The new SkyTrain car design includes LCD screens as well as flex space (PHOTOS) from Maurice Sidney's blog

After only a few years, SkyTrain customers can look forward to riding on new-generation trains that will quickly rise to become one of the most popular LCD models in the fleet, including those on the Expo and Millennium lines.

The shipment of a mockup of a single SkyTrain car to a SkyTrain operations LCD and maintenance center (OMC) near Edmonds Station in Burnaby is part of TransLink's process of finalizing the design of the new Mark V trains, according to a press release. The new Mark V trains are expected to enter service in 2019.

As with the existing four-car Mark III trains, the Mark V trains will be configured as five-car articulated trains, which means passengers will be able to walk from one end of the train to the other end of the train. There will be the longest and most capable trains ever built, with the longest and most capable trains ever built.

Bike racks, strollers, and wheelchairs will be able to be stored in more open flex space. Additionally, more perimeter side seating will be available, with LCD screens similar to those found in the Mark I cars. These will aid in the improvement of accessibility and carrying capacity. In order to make the flex and standing areas more comfortable, padded leaning rails are also provided in some of these areas.

In the train's end cars, riders will notice a greater number of flexible spaces, while the middle cars will have a greater number of traditional front-facing row seating. In addition, the front seat, which is widely regarded as the best seat on the train, has been restored to the end cars' square LCD, in response to a request from SkyTrain attendants who wanted to provide more comfort when trains must be manually driven during the winter months.

With the installation of a large LCD digital display above the doorways, the passenger information and communications systems will be significantly improved, as will the wayfinding space currently occupied by print network maps on older trains and LED maps on more recent Mark II and III trains.

If desired, the real-time train location and next station information could be displayed on several different alternate maps interfaces to provide additional clarity, including an overview map of the entire Expo and Millennium system and a zoomed-in map that pinpointed the train's precise location.

Such square LCD display will also allow for the dynamic display of current time, service interruptions, transit alerts, news and weather information (as well as other information), and other information in the future, among other things.

The installation of light strip indicators on the sides and beneath the LCD displays will also be beneficial to passengers who are deaf or have hearing impairment.