PTE's have to address crowded trains and an overcrowded peak time train is officially where the number of passengers on the train exceeds a number equal to 1.35 times the number of seats on the train even if 2+2 makes more standing room opposed to 3+2 seating.
Also consideration should be given to the amount of time passengers have to stand for. In the case of Northern Rail any of their diesel trains can be used on a journey of up to 3 hours so removing 20 seats and having 12 passengers standing for 1.5 hours on some services would not be a good move.
The DfT's overcrowding rules are national standards, there have been problems in the past where some PTEs were out of step, WMPTE were using
110% at one stage and demanding more capacity, whereas the DfT reckoned on
130%. So at the last franchise change London Midland's 'WMPTE area' overcrowding targets were brought into line with the national figures. If they hadn't there'd have been the stupid situation where the Euston - New St services had different figures at either end of the route? [This caused a load of media outrage at the time, people may recall.]
However for trains with conventional commuter layouts the standing allowance is actually area based; the allowance is 0.45 sq m per standee, not a percentage. I believe the percentages usually discussed are calculated for classes of trains in the franchise specs, based on the 0.45 sq m.
This from Hansard 21 July 2008 : Column 888W
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answers of 19 June 2008, Official Report, column 1067W, on railways: overcrowding, when her Department's formula to determine train capacity, derived from dividing the interior size of a passenger vehicle by 0.45 square metres, was first used; and whether the divisor in the formula has ever varied from 0.45 square metres. [214781]
Mr. Tom Harris [holding answer 1 July 2008]: The standard of 0.45 square metres for determining train capacity was first used by the Office for Passenger Rail Franchising in 2000, and continues to apply today.
There are two specific variations: Class 376 trains, operating on Southeastern services; and for services operated by Stagecoach South West Trains to and from London Waterloo.
New (Class 376) purpose-built vehicles ordered for Southeastern are configured to serve short-distance Metro passenger flows, and the stock has been specifically configured with low density seating and appropriate grab rails for standing passengers, to ensure that passengers can stand in relative comfort for short-distance journeys; the same is true for Class 455 units operated by Stagecoach South West Trains, on services that stop within 20 minutes of leaving London Waterloo. In these cases the standard is varied to 0.35 and 0.25 square metres respectively.
This last bit is why I suggest that if specific layouts are decided upon, the capacity would go shooting up. The SWT 455 unit capacity (as defined in SWT's franchise spec) is 236 seated and 380 standing. Then again suppose (and this is highly theoretical) a franchise bidder in the NW decided to order new 172s for a pure commuter route, but with the internal layout of a LO 378. It would be unrealistic to carry on using a crowding figure of 130% - these things carry about 150 standees for every 40 seated, more like a tram than a train; and they do cross London services of around an hour end to end.
However there is still a difference for 'long distance services' the capacity is simply based on the number of seats.
