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i am sick of the government telling us to 'get out of our cars, and use public transport' but the problem is that i love to drive, also i had to go out tonight and pick someone up from the cinema, if the person had to use public transport, think of this - it was too late for the buses, the trains dont go passed the cinema, and that just leaves getting a taxi, but you have to wait upto 30 minutes for the taxi, while standing freezing, and then pay over the top prices. but with a car you can just get in and go, marvellous.
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If what I read is true, you also stand a good chance of getting mugged while waiting for the bus? Gov't has to something about street safety as well if it wants you to leg it everywhere
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Absolutely right, Growler
At a Council meeting, the Highways Director was extolling the virtues of public transport. Many of us pointed out that in country areas, bus stops were gathering points for yobs, thus making the service virtually unusable.
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I live 5 mins away from Gatwick.
Bussed and trains run direct to Heathrow.
I needed to go to heathrow a few weeks ago.
Travelling by car saved me an hour and about 40 quid.
Public transport doesn't even work where it exists. Even going to Putney was easier by car. Crazy but public transport doens't work.
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I used to live in Putney.
To get to Heathrow there is (supposedly) the Feltham - Heathrow railair link. When having to get to Heathrow to fly, I used this several times. Once you get to Feltham, the bus that is supposed to run every 10 minutes or so actually runs once an hour. Given you pass no buses coming the other way on your journey can only suggest that the bus company are not running them.
The third (and last time after missing 2 flights, I used the car afterwards) I was chatting to a driver who didn't seem too keen on the situation. His explanation to the crap service was basically the railair service was set up by the government, but because they don't want to pay to sponsor the buses the company makes no money on it. Subsequently it runs a crap service, people refuse to use it after the first couple of goes and find other means - But the general public thinks that someone is actually doing something re the public transport situation! It is now basically used by people who work at Heathrow, noone who actually has to get a plane dare use it.
Even in London, once you stray away from the tube lines, you might as well jsut get in the car...
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Dan J wrote:
> Even in London, once you stray away from the tube lines, you
> might as well jsut get in the car...
Yeah. When I move here I thought great. 25 miles from Westminster bridge walking distance of Gatwick. I'll be able to use public transport.
Not the case. Even the worst bits of Central London are easier by car.
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ditto.
The office where I work is 6 miles away but to get there by Public transport would take a walk folowed by two buses followed by another walk. And then If I need to visit another site I've got to try and borrow a car off of somebody.
Cycling used to work for me but the need to carry a laptop of late had killed that one.
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"Even going to Putney was easier by car."
Now that doesn't surprise me. I've just moved from Putney, and I can tell you, Wandsworth Council have employed a whole range of measures to try and force people out of their cars. They have:
- Converted half of Putney Hill (a main thoroughfare between the A3 and the South Circular) into a woefully-underused bus lane, a la M4, and installed traffic lights halfway up it which do little but cause huge rush-hour snarl-ups.
- Implemented a strictly-enforced on-street permit parking scheme, then issued more permits than there are spaces.
- Made the process of obtaining a permit incredibly slow and convoluted. At one point, they cashed my cheque, failed to issue my permit, and then made me fill the paperwork in all over again.
- Installed some of the biggest speed humps I've ever seen, which scrape your sump at 15-20mph. Attempting to do a perfectly legal 30mph would cause serious damage - wonder what the legality of this is??
And yet...getting around that area by car is *still* easier than using public transport. Trains are frequently so crowded that you literally can't get on them. The District Line Tube is similarly overcrowded and often suspended altogether for "emergency engineering work". Buses are OK for a few selected destinations if you've got time on your hands, but totally useless for others or if you're in a hurry.
Even in our capital city, and with artificial restrictions imposed on it, private transport is more efficient than public transport. Depressing.
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Wow - I used to live just off Puntey hill and know exactly where you mean, that road was an absolute nightmare during any time other than the middle of the night. You forgot to mention the stupid bollard the council put up to stop people cutting across into St John's Road, effectively making what was a 2 lanes of traffic road become one near the bottom of the hill!
Also had similar problems re parking and received many a parking ticket as even though I had a permit, I was lucky if I could park my car in the same post code area.
Liked the place but travel-wise am very glad not to be there anymore
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Glad to hear it wasn't just me then. I also got a ticket when legally parked in Putney, as did one of my flatmates. Pity our poor neighbour though, whose cosmetically-challenged Golf had a council destruction notice slapped on the side window, despite displaying a perfectly valid permit and tax disc. He couldn't get the damn thing off, and lived in constant fear of the scrapman turning up and towing it away!
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where i live used to be a nice place, until the council made 'changes for the better' including - making most of the streets in the town centre one way, blocking the roads off, putting traffic light EVERYWHERE, and stopping cars from going down the two main streets, and putting up a few zebra crossings around, including a zebra crossing right next to a roundabout(very dangerous)
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I live 1 mile from Heathrow. I can't get one bus into the bus terminal at 1,2,3. I have to get off and change buses. So for a 1 mile trip it takes 25 minutes. If I could walk into the airport, it'd be quicker.
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Nice story on LBC radio a few days ago. Seems that Mayor Livingstone has allowed black cabbies to raise their fares 35% for night drives to make the job worthwhile. But if they stop to pick anyone up in the Leicester Square - Piccadilly area they get threatened by gangs of mini cab touts.
HJ
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Honest John wrote:
> But if they
> stop to pick anyone up in the Leicester Square - Piccadilly
> area they get threatened by gangs of mini cab touts.
Illegal cabs are the best and cheapest way to get from Leicster Square to my home. 25 quid on average.... Wouldn't recomend it for a single girl but 50 quid saved is 50 quid earned...
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