On Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:49:03 +0000, Dave A wrote:

"the ease of being able to get on and off".

I wonder what this phrase meant specifically?

My mind did boggle a bit. If I were asked how easy it was to get on a
train, I'd think firstly of the gap (both horizontal and vertical)
between the train and the platform, and secondly of the number of people
crowded in the doorways - although the latter may not be relevant.

For example, a DLR train would be very easy to get on from the first
perspective (minimum possible gap) whereas the SWT train I got on this
morning at Wandsworth had a massive step up from the platform onto the
train.

Perhaps it was interpreted as how easy it is to turn up at a station
and get on a train (i.e. whether you have to queue for ages and buy
tickets, faff around with barriers, etc). This might explain why HEx
scored highly (you can just walk straight on board, and buy the ticket
on the train).