albaskye_rapsons591

On my hillwalking blog, I did share, on an occasional basis, some experiences and observations of British and Irish public transport. That changed after a posting regarding being crammed into a Transpennine Express train while travelling to and from Edinburgh. Since then, this has been the place for sharing my thoughts on and experiences of public transport. So far, this has been limited to travel by train and bus but related air and sea travel musings cannot be ruled out either; naturally, an associated train and/or bus journey would make such things fit rather better under the site's title.

The subject of public transport is one that attracts its share of negative commentary and you do have to wonder if that is justified. Of course, things don't run smoothly all of the time but there's a not so limited network out there that needs both publicity and celebration. That is why I have pages celebrating helpful local authorities and useful train and bus company websites as well as a listing of selected bus service timetables. People often don't realise the extent of what is available and get to hear the complaints instead, not a good state of affairs.

Some may counter that public transport cannot serve every need but the spectre of global warming and the finite nature of the world's fossil fuel reserves mean that the concept of taking a car everywhere has to be challenged. What really has been felt keenly over the last decade is that there isn't enough space in our towns and cities for personal motorised transport anyway. That may have been the cause of the upsurge in train travel seen in recent years. If so, it's no bad thing and, if there's a corresponding rise in bus patronage, that's even better.

However, in these economically troubled times, any money from the public purse is going to be examined and challenged by governments in the name of savings. The British and Irish railways have gained from government patronage in the good times but things now look bleaker. Let's hope that babies aren't about to get thrown out with the bathwater. The same comments apply to subsidised bus services so I'll be keeping a close eye on what happens.

On electronic ticketing

July 30, 2010

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Alternative ways of getting travel tickets have become normal for the airline industry over the past decade and I suppose that the approach was bound to be adopted by other modes of transport too. Possibly inspired by Megabus, National Express and Scottish Citylink have been selling electronic tickets over the web for a while now.… [Read more…]

A temporary moratorium on the making of right turns

July 28, 2010

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Here in Macclesfield, there is another round of traffic disruption besetting us; it’s as if it never stops. This time, it is the need to maintain overhead electricity cables that is the cause of the trouble. The result is the closure of part of the Silk Road with diversions being set in place with anyone… [Read more…]

Death by Twitter?

July 3, 2010

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The posting rate has gone down here to one a month and Twitter may be to blame for sapping it. Mind you, personal fatigue and other distractions may have had a role to play too. After all, it’s not as if the world of public transport is going to stay as quiet as it is… [Read more…]

Posted in: Buses, News, Observations

The effects of road works

June 14, 2010

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Arriva seems to have retimed the 130 services to the extent that you find drivers having to stopover at convenient places for longer that is ideal. Then, there’s having to go slower than usual to keep to the advertised timing points, a legal requirement. Seeing this does make you wonder if things have gone from… [Read more…]

Deserted by rail?

May 12, 2010

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There was a time when the Scottish Borders had railways running through the area but they now are no more though a restoration of the line between Edinburgh and Galashiels/Tweedbank is in the offing. That will be a partial help though it doesn’t really work for those coming up from the south like myself. It makes… [Read more…]

More than a colour connection

May 5, 2010

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Over the past bank holiday weekend, I spent some time on the Isle of Man and that meant sampling its public transport system as I explored some of the island’s many delights. Steam trains and electric trams were in operation but it was buses that I was using with journeys taking to me to the… [Read more…]

Bus Service Reorganisation in Northumberland

April 25, 2010

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In truth, there are more helpful local authorities than Northumberland County Council when it comes to the provision of public transport information. Even so, they do have leaflets online for what they call the Experience Northumberland bus network. This turns out to be sufficiently useful for visitors to the area to be able to get… [Read more…]

Backing up as far as Henbury…

April 19, 2010

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The current spate of road works continues. As if the attentions given to the A34 aren’t enough, we have gas network works blighting Macclesfield and the Broken Cross roundabout is the latest victim. Because of the need to rip up part of Gawsworth Road, one side of the roundabout is shut with temporary traffic lights controlling things. That… [Read more…]