Today's trams were Leeds 399 and Southampton 45 - a much better selection than yesterday - but 40 and 399 yesterday and 40 and 45 today would have been even better. Each day our customers would have had the choice two towns and be able to compare the ride of a smooth bogie car and a bouncy 4-wheeler.
Our customers always ask where the tram has come from. Running two from the same town on the same day is plain daft.
Our customers will nearly always comment on how smoothly 40 rides compared with the other 'bone shaker'.
I don't think anyone expects visitor number increase this year. We must do everything we can to ensure that every customer has a memorable visit. Simply choosing two very different trams for them to enjoy is the easy bit.
This is an interesting debate and I agree with yourself and yesterdays poster (Aaron), if that's possible! Any choice of 'pair' can be criticised, indeed you've suggested 40 & 45, which I would say is a poor combination, why? Well they're the same colour!
ReplyDeleteIt's a debate that we had last year and is something that is important to the casual vistor and perhaps to our visually impaired visitors, why have two out of the same colour when we could show the vivid colours of Glasgow or Chesterfield?
Perhaps 399 was a poor choice today? Bit of a sweat box on a nice day?
One thing that does help is the interpretation and for this we rely heavily on the information that our crews tell our visitors, not just about the tramcar but as is becoming more important it's social context and it's stage in the evolution of tramcar design. As described the bogie/4 wheeler comparison is important.
It's an interseting one and one that people will often disagree on!
I agree that visitor numbers are unlikely to increase - the cost of transport will certainly be the major deciding factor, not what trams are in service.
ReplyDeleteI do not for one minute believe that the visitor experience will be made any less memorable by the choice of trams in service - it is the crews and the paid staff that they see, not the vehicle.
You know full well that the tram choice is limited by what is available and also what license the driver holds. Your comments here do not necessarily give the full picture, as has also been commented on in the past. Perhaps the driver had not driven the car for some time and wanted to get the feel of it again?