UK trains with longitudinal seating

[Dougal2345]

People tend to want more seats, not longitudinal. The answer has always been longer or more frequent trains. London Overground trains are the first on the main network to feature fully longitudinal. Operators seemingly have no desire to follow suit.

I don't particularly care for longitudinal seating, simply because of the g-forces pulling you sideways as the train accelerates and brakes.

On the other hand no-one seems to have 'ownership' of a long bench of seats, the way the first person on a double seat does, so they tend to completely fill up.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Surely the obvious choice for the OP would be the far Eastern end of the Central line? Longitudinal seats, open air, quiet, the ability to run back and forth between a few stations repeatedly... depending on the size of his cast and crew, he may even be able to do so on the sly!

Or there's the 141s at preserved lines which have longish sections of longitudinal seating behind each cab, but aren't as obviously dated as the IoW stock or the usual fare on preserved lines.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Sounds interesting. Which line do these run on?

In the North of England and south Wales.

 

[PeterC]

I don't particularly care for longitudinal seating, simply because of the g-forces pulling you sideways as the train accelerates and brakes.

On the other hand no-one seems to have 'ownership' of a long bench of seats, the way the first person on a double seat does, so they tend to completely fill up.

The problem with transverse seating on services with high levels of usage and short journeys as in London is that passengers stand in the doorways rather than squeezing down the aisles and occupying all the seats. As much as I liked the A stock the sight of peak hour passengers being left on the platform despite there being empty seats convinced me of the superiority of the S stock with longtitudinal seating.

 

[tasky]

I registered specifically to post this, so I hope it helps...

What used to be called South West Trains, and what is now South Western Railway, out of Waterloo, has some longitudinal seating. Specifically on on their British Rail Class 455s that run to Guildford via Cobham.

The trains can be quite quiet during the day so you might be OK. If you want a quiet carriage get on at Guildford, most people will take the regional express service rather than the metro from there so it doesn't fill up for a few stops.

Picture below (not my pic)

 

[jamesontheroad]

If you fancy a weekend away, the Downpatrick & County Down Railway in Northern Ireland saved one NIR Castle Class 450 from the scrappers. It has a section of longitudinal seating adjacent to the engine compartment (but then you might not be able to hear anything on the phone ). They welcome filming as they need the income.

 

[DanNCL]

Here's all the options that'd be available that I can think of, I'm sure there probably are more, but these are the ones that immediately come to mind:

The Glasgow Subway is the only non-TFL one with fully longitudinal seating, and the interior is a bit dated on them. The system is also fully underground, so will not be suitable if you require mobile phone signal for this

As mentioned above, the South Western Railway (SWR) class 455 units have a section of longitudinal seating and look modern. These trains operate local services from London Waterloo to Guildford, Dorking, Epsom, Hampton Court, Woking, Kingston, Chessington South and a few other places - if you were to go to somewhere like Vauxhall or Wimbledon to wait for one you'd only be waiting a few minutes as there are plenty of them.

The Tyne and Wear Metro trains have multiple sections of longitudinal seating in every carriage, and also look pretty modern. Most of the network is above ground, and in my experience the Metro tunnels have phone signal anyway, so that wouldn't be an issue.

Alternatively, have you considered using a tram for this? The trams in both Edinburgh and Birmingham have sections of longitudinal seating.

There's also the Northern Rail class 150s which have a section of longitudinal seating in one carriage, however I've not been able to find a photo of that.

All photos from this post are from the internet and not mine.
I hope this post helps

 

[tasky]

nice, very comprehensive! As an aside, the Tyne and Wear Metro interior looks rather pleasant

 

[co-tr-paul]

The GWR Night Riviera lounge car has longitudinal seating and welcomes filming.
A little older but there are various GWR autotrailers on heritage lines including the South Devon.

 

[Flyingsprinter]

This YouTube video shows the northern 150/1 seating

 

[Llanigraham]

Thanks. I think he can get away with filming for free because it's just him filming himself. I'd have at least a cinematographer, sound recordist, and two actors.

From those comments I think that any operator is going to charge you, especally if this filming is for (any) commercial purposes.

Does it have to be "big railway"? The narrow gauge Corris Railway has longditudinal seating in their carriages.

 

[Hophead]

Speak to the people at VivaRail - they've got a whole load of ex District Line stock not doing anything and they could probably do with a bit of income.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

HAlternatively, have you considered using a tram for this? The trams in both Edinburgh and Birmingham have sections of longitudinal seating.

So do the Blackpool Flexity trams - and you could hire one for four hours for £450...

 

[DanNCL]

So do the Blackpool Flexity trams - and you could hire one for four hours for £450...

That's pricey! Maybe something cheaper then...

 

[Peter Mugridge]

That's pricey! Maybe something cheaper then...

There's nothing stopping you specifying it as an "all route including loops" charter and inviting a few track bashing friends along for a contribution towards the cost and having them as "extras" to make your film look more realistic...

10 people at £20 each would cover almost half the cost...

 

[matt_world2004]

Outside of peak the tfl rails from paddington are very quiet you might be able to film on the sly.

 

[Journeyman]

Edinburgh Trams have groups of three longitudinal seats over the wheels, but most of them are opposite luggage racks that might make filming tricky.

 

[beanwalls]

I don't particularly care for longitudinal seating, simply because of the g-forces pulling you sideways as the train accelerates and brakes.

On the other hand no-one seems to have 'ownership' of a long bench of seats, the way the first person on a double seat does, so they tend to completely fill up.

Maybe that's why TFL use them on the Overground trains, they never go fast enough to have any g-force pulling you sideways so it's not a problem. I assume the crossrail trains will go a little quicker though...

 

[beanwalls]

Surely the obvious choice for the OP would be the far Eastern end of the Central line? Longitudinal seats, open air, quiet, the ability to run back and forth between a few stations repeatedly... depending on the size of his cast and crew, he may even be able to do so on the sly!

Or there's the 141s at preserved lines which have longish sections of longitudinal seating behind each cab, but aren't as obviously dated as the IoW stock or the usual fare on preserved lines.

This could be an option. I'd rather do it legitimately, but the prices are so high for using TFL that it's impossible to do so unless you have a substantial budget. This is a short film funded by me with no commercial purpose but they aren't budging on their £600 per hour rates.

 

[beanwalls]

I registered specifically to post this, so I hope it helps...

What used to be called South West Trains, and what is now South Western Railway, out of Waterloo, has some longitudinal seating. Specifically on on their British Rail Class 455s that run to Guildford via Cobham.

The trains can be quite quiet during the day so you might be OK. If you want a quiet carriage get on at Guildford, most people will take the regional express service rather than the metro from there so it doesn't fill up for a few stops.

Picture below (not my pic)

Amazingly helpful - thank you! I will check out those trains and get in touch with South Western Railway if they seem like a good option.

 

[beanwalls]

The Tyne and Wear Metro trains have multiple sections of longitudinal seating in every carriage, and also look pretty modern. Most of the network is above ground, and in my experience the Metro tunnels have phone signal anyway, so that wouldn't be an issue.

This looks like a great option and I will investigate. The photo is exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for. Thanks so much!

 

[beanwalls]

Alternatively, have you considered using a tram for this? The trams in both Edinburgh and Birmingham have sections of longitudinal seating.

The Edinburgh trams have that luggage rack opposite which will make it difficult to film. The plan was to have the camera in the seats opposite with a wide angle lens. The Birmingham ones might work though, it's hard to tell from that photo. I'll investigate though so thanks again!

 

[DelW]

A heritage railway (i.e. a preservation group) is more likely to be able to accommodate you at modest cost. If you don't mind paying for ferries or flights, the Alderney Railway operates two 1959 tube cars hauled by a diesel loco (and all above ground of course..)
http://www.alderneyrailway.com/

From sometime early next year, London Northwestern will be operating two ex-District Line trains between Bletchley and Bedford which may retain some longitudinal seating.

 

[beanwalls]

The GWR Night Riviera lounge car has longitudinal seating and welcomes filming.
A little older but there are various GWR autotrailers on heritage lines including the South Devon.

The Night Riviera looks great fun but not quite right for this... and I assume the autotrailers will be a little vintage for what I'm after...

Thanks though!

 

[beanwalls]

This YouTube video shows the northern 150/1 seating

That might work. The stretch of seating seen when first entering the carriage looks like it could work. I'll look into it - thanks!

 

[beanwalls]

So do the Blackpool Flexity trams - and you could hire one for four hours for £450...

These could work. They seem to only have three longitudinal seats in a row and a longer row would be helpful (to put space between two characters) but they could work. I've also noticed they have slight stadium seating with some of the seats going the standard way and have thought that it could work with one character sitting behind the other, as long as the one behind can be seen clearly and is able to overhear what the first is saying on the phone.

I also think Blackpool would be a great location, and perhaps that the views outside the window might be interesting too! Will investigate - thank you!

 

[beanwalls]

That's pricey! Maybe something cheaper then...

£450 for four hours is a bargain compared to TFL, they want more than that per hour!

 

[beanwalls]

Outside of peak the tfl rails from paddington are very quiet you might be able to film on the sly.

Will check it out, thanks.

 

[beanwalls]

Edinburgh Trams have groups of three longitudinal seats over the wheels, but most of them are opposite luggage racks that might make filming tricky.

Yeah, I noticed that in the photo. Definitely an issue...

 

[beanwalls]

A heritage railway (i.e. a preservation group) is more likely to be able to accommodate you at modest cost. If you don't mind paying for ferries or flights, the Alderney Railway operates two 1959 tube cars hauled by a diesel loco (and all above ground of course..)
http://www.alderneyrailway.com/

From sometime early next year, London Northwestern will be operating two ex-District Line trains between Bletchley and Bedford which may retain some longitudinal seating.

I assume all heritage railways will be using vintage trains though... and so not quite right for this story unfortunately.