Trains with two decks ‘will ease crowded commutes’

DOUBLE-DECKER trains could be brought in to ease overcrowding on Britain’s busiest rail lines.

While a common sight abroad, two-level trains have never caught on in the UK thanks to our narrow rails and low tunnels.

But designs have been put forward which should overcome the technical difficulties currently stopping investment in doubledecker carriages.

A new concept, by Swiss designer Andreas Vogler, is one of three finalists in a £3.5million competition run by the Rail Safety and Standards Board.

The Aeroliner 3000 design can fit in two decks by sitting lower on the tracks, and suggests changing the position of the aisles on both decks to save space.

A model of the design is to be built next year and then exhibited at trade shows. The Rail Safety and Standards Board said some of the new concepts could then be introduced to Britain between 2020 and 2022.

Their spokesman Trevor Bradbury said: ‘When you walk on a train, you step up to the carriage. There is actually a lot of space you can use beneath the vehicle, which is what this design does.’

A double-decker train did operate from 1949 to 1970 between London Bridge and Dartford. But it was cramped, poorly ventilated and took too long to unload.