How many passengers could fit in a '57ft Suburban MK1?

[Blackvault]

I'm looking at trying to work out passenger volume per train for my layout, using BR Standard MK1 '57ft Suburban BS and S coaches.

How many passengers could fit into a BS and S?
 

Thanks :)

[Jeremy Cumberland]

6 a side, weren't they? 6 compartments in a BS and 9 in an S, giving 72 and 108 seats respectively. Standing passengers were common enough in other compartment stock, so I imagine they were found in the 57' loco-hauleds. You could squeeze about 4 standees into a compartment, giving capacities of 96 and 144 for a particularly unpleasant ride.

[Blackvault]

Thanks for that answer @Jeremy Cumberland

[Wickham Green too]

20 minutes ago, Jeremy Cumberland said:

... a particularly unpleasant ride.

C'mon, that's positively luxurious in 6’2¾’’ compartments compared to the first modern 9' wide stock : Bulleid's 'Sheba' units with 5'6¾’’ compartments ! 🥴

[bécasse]

Sixty years ago 4 standees per BR standard non-corridor compartment would have been considered reasonably comfortable and probably a peak-hour train norm. Given disruption to a service, the reckoned maximum was the same number of standees as seats and that certainly was unpleasant but probably no worse than waiting on the platform for an uncertain following service.

 

Semi-saloon compartments lost one seat per side but gained two extra standee places per side instead so could take 10 or 11 seated plus 12 plus 2 or 4 standees.

 

Dwell times were obviously extended with such extreme loadings but rarely exceeded 60-90 seconds (instead of the booked 15-20).

[br2975]

CL = 19 First, 41 Second

BS = 72 

S = 108

SLO = 80

 

[Wickham Green too]

50 minutes ago, bécasse said:

... Dwell times were obviously extended with such extreme loadings but rarely exceeded 60-90 seconds (instead of the booked 15-20).

Luckily this thread isn't about the 4DD units ! 😎

[Clive Mortimore]

Having stood in the ER EMU compartment stock, classes 302, 305, 307 and 308, each compartment would have six sat on one side and five the other (not everyone is skinny) and seven or eight people standing on the feet of those seated, quite a lot people. Not too sure if the ER loco hauled sets were as busy as the Liverpool Street services.

 

Soon learnt to find one of the open saloons, far more standing space. This was followed by a even better idea, usally there would be more than one train loading and heading for Chelmsford, so I would make my way to the last one to leave and get a seat, so I sat in Liverpool Street a little longer but if you could get a seat in the declassified first class on a 309 it was worth the luxury.

[Blackvault]

1 hour ago, br2975 said:

CL = 19 First, 41 Second

BS = 72 

S = 108

SLO = 80

 

Cheers for those additional numbers. 

[roythebus1]

I worked on the KX loco-hauled suburbans in 1975/76, they were "quite busy". 

[SRman]

My tongue in cheek answer: in an S, 108 seated, 361.5 standing! They were cramped in rush hour. 😈

[pH]

About 1966, I was on a Glasgow Central - Gourock evening rush hour train, non -corridor suburban stock, fully loaded, where the train in front wasn’t going to make it all the way to Gourock. So they emptied out the failing train at Paisley Gilmour Street, ‘sank’ the failure up the Linwood branch at Paisley St James and put all those passengers on our train at Gilmour Street. I think we counted over 20 in our compartment, sitting, standing, and with a couple of athletic young guys in the luggage racks.

Edited July 29 by pH

[billbedford]

Isn't anyone going to buy a whole lot of them and put diesel engines in them?