Metro trains is brilliant news. Stadler are also to manufacture the Class 231 and Class 756 Flirts for Transport for Wales. Whilst they are still manufacturing the Greater Anglia Class 745 and Class 755 Flirts and Merseyrail Class 777 Metro units.
And have won the contract to manufacture new underground subway stocks for the Glasgow Underground Subway. And probably they could manufacture new tube stocks for London Underground-Central Line, Bakerloo Line and/or Waterloo & City Line.
More money going out of the country, why cant we invest more in rolling stock manufacture.