"David Martin" wrote in message
oups.com...

Where do I find one of these mythical beasts? Any online plans as to
the internal layout, and how many bikes will one take.

Each Electrostar will take (officially) two bicycles in the marked area for
bicycles, wheelchairs etc. (look for the cycle/wheelchair symbols on the
outside of the doors). Most trains are formed of more than one Electrostar
unit (for example, in the peaks Brighton trains are formed of four three-car
units, theoretically offering at least eight cycle spaces). In practise, on
most services out of the peak, no-one will object to additional bicycles
being parked in the vestibule areas. I, for one, have never had a problem
when travelling with a cycle.

Being both a cyclist and a railway enthusiast it is interesting to see the
arguments presented from both viewpoints. For quite a while now there have
been many complaints about the fact the the Electrostar and Turbostar (the
diesel version) devote one third of an entire coach to the disabled-access
toilet, the five (or less, depends on the specification by the train
operating company) tip-up seats that can be used as wheelchair spaces or for
people travelling with wheelchair passengers and the cycle stowage areas.
Critics regularly point out that there is no need for more than one
disabled-access toilet per train and that when trains are formed of more
than one unit there is an over-provision of such accommodation, where normal
seating could be provided. Nice in theory but how do you cater for flexible
train lengths using fixed-formation trains, where you have the regulatory
requirement to provide disabled accomodation, whether the train is a
three-car unit or a twelve-car formation?