Passenger trains in the Australian city of Melbourne will have less seats in a bid to squeeze more people on the already busy network.
Melbourne's new X'Trapolis trains, due to come into service next year, will have at least 12 seats removed from each carriage, according to the Public Transport Ministry.
Existing trains will be refitted with fewer seats to create more standing room.
Speaking to Australia's The Age, Public Transport Minister Lynne Kosky said that the 528 seats on a six-carriage X'Trapolis set will be reduced to 456 "to make travel more comfortable".
The announcement comes as recorded rail passenger numbers jumped by 40 million — from 178 million in 2006-07, to an expected 218 million in 2008-09, writes the newspaper.
By staff writer
