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What is public transport like where you live ?

(67 Posts)
NotAGran55 Tue 12-Oct-21 19:58:14

Inspired by another thread , what is it like where you live and does it curtail your actives if you are a non-driver?

There are only 5 busses a day leaving our West Berkshire village to go to the nearest market town 5 miles away where there is a railway station.

The first bus comes through at 0750 and the last one at 1500.
The last bus back into the village arrives at 1750.
No busses at all on Sundays.

Unless you work in the town or on the bus route it would be impossible to get to and from work anywhere else during normal office hours, and an evening out would be impossible!

The last train back from London, without having to change, arrives at 2056 and then it would be a taxi from the station.

If I couldn’t drive I couldn’t live here, I’d go potty.

Grammaretto Tue 12-Oct-21 20:15:02

Has it got worse since you lived there?
We are well off (so I am told ) for public transport but it still doesn't attract enough people to encourage less car use.
The roads are mobbed - more so since the pandemic. Where is everyone going? I ask myself.

I write to the bus companies and to my local councillors to press for better PT. We have a climate emergency and you'd think it would be a cheap and simple solution to lay on better transport links.

I looked into getting a 2nd hand electric car and they start at around £8k. I can't afford that.

joannapiano Tue 12-Oct-21 20:16:38

I don’t drive, although DH does, but I like to be independent. So when we moved from London we moved to a small town that had frequent buses, a train station within walking distance and local shops, library and theatre.
We did look at pretty villages but I would have felt trapped, particularly if I wanted to go anywhere at night.
We went to London on the train today, surprisingly quiet still. No rush hour to speak of.

tanith Tue 12-Oct-21 20:58:24

Well living in London suburbs transport buses and tube are excellent. Sad to say rush hour near me lasts for hours.

lemongrove Tue 12-Oct-21 21:07:14

Excellent where I live, regular buses running every 20 mins.
One of the reasons we chose this large village,after living in a hamlet.Also nice to have clubs, church, pub and shops within an easy walk.

BlueBelle Tue 12-Oct-21 21:13:28

I m happy with our transport I have a bus ever 20 minutes
that ll take me anywhere in my town there is one every 40 minutes to our nearest city and I am a 15 minute walk from the train station.
I have a free bus pass and a senior rail card for the train

PamelaJ1 Tue 12-Oct-21 21:14:41

We live in a village that used to have an hourly service. East to a city and a small town, west to a large town.
The route used to be run by one company but now has two and they haven’t dovetailed their timetables it so makes the journeys much more difficult. If we want to use the bus to get to the city we have to drive to the market town and find a parking space.
Guess what, we don’t bother, we just drive the whole way.

Shinamae Tue 12-Oct-21 21:14:58

North Devon District dire at the moment, lots of buses been missed out at the last minute… and they are going on strike next Monday…

SueDonim Tue 12-Oct-21 21:17:42

The last bus from here departed three or four years ago. Even then, it was one a day, at 6:45am and returned 6pm. No buses on Sundays.

The closest bus to here is four miles away.

Kali2 Tue 12-Oct-21 21:22:35

Brilliant. First bus at 5.30 and last bus up is at 11.30- and then at week-ends there is a charity run bus, that leaves down in the valley at 2am, and 4am - and will take anyone home.

Every rural area could do this- get a group together, go and beg for support and money from local businesses- get a minimbus and volunteers. It's great.

It was started about 15 years ago when there was several youngsters who lost their lives to drinking and driving- but they are quite happe to take adults.

Septimia Tue 12-Oct-21 21:25:05

Our bus service is similar to yours NotAGran but we do get an extra journey one day a week which means that you can get to the shops and back without having to hang about in town (not much to do there!) all day.

There are a few people in the village who don't drive and we help them out with lifts to appointments etc.

Redhead56 Tue 12-Oct-21 21:40:30

We have bus stops five mins walk away train station a walk through the woods takes about eight mins. I get a train usually to rugby club very rarely get a bus.

CanadianGran Tue 12-Oct-21 21:49:47

Our local system is very good, with buses going from 0730 to 22:00 daily, ending 1830 on Sat, and no buses Sunday.

However, we have no buses leaving town to go elsewhere. None at all! Our next nearest town is 140 km away. You can take a train that runs 3 days a week. Unfortunately it doesn't return on the same days, so essentially you would have to leave on a THU and return on a SAT. Not very convenient at all. Our country/province should invest more in public transit.

Casdon Tue 12-Oct-21 22:06:32

There isn’t any public transport where I am. If you want to go to town you have to get a taxi, or contact the local dial a ride if you are eligible. I drive, but it is a major issue for younger people and the elderly who don’t.

Chardy Tue 12-Oct-21 22:07:49

On the south coast, buses are plentiful (every ten minutes) to nearby towns from our smaller town, with several other services joining villages up, running hourly.
Trains run along the coast regularly and into London, although like everywhere else are liable to cancellation.

Jane43 Tue 12-Oct-21 22:10:10

We have a bus stop a short walk away and the buses are every 15 minutes to our local town bus station, every hour on Sunday, from there buses go to a few different towns and to the railway station and our local hospital. I have been using the bus more since the petrol shortage and sometimes there are only a handful of passengers on the bus.

Germanshepherdsmum Tue 12-Oct-21 22:13:03

Non-existent. If neither of us could drive we would have to move.

Doodledog Tue 12-Oct-21 22:16:25

Here they are expensive (bus passes are only for those over 66), and fairly regular from town to the nearest city, but there are only circuitous routes from one local town to another. Villages not on the main route are very badly served, too.

I don't drive (although my husband does) and I really wish I had taken yet another test instead of giving up after four. I worked in the city centre until recently, and although I love the town where I live, I do feel a bit constrained by it, and hate relying on lifts.

Riverwalk Tue 12-Oct-21 22:31:07

Inner London, so obviously plenty of public transport and free for the over-60s, and most under-18s. I love it!

For those who have none or very little, what will you do when you're unable to drive?

muse Tue 12-Oct-21 22:36:16

Nearest bus stop is 1/2 hr walk away. One bus a day to nearest town which is 7 miles away. 7:00am.
One bus back from the town 8:00pm
Nearest train station 9 miles away. I’d need two buses to get to the train station.

Nearest village community centre raised funds for an minibus (electric) It’s run by volunteers. ?

I’m in rural mid Cornwall.

Charleygirl5 Tue 12-Oct-21 22:38:52

I live in the London suburbs and my local bus stop is about a 7-minute walk away but the service is excellent as it is en route to Heathrow. When I do take a bus I rarely wait longer than 5 minutes. When I can no longer drive or walk to the bus stop it will be minicabs.

MissAdventure Tue 12-Oct-21 22:49:49

It's very hit and miss because of living on an island.
There can be queues of people waiting, with no idea that there has been an accident off the island which means no buses can get onto the island.

Lexisgranny Tue 12-Oct-21 22:50:01

On buying our home, future needs were taken into consideration, including being on a bus route to town. We congratulated ourselves on this forethought until a year ago when the bus route, leading to shops, chemist, doctor, library etc. was cancelled, just when we moved into the time of life when we might prefer to use it rather than drive.

Callistemon Tue 12-Oct-21 22:54:45

Fairly dire.

The buses in the morning don't go at the right time to get people to work in the nearest city - because there is too much traffic on the roads at that time.
Why is there too much traffic on the roads? Because - yes, you've guessed it!

Grammaretto Tue 12-Oct-21 22:55:31

I wonder about the proliferation of TV programmes enticing older people to move to the country
There should be a strapline warning: The house and view may be wonderful but this house will become a prison from which you can't escape