Positives
1. I like the walk through. It’s easier if I have my bike.
2. Mechanically they seem reliable enough (not my area of expertise!).
3. They eat up people.
Negatives
1. Not enough legroom. I can’t sit forward without my knees pressing against the seat in front.
2. The table trays (if there are any) do not allow me to put my laptop on.
3. It has a clinical and unwelcoming atmosphere.
Something that always gets me is people going ‘yeah, but such a small number of people go Cambridge to Brighton’ yes, I agree, most punters boarding Cambridge will have alighted before Haywards Heath, if not before, but while Thameslink reduces end to end journey times, I now spend longer on the 700. I regularly go between East Croydon and St. Neots/Cambridge and my end to end time is shorter, but I spend all that time on one train. I travel off peak so I can sprawl over many seats but I wouldn’t want to do that in the peak times. I appreciate that they are a Jack of all trades and I would suggest keeping the larger areas at boarding points for standing pax works well, but by carpeting, adding full tables in the four bays, just increasing leg room by a few inches and moving a few centimetres into the aisle and adding warmer lighting, the whole train would become so much better. As others have said the 707’s are welcoming and I love travelling on them. Perfect for what they do.