Economy class

Cabin class for wealthier passengers included small cabins and a shared dining room, while "steerage" provided open decks with bunks, often near the tackle that operated the rudder or in converted cargo space on the "between decks" area, where poorer passengers cooked their own meals.

Many large liners evolved three and sometimes four segregated cabin, dining and recreation spaces for First, Second, Third and Steerage Class passengers.

[5] Many ferries operating on shorter routes have continued to offer cabin fares and large open accommodation for economy travellers similar to the cabin/steerage divisions of earlier eras.

Depending on the configuration of the passenger compartment, luggage can be stowed in overhead racks or at each end of the coach cars.

North American intercity passenger trains are separated into different coach classes by the type of car (e.g., sleepers).

Economy seating on North American passenger trains typically does not include meal service in the fare.

Economy class also exists on some sleeper services, most notably on most Russian Railways routes, which designates the class as "Platzkart", with cars featuring an open 9-bay layout, where each bay has six bunk beds in two tiers – four transversally, and two longitudinally on the opposing side of the aisle, with the lower bunks functioning as seats in daytime.

[9][10] A pocket on the seat in front will typically contain an airsickness bag, an inflight magazine, a duty-free catalogue, and a safety and evacuation card.

Depending on the airline, extras might include a blanket, an amenities bag (e.g. ear plugs, toothpaste, eye mask), and headphones.

For passengers sitting immediately behind a bulkhead or on the same row as an emergency exit, the in-flight entertainment screen may be contained within one of the armrests of the seat.

In addition, many carriers, particularly within the United States and Canada, also make economy passengers pay for airport check-in, checked bags, pillows, blankets, and headphones.

Arguably, such enhanced Economy classes only restore some of the comfort and amenities that were lost over the past few decades.Perhaps the first cheaper-than-standard airline flights were United's Boeing 247s between San Francisco and Los Angeles (Burbank) in 1940.

[clarification needed] In late 1948, Capital Airlines started one DC-4 flight each way a day between Chicago and New York La Guardia.

[14] Many airlines offer a Premium Economy class to passengers willing to pay slightly more for better seats and, in some cases, better service.

Typically this includes a larger recliner seat, better dining options, complementary alcoholic beverages, and amenity kits.