And now I know why people use cars.

[mrsflibble]

on friday i dset out to my mum's house 37 miles away at 11:30. my first bus broke down and had to coast into the bus station, so i had to wait for the next one. after a hellish bus journey i then had 2 packed out trains (what were all these people doing on a train at lunchtime on a friday?!) and ended up in colchester 40 mins later than i had planned because of the first bus breaking down. that made me miss the train i had aimed for, which made me miss my connection etc. I then got all of 45 mins with my mum before having to set off hoime again, little brother in tow. all this time having to try and reassure a slightly poorly toddler. it took me and Tom 3 hours to get back to my house; one train to chelmsford and we got on the bus to basildon from there. it was packed with rowdy school children and there was barely even breathing room because the bus driver was disregarding his own company's rules and just letting everyone on at each stop.

when we finally got back to basildon on the walk home a taxi was speeding down the end of a road and it was well lit enough for him to see the pedestrians, but he carried on trying to beat the lights, ran through the most almighty puddle and splashed all over me, tom and sophs buggy. soph was asleep and woke up screaming in fright and coughing out whatever filthy water she'd breathed in. by the time i registered what had happened, the taxi was halfway down the road and i coulnt get the numberplate. soph started to go into shock (she went grey and was shivering) so once we'd got across the road I stripped off all her wet things and took off my coat and wrapped her in it. when we got home she spent an hour completely silent, wrapped in a blanket on my front.

if I had a driving license (and james wasn't on day shift so i had access to the car) I could have been in colchester in 40 mins or so, and the same for the journey home again; door to fricking door and all in the comfort of a volvo diesel. as it was i spent 5 hours on various busses, trains, platforms and pavements.

so, why are we all surprised that people still buy cars?! AAAARGH!

sorry. i am feeling more than a little disheartened today

[snapdragon]

oh MrsF what an awful journey, I hope baby is none the worse for her awful ordeal. and you are all calm and happy now

[StripyPixieSocks]

Goodness Mrs Flibble... I hope you and Soph are all warm and happy now.

I HATE public transport... well... not true... i hate London public transport

I'd give up alot of things but I would never give up my wee car while I live in London... I need it because I can't walk properly anyway but even if I was fit there's no way I'd risk the aggro of London Public Transport.

Within one week of moving here I nearly didn't get off a bus because they driver was too much in a hurry to get going, shut the doors and was ready to go before I'd made it through the ram packed bus giving me a panic attack and another bus trapped my arm in the door as I was getting off in his haste to get somewhere else!

Not to mention the 11 hour journey to get 300 miles to get up to my parents having missed one bus, therefore missing our £2 coach ticket at Victoria and having to spend £68 on two tickets which my Dad kindly paid for bless him then having to wait 5 hours for the next coach...

In the end we won a car on e-bay for £10 which we have had for almost 2 years now and he runs like a dream... there were no photos and the only description was "Old banger, running, slight radiator leak" we were expecting a rust bucket but it was a lovely 323 Mazda (17 years old Mazda).

It usually cost us £11 to get to and from ASDA with our shopping and we figured if it did that once it would be worth the money... I love my wee car and refuse to give him up... ever!

I'd convert him to electric or a hybrid but I'd never get rid of him while public transport is so bad in London!

[Graye]

And I bet it cost a fortune to have such a miserable day out too!

[Helsbells]

Even if you dont have a car, its good to have a driving license just in case.

[the.fee.fairy]

I sympathise Mrd F. I've been travelling to and from york lately. he last time we came home it was a disaster, we got to Peterborough and was told that the train we were due to catch had been cancelled. The one we could get next got us into Cambridge too late to connect, so there was me and Vicky sat at Cambridge waiting for my mum and dad...

Going to York this time, from Peterborough to York i was sat in the vestibule because there was nowhere to put my luggage (why do they not provide better luggage racks - or at least make the overhead ones bigger and deeper...). It was codl and miserable and there was nowhere to plug in my laptop...

Coming home...i'll let you know later. So far its been promising, i'm on a seat at a table..

One little bit of advice for all though: when travelling with knitting needles, make sure you have point protectors on them! I'm sure i've got a 6.5 mm hole in my backside now...

[StripyPixieSocks]

I sympathise Mrd F. I've been travelling to and from york lately. he last time we came home it was a disaster, we got to Peterborough and was told that the train we were due to catch had been cancelled. The one we could get next got us into Cambridge too late to connect, so there was me and Vicky sat at Cambridge waiting for my mum and dad...

Going to York this time, from Peterborough to York i was sat in the vestibule because there was nowhere to put my luggage (why do they not provide better luggage racks - or at least make the overhead ones bigger and deeper...). It was codl and miserable and there was nowhere to plug in my laptop...

Coming home...i'll let you know later. So far its been promising, i'm on a seat at a table..

One little bit of advice for all though: when travelling with knitting needles, make sure you have point protectors on them! I'm sure i've got a 6.5 mm hole in my backside now...

Ahhh that explains your tag line on Facebook now!

Sorry to hear you're having a bit of a nightmare too... I hope things improve soon for the both of you!

I agree with a poster above though about having a driving licence just incase though :)

[mrsflibble]

And I bet it cost a fortune to have such a miserable day out too!

now this bit is one of the joys of being a public transport wife lol!!
luckily my bus fare was covered by a FirstGroup colleague's family and friends weekly buscard which i bought for the princely sum of a fiver and had already used £6 worth of bus journeys this week so my bus was essentially free, and i have a TOC PRIV card so the bonus is it only cost me £3.45 for the whole poopoo of a journey.

sophs no worse off, although her coat and my brothers cardi stank so i washed them both when we got home and toms been borrowing jims coat all weekend.

fee: i often end up in vestibules 'cos of the buggy; i've stopped aiming for the quickest train and started being picky about its final destination. when i get on at shenfield, if the next treain through colchester is heading eventually to norwich i avoid it cos it will be a non-buggy friendly, non short person friendly slam door diesel. if its final destination is harwich, or anywhere south of about ipswich then it'll be an electric slidey door nicety lol.


i've failed my practical twice cos i dont drive like a learner; i've had a provisional license for 3 years and have been driving that long under supervision. the time limit on my theory cert has run out so it means retaking it all

[invisiblepiper]

I sympathise greatly - my daughter goes to College 7 miles away. !0 mins by car or one hour on train then bus . Oh the delights of being rural!

[JulieSherris]

Oh, MrsF! Glad to hear everyone is over the ordeal - I used to go to my mum's on the train - used to take me 4 hours by train, once I got a new car, it took me 45 mins. With 2 toddlers in tow, it was MUCH easier with the car!

Last year, when we moved to Ireland, we lived 45 mins out of Galway City, but right on an 'N' road (a so-called 'National' road)
I asked in the village about the times of the Galway bus & was told...
Yes, the bus comes through here.... Tuesday & Friday, but not sure what time... just wait at the crossroads, you'll probably get a lift from someone anyway'....

[Graye]

Mrs F, here's a tip from a friend who had the same trouble with the practical.

Go to a driving instructor just for one lesson just before your test. Explain that you need to take the test in "learner mode", and they will make sure you know all the tricks of making it very obvious you are checking your mirror, using 10 to 2 for your hands etc. It worked for him and he admitted to me he had driven with no licence at all for some years but had failed three tests in quick succession before someone else recommended the driving instructor idea...

[ellie12022]

I completely understand why people have cars, although I don't. I used to live in Birmingham and trying to get to work with bus/train was a nightmare, sometimes the train would just miss out my station if it was running late I think the final straw was catching a bus home from my friend's house & it took me an hour and a half for a 20 minute journey. I got myself a moped which was brilliant for getting around (not practical for families I know )

Now I live in a village with decent bus transport and people who offer lifts to other people eg I get a lift to my Welsh class. Much more of a community round here.

BTW, did you know if you have certain medical conditions you might be eligible for a free bus pass, if you are not fit to drive? My hubby has one, which must be saving about £15 - £20 a week on bus fares. You get them from your local council.

I do miss my old scooter sometimes but my circumstances are different now...

[Sally Jane]

I wish we didn't use our car so much, as we live within 20 mins walk of our town centre. Trouble is it's on a steep hill, and going down in usually ok if the pavements are dryish, but coming back up again with shopping is knackering, even with my old lady trolley. There is an easier route back, which involves climbing 96 steps, then following a gentler curve and then ane bit of steep hill, followed by a nice little walk across the cliffs and eventually coming out on the road 30 seconds from my front door. It's as knackering in its own way, just feels less of a drag than coming straight up the hill.
It's also 20 mins walk to our nearest corner shop, so we tend to get the car out and run down to Aldi and do a 'proper' shop rather than just pick up a pint of milk or a loaf like we used to do when we lived in our old home, 30 seconds from one shop, 90 seconds from the next and two mins from the next!
I think I will try to make it a NY resolution to walk down the hill every other day and do a little shopping, and try to get into better habits and not be so lazy!
The other problem is that we live in West Cumbria in a depressed area. There is no work locally at the moment so chances are that when/if one of us gets a job we may well be reliant on the car to get there, as public transport is a bit hit and miss, like everywhere it seems.

[Annpan]

....as public transport is a bit hit and miss, like everywhere it seems.

You see THIS is the problem, everyone just puts up with crappy public transport. Or rather doesn't use it when it is crap, but it is still subsidised so the providers don't care... no-one is making a stand against the bad service, we just stop using it.
I am not meaning to preach here, I just don't bother going anywhere by public transport and that means I don't go anywhere - we live in a small village with no facilities, I do the 6 mile round trip bike ride to Mums and tots once a week, and we go out in the car at the weekends.

I am just reading over all the comments and thinking that this is a shocking system that people are describing and I wish there would be something else to do rather than just stop using it. How can we get things changed so that it is simpler for people to get somewhere by bus or train?

[ellie12022]

Annpan, what a big question, public transport! And how do you manage not going out of the village? Do you go shopping at the weekends?

I think these days maybe we take so much for granted, when public transport first became popular, it would have been a treat to go on it. I think people were prepared to walk much furthur distances in the past eg to get to work. I remember my grandmother telling me she was one of the first (or first) of her friends to have a bike, and she used to cycle miles with her father, when he was home from sea. (in the 1920s).

And my village was one of those that had a train station till the 1960s, with trains going direct to London (now I would have to get a bus first , and probably have to change trains on the way).

I think part of the problem is that we have a very large population for a small country, so something has to give somewhere. And does the governnment make more money out of cars? (& road building?)

But it would be nice if there was more integration between different modes of transport, which I'm sure I hear talk about but never seems to happen in a big way.

Most of the local bus drivers round here are very nice, I have to say. And my husband was overcharged once (on a bus he caught every day), complained to the depot, the bosses son came out (on a Friday night!) to sort it out (refunded him) and that particular bus driver has not been seen again. So there are companies that care, even if they are subsidised.

I would find it very hard to live in some of the villages round here, with minimal buses. The buses enable me to get out and about, not having a car. I do not have a bike, and I don't think my health would be up to cycling or walking very far at the moment.