"The InterCity" wrote in message
oups.com...

snipped stuff I agree with

I am not so sure about that. I was on a Class 375 going into London and
was having to stand in the vestibule area. As you well know, these
trains are not designed for having commuters crammed inside, quite the
contrary, but that was exactly the situation. The vestibule area was
just too small to accommodate people, and at Waterloo East more people
were trying to get on - it was a nightmare. Compare this with the Class
376, and the problems of this whole scenario are alleviated. Indeed, a
passenger is likely to take a Class 375/9 hands down on a journey of
long duration, but I suspect that the Class 376 would be preferred by
commuters on jam-packed lines such as those to Dartford.

I'm not so sure about that though - I use Bexley station on the Dartford
line via Sidcup and very much prefer a 375/9 over a 376. I think the 376
would probably be preferred by users of Hither Green, Lewisham, Blackheath,
Deptford, Greenwich etc, but I reckon when you get out to places such as
Abbey Wood, Welling, Sidcup and beyond, people don't want to slum it in
uncomfortable urban stock, particularly off-peak.

I find Bexley to Charing Cross in reality (ignoring timetable), is about 45
mins in the peak. For me, that is simply too long to be sitting on a badly
shaped seat that feels like a wooden bench, particularly when our friends
from Sevenoaks are zooming past on a 2x2 375 with a shorter journey time!

We seem to have two unfortunate extremes - the 376 designed for ultra-peak
wedged workings, and the 2x2 375 which seems to be designed for fairly long
distance off-peak journeys. So perhaps the 375/9 is the happy medium after
all :-)

Having said all that, there's still no excuse for making the 376 seats so
damn uncomfortable, that's just plain inexcusable. If there's gonna be less
seating, at least make it comfortable!

Rich