Class 153, 156 Window height query

[jonathan01n]

I went on a train trips few days ago and I sat at the table seat of a 156 on outbound journey and a 153 back(Also table seat) ( Both train journeys are on EMT). I feels the 153 windows are higher because my view is blocked a bit but when I took the first train the views are normal. Maybe I am just tired then :roll:

 

[3141]

I went on a train trips few days ago and I sat at the table seat of a 156 on outbound journey and a 153 back(Also table seat) ( Both train journeys are on EMT). I feels the 153 windows are higher because my view is blocked a bit but when I took the first train the views are normal. Maybe I am just tired then :roll:

Or maybe the floor is lower on the 153, but yes, the windows do seem higher.

 

[Andyh82]

It's even worse on a 150, but I don't know it they windows are higher or it's just the BR original seats that are lower.

 

[satisnek]

High windows are a legacy of the Mark 2d coach, which was purposely designed so that passengers in window seats could not see the adjacent track and the resultant 'sleeper flicker'. This was perpetuated in the Mark 3 design and all the Mark 3-derived multiple units (plus the Met-Camm Class 156 as well, so it seems).

Class 153, on the other hand, is derived from the Leyland National bus, and the window height in this case was probably set at a compromise between the low front seats and the rear seats above the engine. So in a railway vehicle, where there's no need to raise the floor above the engine, the windows are very high.

In later designs (158, Turbo, Networker etc. onwards) the window height has come down a bit, thankfully in my opinion.

 

[fairysdad]

Class 153, on the other hand, is derived from the Leyland National bus,

... don't you mean the Class 143? A 153 is still part of the Sprinter family, is it not?

 

[Tetchytyke]

Class 153, on the other hand, is derived from the Leyland National bus

Nah, the Class 155 was a fresh Sprinter design, although it was built by British Leyland.

The Class 155s were converted into Class 153s, except the handful in West Yorkshire.

Yes, the window line is higher on a 153/155 than on a 156. It's just the design, I think.

I don't know if it's a Leyland thing, given the window line on the class 141 and class 142 (both from the National) were higher than on the class 143 and 144, which were derived from Alexander bus bodies.

 

[satisnek]

Nah, the Class 155 was a fresh Sprinter design, although it was built by British Leyland.

Yes, sorry, I wasn't being perfectly clear. The 153 isn't a bus body; the original two-car 155s were built using National body parts, notably the modular side panels with the high windows.