(09 May 2020, 6:40 pm)Dan wrote Just picking up on this comment - the Streetlites actually have more seats than the Citaros. Aside from the fuel economy and low carbon certification, this was another reason for them being allocated.
I think the perception is often that they have fewer seats but they actually don't. The Citaros in particular have quite an unusual seating layout (especially the older ones that aren't used on the 4) which results in the number of seats being fewer.
Yes, I'd agree with this comment too. In the last fortnight or so I've taken up cycling in a bid to try and get a bit healthier and lose a bit of weight. In my experience of observing the buses I've seen whilst on my bike rides, I've often seen people sat together at the front of the bus leaving the back of the bus empty.
As far as I know there have been no reported 'overcrowding' issues on service 4 other than the one that Andreos1 reported. I do wonder whether it was a similar story where outside looking in, it appeared to be full, but when you actually see the bus stationary you can see that there are still plenty of seats closer to the back of the bus.
There are vinyls on the floors of the buses, there are posters around the cab area, in the poster holders, and the 'Next Stop' audio-visual TFT monitors (where buses are equipped with them) also show imagery around social distancing. You can lead a horse to water...
I wonder if it would be worth putting signs every other seat asking passengers to not sit there unless there are no other seats available, and reminding passengers to only have one person per row.