After our article on Monday reporting local newspaper The Sentinel had announced some of SW7’s ride statistics, there was much discussion and confusion on one specific mention in the article that the ride would have a capacity of 64 people per ride.
Today, Alton Towers have now clarified that the ride will carry 16 passengers per train in a configuration of 4 rows of 4 seats. Since the ride was first announced, speculation on the seating configuration has been rife. Standard Eurofighter cars, such as those on SAW: The Ride at sister park THORPE PARK consist of 2 rows of 4. Concerns were raised by fans of the park, including on our forum that such a configuration may result in large queues due to the ride’s low capacity.
Although seating configuration rumours can now be put to bed, the secret element of next season’s new attraction remains a closely guarded secret. With the end of the 2012 season fast approaching it seems little will be revealed down at the construction site itself before the park closes.
Manwhile, with the park’s programme of marketing coming to and end for this year, news of the new ride has now started to reach national outlets, with mentions this week in The Daily Mail, ITV News and on BBC Radio 2. This is only expected to increase over the coming weeks and months.
Finally, this weekend sees Scarefest return to the park following the previewevent last weekend. The resort’s new paid maze “The Sanctuary” has been billed as a prequel to the theme for SW7 by the park, with a number of positive reviews from our readers. If you’d like to read up before you head to the park this weekend, or if you even can’t make Scarefest check out our all new Scarefest Guide. You’ll find a run down of all of the attractions on resort for the event, and if you don’t want to find out too much before you visit, don’t worry – we’ve hidden them away on a separate page!
