for the purpose of allowing longitudinal (sideways-facing) seating to be used there, in place of transverse seating, for better passenger comfort and movement. The first LRVs built to the newer design were the "Type 5" cars of Portland, Oregon's MAX Light Rail system, in 2014, but initially Siemens continued to sell LRVs with either center-section configuration and used the designation S70 for both. In 2019, the company began using the designation S700 for new orders, and in 2020 it retroactively applied the S700 designation to all LRVs and streetcars that had been built to the newer design since its creation in 2013 or 2014. Size and configuration The S70, S700, and Avanto have a modular design and can be built in a number of different sizes and configurations, including both light-rail vehicle (LRV) and streetcar versions. The standard version of the S70 and S700 LRV is long, although the earliest S70 units delivered had a different, longer cab design that extended the length to . The streetcar version of the S700 is long, about shorter than the standard LRV. Siemens also offers a US ("Ultra Short") variant of the LRV at , about shorter than the standard version. The San Diego Trolley and the Salt Lake City TRAX systems have purchased the US variants. The Avantos built for France have a length of . The major change between the S70 and the S700 is the seating in the center section of the vehicle. The S700 has longitudinal seating in this section with passengers facing the aisle, while the S70 had more traditional seating with passengers sitting four-across, facing forward or back, with an aisle in between. This 2013 change, which was made to eliminate a seating layout that had been criticized as cramped and ease the movement of passengers within that section, was the primary design change that led Siemens eventually to adopt (in 2019) the new model number for the modified S70 design. The S700 also has some technology upgrades. Most vehicles are double-ended, with operating controls at both ends and doors on both sides. An exception are 40 cars in service on TriMet's MAX system, which are single-ended and have cabs at only one end of each car. However, in service they always operate in pairs, coupled back-to-back, so that each consist has operating cabs at both ends. TriMet reverted to a double-ended design for its latest order