To think that no-one will choose to swap cars for public transport when it's still easier / cheaper / faster to drive?

[BogstandardBelle]

Since starting a new job 18 months ago I have used public transport to get there and back 3 days a week. I leave my house, walk 10 minutes to the metro, spend around 20 minutes on the metro with one change in between, then walk around 15 minutes at the other end to arrive at work. I always assumed that (living in a big busy city) it was cheaper and easier to travel this way and never really considered driving.

This morning I needed to take some heavy bags into work, so I decided to drive. I left around 15 minutes later than usual and still arrived at the same time! And I didn't need to walk anywhere or share my space with hundreds of coughing / sneezing / inconsiderate / odd people en route. The cost was negligible compared to the 64 euros I spend each month on a metro ticket.

I'm really disappointed! I know that the exercise is good for me, and god knows the air pollution problem in my city doesn't need yet another single occupancy, short distance car journey being added to it. But it was so much easier / more pleasant than using public transport... and now I know how easy it was, there's going to be a little voice saying "just take the car...".

So it is unreasonable to expect people to give up their cars when public transport is actually more expensive, less convenient and overall harder work than driving? I used to think that all the motorists clogging up the roads / causing the pollution were BU, but now I'm not so sure.

I live in London so public transport is fantastic where I'm from. Car journeys are still quicker (I only recently realised how much quicker as Google Maps now tells you how fast you'd get there). But I can get pretty much anywhere with one change, and I never have to worry about parking, road tax, insurance, petrol, maintenance, MOT or repairs. I like being able to use travelling time to catch up on emails or the news on my phone. I have a disability which means I can't drive anyway, and I get a Freedom Pass because of that, so all my journeys are free, and I also get a third off rail journeys (for me and a companion) with my disabled railcard. But obviously I would much rather be without my disability and be able to work and pay my own way!

I am pretty lucky to have good public transport where I am, but I did make a conscious decision to move to the area, from a smaller town which had a few decent bus routes but not nearly as extensive as London. I wanted to be able to be independent and not feel restricted by not being a driver, so moving to a bigger city was essential to be able to do that.

I think there are so many stumbling blocks when it comes to the drive to push people onto public transport.

In an ideal world, more people would use public transport but there are quite a few barriers which make this less likely in the UK, unless things change. Namely, public transport is often inconvenient and unreliable, expensive, and not particularly pleasant environment to be in. That's not to say the system doesn't work for some people- clearly it does, and some areas have better transport infrastructure and links than others too. And some people don't have any choice but to use public transport (or they'd have to walk or cycle).

However, for some people public transport is not going to be viable, or only viable sometimes- e.g. those who live rurally; people who have certain disabilities or are frail/elderly; those who require to have a car or van for work either because they have to be mobile (e.g. vet, GP) or because they have to be mobile and also carry large volume of equipment/parts (e.g. plumber, joiner); and some shift workers, would all be good examples.

I could not rely on public transport, it wouldn't work (even if I overlooked the fact that I become very travel sick in buses and can only travel facing direction of movement on the train). For a start, I would have to walk several miles to get to the nearest village to catch a bus. That bus comes max 4 times per day (Mon-Friday)with first bus being about 7:30 and last arrives in about 8:30PM. There are even fewer buses at the weekend/Sunday and public holidays being worst. If you work shifts, it can be impossible to get to work early enough due to bus times and quite probably won't be able to get back after work either. The journey itself takes a very long time- at least an hour (sometimes longer, depending on the route) to get to the nearest town- but only about 25 minutes drive by car. Then you factor in that depending on where in town you want to go you may need to get another bus (or two) and this adds in yet more time and increases the cost. And lets face it- the fares aren't cheap especially not if you are taking a family it is going to be even less cost-effective.

If you had to drop a child at school or nursery before work, and collect them afterwards, it would be very difficult and probably quite stressful.

Our local town has a train station- but not especially close to any bus stops or the bus station, so if you've got luggage and came by bus it's a trek lugging that about- and it can be a total nightmare to co-ordinate the bus and train times. Generally, it would mean a long wait at the train station. The train routes aren't always the most convenient and often at least one change is needed which can be a pain if the trains aren't running to time, and that's not infrequent. Train fares are very expensive. And to add insult to injury, they often run late, aren't usually the cleanest/nicest places to be and you're not guaranteed a seat.

Given the above, I very rarely use public transport. I frequently wouldn't be able to get to work on time (or even close), nor would I be able to get home. Flexi-time is not really an option for me due to the nature of my job. Even if I could somehow get into work/get back on time using the bus, the commute would be at least an hour each way (more often 1.5 hours each way) instead of 25-30 minutes. For this privilege I would pay at least as much as my car and travel in less than comfortable/clean transport on many occasions. I may not even get a seat. It's not rocket science to see that for people in my position public transport won't work.

I gave up my car last year and I do not miss it.

I'm lucky in that I live in a fairly compact town and the bus services service pretty much the entire town. It also helps that I live a 5 minute walk to two bus stops that service two different bus lines that pretty much cover everywhere I need to go. One goes from the town centre through a couple of other towns and on into the Lakes and the other goes in a loop taking in the hospital, town centre and the furthest part of town.

DDs school is a 5 minute walk away, my workplace is a 5 min walk and 2 buses away (or a 15 minute walk/bus/5 min walk if I'm getting the bus home when I finish work at 10pm when the second bus isn't running) but I'm lucky in that the two bus schedules align perfectly - my first bus arrives at the bus terminus 4 minutes before the second bus leaves but if it is running late then I can get off a stop or two early and cross the road as the 2nd bus doubles back down the same road for a couple of stops.

Also it is way cheaper than running a car- it costs me £10 a week for a bus pass and DDs U16 bus pass costs £6.50 a week. Therefore it costs £53 for DD and I to travel anywhere in town for a month, as she spends 2 weeks a month at her dad's and he drives as he needs his car for work she only needs a pass every other week. Even if I get the odd taxi home from work after a long shift or get a taxi home after doing a big monthly shop (approx £4/5) it still works out far cheaper to have a bus pass and a small taxi fund than to run a car.

Also our passes can be either on a swipe card or downloaded onto the bus company's mobile app so on payday I buy 4 passes (for me) and 2 (for DD) that are then on our phones and can be activated as needed for 7 days (eg this week my pass ran out today, but I have a home/cleaning day planned for tomorrow so I can activate my next pass on Tuesday and it runs for 7 days) and can be kept for up to 3 months without being activated.

Before I retired my drive to work took 20 minutes. The only option for public transport was to take the bus. In fact the journey required three different buses and took almost two hours. Why on earth would anyone do that?

Alexa there are 26% of adult population that don’t hold a driving licence & therefore will have to rely on other methods of transport

For me it costs £4 to get a return ticket to my nearest town vs £2 to park + whatever on diesel (about a 15 min journey) and if I take my car I can pop into the supermarket on the way home. There's 0 incentive for me to use public transport and I haven't for years.
Even the train to London costs about 5 times what it would to drive and park somewhere 😖

@melj1213 I want to move to your street!

For shorter distances cycling is a great alternative and does not make everyone get covered in sweat - was my point. Matey boy who cycles 46 miles to work is not really what we're talking about here!

Drive to work: 16 minutes in the car, free parking, 5 minutes walk (so 21 mins total)

Drive to park and ride: 12 minutes to P&R, £6 for parking plus 15 minutes on bus, then 7 minutes walk (34 mins total excluding hanging around for the bus which is nearly always late so more like 40 mins)

Full public transport: 15 minutes walk to bus, £5 return for bus, 20 minutes on bus, 7 minutes walk (42 mins total excluding hanging around for the bus which is nearly always late so more like 45 minutes)

So, I can either spend around 42 minutes of my day commuting for minimal cost (car does 60 mpg) or 90 minutes of my day commuting for around£25-£30.

No brainer. Also the bus times aren't always convenient with working hours or needing to do any form of off site meetings.

If dh was to get the train to work he would need to leave at 6.30 am to get the infrequent train followed by a 30 minute walk. Door to door by driving takes 30 minutes.
He can't leave for work until ds has got into his school taxi which sometimes physically needs 2 people to get him in. Similarly ds really needs 2 people in the evening.
Ds cannot travel on public transport - so much so that he gets higher rate dla because of it. We also need a car to get to places that ds can cope with. We would be stranded without a car.

ivykaty44 yep I totally agree that IN SOME CIRCUMSTANCES and IF the person involved is a fit healthy person with only themselves to transport then cycling can be a good thing. However to suggest that because certain fit men in their prime can and do cycle to work regularly means that the majority of people can is a little extreme.

The guys in the article work in manufacturing, not in offices. They aren't customer facing. They have only themselves to transport, no other people or bags of stuff. They are fit and comparatively young. They cycle regularly as a hobby. One at least does own a car, doesn't explain why he uses that Monday morning & Friday afternoon, and that also suggests that either there's nobody else at home or their partner has other transport.

YANBU I hate driving and would gladly sell my car, but the trains in my area are so unreliable. For most of last year and part of this, there were hardly any trains running at all on Saturdays due to strikes. The first train/bus out of my village is at 10am on a Sunday which is the time I'm due to start work. Also, trains are often cancelled and regularly delayed, I've had to turn back from the station and drive to work three times already this year due to last minute cancellations.

It all depends on where you live.

Where I am I would rather walk or catch public transport. Driving is a nightmare and stressful due to poor drivers. Particularly airy d our local area it is actually faster to walk on many occasions.

But if the drive was more pleasant I would always drive as I prefer my privacy.

I'd only contemplate cycling if there were fully segregated cycle lanes. The though of having to dodge cars terrifies me.

Allergy - but the cycle to work makes you fit - you dont have to do it as a hobby. I work in an industry where personal presentation is very important. Loads of us cycle and we range from ages 25 to 55.

@Vulpine Do you have showers at your offices?

Working shifts as I do , public transport is a complete non starter unless I’m on nights . The morning bus out of our village is at 7.45 , so would have to drive to station . First train is at just before 5am , gets me into London for 6.30 , but I then have to get the tube for 25 mins, and then do a 20 min walk . I’m supposed to be at work for 6.45 and ready to go for 7, so it just doesn’t work . If I’m on nights , I have to be on the 4 o clock train , gets into London at 5.30,same tube and walk gets me into work for 6.15 . But then getting the train back doesn’t get me home until about 10.30 in the morning , in bed by 11 , and I have to be up at 3 . It’s a good thing I sleep on the train otherwise I wouldn’t be able to function. And it costs . Over £5k a year , and more if I had to pay for the tube , which I’m fortunate in that I don’t .

Vulpine nothing will make me that fit again, arthritis and a bad leg have put paid to that. I'm late 50's and will have at least another 10 years working, suggesting that people in their 60's regularly cycle a fair distance to work really is unreasonable especially when you consider that bodies do wear out.

I did used to commute by public transport when I worked in London, costing me over £6k a year. Of course that included parking at the station that I needed to drive to - I could have caught the bus but that would have added 30-40 minutes to my journey (assuming I didn't miss my train) and cost as much as the parking anyway.

Would love more public transport especially now I have a bus pass (so far unused). About 10 yrs ago moved to a house which had a bus stop very near. I was pleased and set off to get the bus to town 10 miles away. It was £6.50 and I almost fainted with shock! God knows how much it is now. Much cheaper to drive, even for one person.

Shatners - No showers at our work no

Loads of us cycle and we range from ages 25 to 55.

That's great. I cycle as well. In my free time, and not along windy fell roads that have no lighting in the dark and in the middle of winter! The roads I drive have no street lights, no cycle lanes, are often only wide enough for one vehicle, have a ridiculous number of blind corners and have high hedges and therefore very little visibility or ability to overtake.

People do cycle on those roads - in summer, often early in the morning when it's as quiet as possible, and they often have to stop/pull in to allow vehicles to pass. They also aren't having to get to work or cycle along in the dark, rain, sleet or snow on the way home.

It would take me well over two hours to cycle to work - probably closer to four. There are loads of hills (as in, going up the fells, not just a hill in the road), blind corners, areas you have to pull into - it's just not a viable option. It's great it works for you, but you don't seem to understand that not everyone lives on routes that are safe or possible to cycle on!

@Vulpine So how do you cope with being sweaty the rest of the day in the summer, or if you've been swamped by a lorry driving through a puddle in the winter?

Im not suggesting anyone cycles if the route is unsuitable or you can't for physical reasons. I'm suggesting for lots of people it's a great alternative. I hope to be cycling well into old age but I am fit as a fiddle possibly because I've been cycling all my life.

Lots of people cycle into my work. There are no showers but the only person to get sweaty is a man who cycles in once a year (10 miles, as fast as he can, in Lycra). Everyone else pootles in at a normal speed and is no more sweaty than somebody who’s been strolling round the shops.
I have never been drenched by a vehicle going through a puddle. Occasionally it is raining, so I wear a waterproof coat and hat.

Ivesaidthis for ages! There are barely any journeys that are not far more expensive and inconvenient via public transport than it would be to drive. Until that's sorted out we've no hope on cutting down on cars on the road.
Trains are the worst. I'm going to Glasgow in summer so looked to book now. £148 (plus £22 return to go into London to get the Glasgow train)-x 2 as there are two of us going.£61 each to fly (plus £5 to get to airport and £28 to park for the weekend). Driving-two tanks or petrol £100 split between two of us 🤷🏽‍♀️