During the summer, I have been returning to some sort of normality in myself. It helped that things were emerging from lockdown when they did and a three week break from work proved enormously helpful. Returning to work afterwards overcame other obstacles to leave me with some more peace of mind at the end of the summer.
It also helped that I returned to using buses and trains again. The journeys were relatively short with Sheffield and Chester marking the extent of my comfort zone. Still, I did find that buses and trains were not so crowded though there were moments when things felt more cosy than was comfortable. Still, there were no lasting aftermaths so that added some confidence even as passenger numbers appear to be rising a little.
When there is talk of incentivising a return to public transport usage as suggested in a recent Transport Focus editorial, I confess to having misgivings. Confidence is something that can be slow to return and my finding more crowded surroundings remains outside my comfort zone right now. Also, scary talk of possible train service reductions in a previous issue of Rail magazine a few weeks ago did nothing to calm any sense of unease. After all, the pandemic is far from over at this point even if many things are on their way back to normality.
Nevertheless, I continue to make train and bus journeys to locations where I can find quiet spots so I hope that can continue. These may be rather short but they do what is needed. Longer trips to places like Edinburgh can wait and the same applies to air travel. Even going to Ireland is not such a possibility for now so travelling further afield does not feel like a possibility. A slow return suits and what is needed on the part of all of us is patient for experience is not acquired quickly and that needs to precede a sensible amount of confidence. While the situation continues to remain manageable, it remains important to avoid the rash foolishness of overconfidence.
Last weekend, I caught a bus from Macclesfield to Buxton. It was something that I felt I needed to do, a bridge to cross on the way back towards a sort of normality. Even though I had travelled this way many times before, it also was something of a journey into the unknown.
After all, there were several unanswered questions. My journey was for leisure so would the driver ask me the purpose of my trip? Though the messaging regarding bus services in Cheshire East is much softer than in other areas and certainly more permissive than that from train companies, there was no cause for presumption in favour of travel. Would a Buff be accepted as a face covering? How many other passengers would there be and would social distancing be an issue?
In the end, there was no problem travelling and someone else even declared that they were going for a walk from near the Cat and Fiddle pub to Bollington and that did not stop them travelling. My own plan was similar except that I was going to walk back from Buxton to Macclesfield so that was one fear dismissed. After that, there only ever were three people on the bus at a time and my face covering was enough.
One thing that I did notice was that the two female passengers on board only covered their mouth and not not their nose. Unfortunately, that defeats the exercise since you really need to cover your nose as well though I do accept that some are concerned about their ability to breath. In a photo of passengers boarding a tram in Dublin, there was one man who had done things like those women and that defeats the exercise somewhat. Only children, the disabled and those with breathing problems are exempt anyway.
Thankfully, we all were far apart from each other on my bus ride so there was no reason for getting uptight even if bus windows were closed. After nearly four months without using a bus, that was reassuring and we have to await a more permissive message on train travel as well. That possibly depends on the status of the current public health emergency but Rail magazine has been critical of this stance with one contributor even calling it an act of sabotage for the problem might be getting passengers to return at all.
In parallel with all this, Transport Focus did a survey on how people felt about using public transport in the current circumstances. They have put a preliminary summary on the their blog and the results are interesting so far. Those who have not used public transport are more apprehensive about doing so while regular commuters who are key workers feel safe doing so.
As might be suspected, it is all about your experience during this emergency. Scaring people away could be too easy and getting them to return then becomes much harder but that could help others who only have buses, trams and trains to get around to feel more confident in doing so.
There have been many reductions in service frequency while most choose not to travel using public transport as advised. Service frequencies still are being enhanced though many Cheshire East bus services operate only on a Monday to Saturday or Monday to Friday basis. Sunday travel by bus remains very restricted and it was not extensive around Macclesfield before the introduction of the pandemic restrictions anyway.
Normality remains elusive even now and it is unlikely to return to how things were before in any event. If an added reluctance to use public transport persists, that will cause big changes on its own. Bus use already was declining and commuting by train was under threat so it may be that services become less frequent in time. So far, that is only a thought so we will need to see how things work out in reality. Active travel (walking and cycling) has grown during a dry spring but what could a prolonged period of wet weather, like what came in February, do? Only time can answer such a question and any more that we may have.
2020 is turning out to be a year that is unique in so many ways because of the ongoing pandemic. While it is true that some things are opening up, possibilities are not so good for those among us who depend on public transport as our only means for getting around. After all, those with private transport have greater freedom and that is set to remain the case for the foreseeable future.
Train travel is utterly out of the question for all but essential journey so I have lost the leisure travel possibilities that I once enjoyed. Though they are running largely empty around my locality, the same thinking applies to travel by bus too and services have been heavily reduced too. Some routes have been discontinued while others operate less frequently.
If the cost of getting more mobility is the use of face coverings and cashless payments, then I am more than open to accepting those and that is a price worth paying. So far, I have got to dreaming about going to Buxton or Congleton by bus and walking back to Macclesfield from there since it would get me out of the house for a day. Getting those possibilities back would make for a significant morale boost.
Good health remains a priority though even if some may be getting complacent and others could feel frustrated. The latter is understand if you feel cut off and something of a second class citizen when you see others having greater freedom when it comes to getting around. All in all, this needs patience but those who only have buses, trams and trains for getting around need not be forgotten either and it can feel like that is how it is for now. In fact, if the pandemic makes public transport less attractive to many, it could have the effect of making it easier to allow further steps towards a restoration of added normality.
So far, most of what you find here pertains to British or Irish public transport but I have sampled their counterparts elsewhere too and I have had it in mind to feature my experiences using these. The countries include Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Austria, Spain, the Netherlands and Canada so there is scope for a few articles though I may not spread things out so much that is one per country. Perhaps, there is room for one post about getting around the European Alps, another for Scandinavia and so on.
So many travel guides do not feature public transport as a way to get around overseas destinations that I feel that there is a gap that needs filling. It is all too easy to choose fly/drive deal that negates these. In truth, there are limitations and they especially apply in the U.S.A. something that is dulling any enthusiasm for that part of the world since I myself do not drive.
Nevertheless, other perspectives feel in order and that especially applies in a time bus usage is declining in the U.K. A current sign of that is Arriva’s decision to cancel service 130 between Macclesfield and East Didsbury, something that I see as a trunk route so I hope that someone else steps into the gap that is left behind. It all shows that there is need for added positivity in these times of great upheaval.
Following the suspension of strike action against Northern Rail, I decided to embark on a rail outing on the first Saturday of fully restored services. This was a repeat of a journey that I took in October 2017 that made use of the North West Round Robin day ranger ticket. That happened on a weekday and, apart from a phone call from my solicitor in Ireland, it was a quiet affair.
The North West Round Robin ticket allows travel within a circuit bound by Preston, Leeds and Carlisle and cost me £40.50 on the day of travel. My journey took me east from Preston to Leeds, north from Leeds to Carlisle with a break in Skipton and then south from Carlisle to Preston again. Along the way, I sampled different Northern Rail services as well as a Virgin one for the last leg.
In addition to doing some reading of a book on Irish history by Diarmaid Ferriter, I also wanted to include some window gazing since my itinerary passed though such scenic parts as the South Pennines and the Yorkshire Dales. The previous circuit inspired me to revisit Calderdale after a long absence so it became a chance to go from Hebden Bridge to Todmorden in bright autumnal sunshine. More walking trips were to follow, albeit in Cheshire and Derbyshire but this is where the seed got sown.
As I travelled along the Settle to Carlisle railway, I remarked to myself about the carpet-like appearance of the landscape. That it was a result of sheep grazing is decried by some but I somehow find it sufficiently appealing that thoughts of further walking trips entered my mind. Only time will show how far this thinking goes.
Trains were busier than on the previous weekday circuit so the restoration was well known to passengers. Aside from the occasional oddball and someone who chose arguing with his friends as a way of getting over a racist comment, the travelling was pleasant this time around too and every train ran on time, which helped with connections.
The day ranger ticket did not work on the ticket gates at Leeds station and that is why I broke the journey from there to Carlisle at Skipton. Otherwise, it was accept on all trains for which I needed it. The return journey between Macclesfield and Preston was not covered so an extra set of tickets was needed for that with CrossCountry, Transpennine Express and Northern services all working as needed.
So long as the Northern Rail dispute does not disrupt Saturday services like it did, other possibilities now offer themselves. Day trips to the countryside for walking again become realistic with the North York Moors, the Lake District, the Peak District, the South Pennines and the Yorkshire Dales all feeling more open than they were. What is needed now is the resolve to visit some of these of a sunny day. With spring on the way and the ongoing expansion of daylight hours, numerous possibilities await.