Seems an odd thing to lack, but many railway stations lack much in the way of seating, so now more is being added to stations.
Following a passenger survey, the total seating capacity at Victoria and London Bridge is now being increased from 150 at each station to 400 at each station.
The seats, similar to those installed at Stansted Airport, were made by Green Furniture Concepts, based in Malmo, Sweden.
They’re also a far cry from the cold metal seats, or 1980s plastic buckets that used to despoil the station waiting areas, as the new seating is made from multi-coloured wood with tables built in for laptops and coffee cups.
The tables aren’t just a convenience for passengers though, as putting seating with tables near to food outlets tends to increase sales of food and drink, to the benefit of the railway company.
“In one mainline station, we added tabletops to seating units installed around the F&B area,” says designer Johan Berhin. “Passengers could use them when the cafes were full, increasing take-away food sales by 7% as a result. It also enabled passengers to sit where the departure boards are in view and spot the location of their platform when it was announced.”
More seating, more comfort, and more sales in the shops.
(c) Network Rail
Installation has started at Victoria and will continue at London Bridge. The old metal seating has been ‘recycled’ onto the platform areas at London Bridge and Victoria and other local stations.
As society ages, more and more seating will be required in places where it’s not currently available
While I welcome the additional seating , there never seems to be enough of it at times , why have they been sourced from Sweden ? No British manufacturers out there ? 🇬🇧
Which country famously has a lot more trees?