It did the trick by extending the front overhang, and more the front door a bit forward to creat enough space for a seat on the front axis. That is not specific to the 2-axle Trident chassis, and the E400-bodied B9TL and (I believe) N230UD also have those seats.
HB00610: It has nothing to do with how much seats or space it can carry - it is the weight that drives the capacity. Being heavier and, with only 2-axle, having a lower legal weight limit (as I said, I would struggle to see it will be granted to a max gross weight beyond 18,000kg). Take the UK ones as an example, without the air-cond and associated ductings, they are lighter, but they are certified to carry up to 90 passengers. Even assuming the average weight per person is lower in HK, I don't think it will make up the 2,300kg weight penalty carried on these two E400s. I don't think anyone should be surprised if they ended up with a capacity of 80 people or less, I can see that happen.
原帖由 NV58 於 2009-11-26 11:59 發表
I don't think anyone should be surprised if they ended up with a capacity of 80 people or less, I can see that happen.
If that's the case these 2-axle double deckers would be better suited for longer distance routes in which the passengers are less willing to stand for the whole journey. A 11.0~11.1m E400 Trident/B9TL with spiral staircase should have more or less the same seating capacity as ATE (U51+L25+3 seats above the front wheels+1 more seat for the existing 「自閉位」on the 40xx = 80 seats).
For the replacement of short 3-axle double decker buses, I strongly recommend an "evolved" version of 33xx. I believe this can be acheived by improving the design of Trident 3 instead of trying to shorten the existing E500 chassis.
