Near fall with baby on tube - is anyone BU or was it just a mishap?

[Tiddlyompompom]

I recently had a nightmare tube journey into London - I'd called TfL and carefully planned the journey to the nth degree, as I was travelling with 1yo DS in his pram loaded up with stuff for a week away, so was taking a step-free route.

Turns out it wasn't step free after all, but a kind suit helped me carry the buggy up a flight of stairs at one station, only for me to find the lift at the next station only went down to the wrong line - and I'd have to take the buggy down the escalators.
I have previously been told off by TfL staff for doing this with DH holding the other end, so was very unwilling to try it on my own again (esp as buggy was new and heavily loaded so I'm not used to its balance yet), so I went up to three tube staff having a chat by the ticket gates and asked them how i should get down to the platform.
They told me to use the escalator, I said I couldn't with the buggy, they insisted, I asked them to help me, they refused saying it was easy to do and no problem.
So, I get on the escalator, the buggy catches, the weight tips forward and we both nearly fall down the escalator. I scream for someone to help me, v nice lady grabs hold of the buggy and keeps hold all the way down (while a queue of aggrieved passengers builds up behind her), and we have a bit of a pile up at the bottom while I struggle to get the buggy off and out of the way.
DS was fine, he woke up and cried when we tipped, but was fine after that. I cried for the next hour, I was so shocked.

I just can't believe I nearly had such a stupid accident, and can't figure out if I WBU in that I clearly got on the escalator the wrong way or something, or if the tube staff were BU for not wanting to assist me.

I've been into town plenty of times on a familiar step free route with no trouble at all, and this has really freaked me out. :( And WTF do I do next time?

Sorry this is so long, it's still upsetting me when I imagine what could have happened without that woman's help, and I'm half torn between complaining to TfL, or just trying to write it all off as a really bad day.

We've all tipped the buggy at least once. As long as your DS is ok, let it go. With all the planning in the world, tubes with a laden pram are awful.

When I go to London, I take a camping backpack with all the 'stuff' in it. I also use a very small stroller as they are easier to bump up and down steps, or tip backwards so they are on the back wheels only on the escalators, I stand the step above and that seems to work.

To bump a stroller up steps, you go backwards up the steps, tip the stroller on the back wheels and just 'bump' up each step one at a time.

To go down, same again, you go backwards and tip the buggy on its back wheels. Only way I have ever been able to get around on the tube.

no wonder its upsetting you.
that would have really shook me up.
as staff insisted you use the escalator, and you had a near accident, and buggy arent supposed to on escalators, I think it may be worth complaining.
well done for screaming for help and keeping you both safe,
x x

Thanks Couthy I just reread my post and I sound a bit pathetic!
You're right, it's never going to be easy doing the trip solo, I just need to get over it I think.

It sounds scary, no wonder you're upset.

I've never really mastered buggies on escalators or stairs. The one time on the tube I was presented with stairs and no choice, I chickened out and caught a cab.

[country mouse emoticon]

You don't sound pathetic at all, that sounds like it was really frightening and I'm on your behalf that none of the staff gave you a hand.

I'm glad that you and ds are both okay. You probably don't have any choice but to 'get over it' as you say, but YANBU to be upset and / or angry about what happened and especially about what almost happened.

Try to focus on the lovely woman who helped you, it might help :)

How horrible for you. I had an accident with a buggy on an escalator once and never did it again, it was that scary. It sounds like the tube staff were distinctly unhelpful. Even if they didn't want to help you themselves, they could have helped you connect with another passenger using the escalator, who would have looked out for you. I think to help you move on from this, it might be worth writing a letter to the station manager, outlining your experience and how traumatic it was for you.

Thanks everyone, it's nice to hear you would've been as upset too, I've been feeling like a bit of a drama queen, after all no harm actually came to DS. I keep getting little flashback hyperventilations!

I managed to tip my PFB when she was just 6 weeks old, by overloading the pram with shopping. She was tiny as she was prem, 1 week adjusted (!) and she almost flew out of the back if the pram as the straps were too big for her.

I slung her for two years after that.

Well, the staff should certainly not have advised you to use the escalator. Ideally one of them should have assisted you, or if this wasn't possible they should have helped you find a bus / cab. Laden prams on escalators are dangerous, I wouldn't attempt it. Perhaps you were being a bit daft to do so but in the stress of plans failing etc we all make a bad call sometimes, I wouldn't beat yourself up about it unduly

I used to use a sling and a shopping trolley when travelling across London - you can transport loads of stuff and people often offered help, if they didn't I knew that whatever happened I might lose the trolley but I wasn't going to drop DS!

Buses are usually a lot easier if you need a pram.

If you put the buggy on backwards with you below it, you can't tip and its perfectly easy.
I imagine they told you to use the escalator because thats what everyone else does and they see it all the time.

That sounds terrifying

You could do a lot to get changes made (for both parents and peoole with restricted mobility) by complaining - the noisier the better, would you consider going to the media? Staff should know you can't take pushchairs on escalators. At the very least they need some more training!!

Don't worry about it, OP. DS1 was tipped out of his pram by a well-meaning man who helped us down some steps and lifted it too high - one of the clips hadn't quite fastened and he went head-first over the handle and I caught him by the ankle. That was the end of my pram-using!

More recently I was out with both DSs - we have a Quinny buggy which we only use if we are out for long shopping trips so I am not very good with it. DS1 was walking and DS2 was in the sling so I risked the escalator in M&S with the empty buggy. Unfortunately DS1 decided to bunny-hop onto the escalator and finished up upside down being hung onto by the bloke behind us while someone else tried to hang onto the pram. It was not good.

I use TFL quite a lot and I do one of two things:

DS2 in the sling and DS1 walking for short trips

or for the occasional long trips with lots of stuff:

DS2 in his car seat on top of the Quinny which is very lightweight. If there are steps I can take the car seat off and carry it separately and then run back down for the buggy frame while DS1 stands with DS2's car-seat. I can also chuck DS1 up on my back in the sling if we need to hurry.

MissRep that's the way I did it, the weight/angle of the buggy was just too much for me! I imagine it would have been ok with the weeks worth of stuff crammed into it, I'm sure that's what tipped me.

Next time I'll know to leave the tube and find another route if they won't help me - after this experience I'll have the confidence to be more insistent abut needing help tho!

You poor thing, that must have been a terrible fright, I know I would have been getting the shudders reliving that one for a few days!

I think I would say something at least about the staff who refused to help, it is not perfectly fine and safe to put a buggy on escalators - do-able yes, but not reliably safe, no.

As a wheelchair user I used to know the tube network well in terms of step free, and it's rubbish. There is no point trying to get anywhere in London except on the Jubilee line east of Westminster. If you need to do it again, I suggest looking for the wheelchair accessible maps TfL produce.

I did have a barney with TfL myself a while ago as they told me Paddington was step free. It isn't. Luckily I knew this or I would have been screwed, but I complained because it is very important that the information given out is correct.

It's not TFLs fault that you loaded your buggy up too much to make it easily manageable. However if they gave you bad advice then they are at fault.

YANBU to be upset, but you have learned a lesson and there is no harm done. I think expecting staff to help you carrying a pushchair is a tricky area. If they trip or drop it by accident they will be open to legal action being taken against them. Im not surprised they are reluctant to help. I would be if I was staff, but as a fellow passenger I would be more than willing.

I stick to stations that have lift access or I drive...or I stay at home

we've all been there..... its hard

next time travel with baby in sling, and or/get a light £10 buggy you can easily manage

Poor you OP, that sounds very scary. However you always see people taking buggies on escalators all the time on the tube - there's usually no other option - so that's probably why the staff advised you as they did. I used to be really scared of it, but after doing it a few times with DH there as well to help I got more confident and now I happily take the buggy on the escalator.

I also know I can manage if I do come across a flight of stairs - a few times recently I've had to put my bag over my shoulder, fold the pushchair, grab it in one hand and DS in the other and set off up a huge flight of stairs. I'm sure if I hesitated at the bottom someone would offer to help eventually but I hate having to rely on others for help. At 23 months DS can always climb the stairs himself with a hand from me if necessary.

When DS was little I would always take him in the sling when going on public transport, but that just isn't practical later on as they get heavier when you've got a full day out/lots of shopping to do.

Next time Sling the baby and put your stuff in a granny trolley. Taking a buggy on the tube is asking for it really.

I just don't use the tube with s pram and baby unless extra pair of hands with me.

It is not. Fucking. Worth. It.

There seems to be a bit of confusion if TfL don't know whether they should be advising buggies on escalators or not. And if there were three of them I do think it's a bit off that one couldn't have helped you.

However it does seem there are better ways of travelling with a one year old than a bulky pram.

Outraged I think that's the reason it upset me so much - I'd planned a step free route as I knew the buggy would be overloaded and I couldn't do stairs/escalators. So then to stupidly attempt it, just because a TfL bloke said it'd be ok, was really irresponsible of me. :( I wasn't thinking straight.

Rollersara yes, the other route I normally take is Jubilee so I've never had this problem before. It's massively pit me off visiting friends in town, they always say "oh just pop into town and meet me for lunch" having no idea of the logistics involved!

I can't wait until DS can walk and we can leave the damn buggy at home!

PS previous post should've said 'without the weeks worth of stuff'

It's not TFLs fault that you loaded your buggy up too much to make it easily manageable. However if they gave you bad advice then they are at fault.

The OP has already said she checked the stations she needed were step free. She arrived and found she weren't. So TfL gave the wrong information!

Tbh it's often easier to walk between stations, at least centrally (not quite so simple in a wheelchair, obviously!) but TfL staff should

A) be giving correct information about accessibility
B) Know that it's not safe to take a pushchair on an escalator

TfL staff will not help, at least not IME.

I did it for years, with a double buggy for a while, and only had one mishap - I got very good at managing alone, one day a man INSISTED on helping, and he tripped and fell into the buggy. Nobody hurt, thankfully.

Planning a step-free route - you're nearly better getting buses around the middle bit IMO. I did that once, taking DD (2) and DS1 (11 months and in a spica cast) with a double buggy and picnic. LOL the craic was mighty, I handed babies, buggies and picnics to anyone who caught my eye.

Don't beat yourself up, it's a tricky business and the best laid plans can go awry.