(25 Dec 2016, 10:01 pm)Greg in Weardale wrote The latest Citaro model is probably the best single deck vehicle available at the moment, having ridden in two demonstrators (the latest with Weardale a few weeks ago), but the slump in the pound compared with the euro has increased their price in the UK. Good, stylish interior, not as cramped as a Streetlite, built to last and, not really relevant to GNE perhaps, the most attractive design. The downside is that they MAY be a bit less economical regarding fuel consumption, but there's no doubt the Citaro gives a better passenger experience, which must be an important consideration when choosing vehicles. Enviro 400 City seems the best of the bunch for new deckers, more powerful than the Streetdecks, and that demo was great on the 21, although I didn't sample it on the X9/10.
Suppose it goes back to some of the points made in the PCL thread about their fleet and business model compared to Spirits.
Then there are the enhanced uplifts a vehicle like a Streetlite gets. It would be of benefit to see those uplifts benefit passengers in the way of reduced fares. Instead it is used in other ways.
The heavier Citaro on the 4, has cheaper fares (distance and duration) per mile than the cheaper to run Streetlite on the 20.
From the initial outlay, the Streetlite will be cheaper than a Citaro, but I dont know whether the titivation and tarting up of them works in attracting passengers.
ANE held an event recently to see what passengers thought of potential purchases.
Northern Railways are asking passengers to check out their preferred seat types.
I genuinely would love to know what a decent sample of the customer base thinks of a Streetlite (tarted up or not).