Designed in collaboration with Atkins and Maynard for the Elizabeth line as one of the line-wide components for the Crossrail project, the bench was designed to optimise passenger comfort whilst being low maintenance in a high traffic LU station environment.
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There are two configurations of bench in the Crossrail family - one composed partially of timber and one entirely made from stainless-steel.
The stainless steel bench is intended for Crossrail Central stations, using a single casting for the end and intermediate arms, supporting the stainless-steel seat pans. The modular kit-of-parts approach meant the same bench components could be wall and floor mounted in 2,3 and four seat configurations.
The lean bar is formed of a bespoke aluminium extrusion curved on its upper profile to provide an more ergonomic leaning position.
Client prototyping with Marshalls and ergonomic testing with user groups was used to refine the design prior to line wide-procurements, and continued to shape the bench as it developed.
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Designed for use on the Elizabeth line surface stations and as a future TfL product, the timber bench is optimised for comfort and to sit naturally in existing surface stations.
Material research and trailing lead to the selection of Kebony, a sustainable alternative to tropical hardwood. The treated softwood cell structure is permanently modified adopting premium characteristics in terms of durability and hardness., whilst allowing for shaping of the timber to improve its ergonomic characteristics.
Economies of scale are maximised with the arm casting allowed for the addition of a backrest within the same family of components as the bench. Careful consideration of manufacturing cost made the design an attractive proposal for adoption by TfL as a standard product.
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