To be sad that no one would help

[Parpadew]

Emergency last night and I needed someone to drive a forty minute round trip. That's all. Never asked for this or any favour really before. I offered to pay. No one would help. Not my mum, siblings. One friend would have but she's on holiday. Got a taxi in the end but it was sheer luck one turned up as it's not a well covered part of the country.

Feel really alone right now!

I posted that before OP said it took her five hours to get a taxi, so that's not really a realistic option. But she did get a taxi, so they are in her area.

I know I'd help if I could but with the caveat that there may be good reasons the people she asked couldn't drive at that time, OP hasn't told us who is stranded (boyfriend of five minutes? DH?) and there are roads around my area I wouldn't drive myself unless it was dire because they are very dangerous at night and no way in rain or storm. The drive is also 20 minutes each way for OP. How far is it for the people she wanted to help on top of that?

Perhaps they don't like your partner that much?
How late was it when you phoned them for help?

I can confirm that it’s rare that they lay on coaches and that they do just turf hundreds of people out at random stations.

I can also confirm that you can’t just ‘get a taxi’ from these tiny rural stations with hundreds of people trying to do the same thing.

I’ve done a few mercy mission drives to pick up stranded DH, and once he made friends with some folk and one of their wives took a car load back to a bugger town to help them out.

I’ve also had to call on my MIL to do a similar run to pick me and the kids up. It was 40 mins each way for her.

I too would be disappointed that no one would help. In our village we’d have people offering lift shares etc, never mind immediate family that you’d always expect to help you out.

Love all the replies saying get a taxi. Taxis do not exist where I am. MNers love to say they live somewhere rural when in fact they live 5 min outside a town.

OP, that's really shitty that they wouldn't help you out.

Maybe the partner is someone the family do not approve of and maybe they have a valid reason.

@Parpadew please explain the circumstances if you want helpful answers.

I did in fact do a 40 minute round trip last night to pick up family members from a station a few stops up the line due to the train terminating early. They could've got a taxi (they were circling the station like vultures!!) or waited an hour or so for a connecting train (possibly) but I was available and I wanted them home safe.

Sorry you had a horrible night.

It never ceases to amaze me how unaware some people are about life in other parts of the UK. Just walk, just get an Uber, call a taxi. 🙄

20 minute drive in a very rural area is probably around 8-10 miles. Along unlit roads with no pavements. In the middle of the night, at the tail end of a storm. Many villages have no taxis at all, others have one taxi driver who you need to book days in advance. Uber isn't even an option for pick up here in suburban Glasgow.

Glad you got home OP and I would be very disappointed that people wouldn't help you out in these situations.

Without knowing their reasons, it isn't possible to judge.

My parents would do it for me...
Except currently Dm isn't driving at night until she's had her cateracts done and df can't drive after he's taken his medication.

My and dh have both done emergency runs during the night for people, including a stranger who knocked on the door at 2am...
But there was one time I was asked and I said no, because dh was away and it would have meant taking 3dc under 8yo with me, including one who was vomiting regularly.

I think another question is was is stormy round you? If your area was flooded and trees down then that makes a difference too.

Also it may be a 40 minute journey for you, but how far for them? Don't forget they would have to get home again afterwards. If they live 20 minutes the other side of the station it may only take 40 minutes for you, but double that for them.

And what were your plans for getting home anyway?
If the train company stopped at not your terminus station then they're obliged to get you to your station. So what were you expecting to do before?

Presuming you don't drive, be honest, how often are they called on for a lift. I bet it's more than you think. If they're asked "just a lift to the supermarket" (and wait around for a lift back) and "can't you just drop me at work on your way" (15 minutes out of their way) then they may have had enough.

This thread is wild 😂
You've got people walking 30 miles in the dark; no one knowing who was stranded, and people refusing to believe there were no taxis!

Fwiw OP it's totally shit that your family wouldn't help you, and I can imagine it really hurts. Sorry it happened to you.

Rescuing ‘someone’ or rescuing you, @Parpadew ?

No one carries a high viz vest or flashing arm band ‘just in case’ FFS.

Tbh I’m not sure I’d want to wear one anyway.
Being hit by a car is only one of the dangers of walking alone for 3.5 hours at night.

If I was in the middle of nowhere and saw a car coming I’d want to hide, not make myself more visible.

You wouldn’t drive 20 minutes to pick up a stranded family member?

Your definition of family must be different to mine.

.

I’m appalled that not one of those people helped you OP .
3 weeks ago I was travelling up the East Coast Trainline and it was late , and train terminating at the wrong station very late at night more than 1.5 hours drive from my home .
my EX ! DH called me and said don’t worry wherever you end up I’ll collect you !
My brother also offered .

You are justified in feeling let down .

I hadn’t heard this but in that case, couldn’t the stranded person have got a hotel for the night

Yes, because every little hamlet/village in a very rural area has a hotel. There are seriously people who have never ventured out of the cities, aren't there?

I'm actually embarrassed for some of the posters on this thread who have clearly never stepped outside of an urban area.

Wait till they find out that not all of us have a Waitrose within a 100 mile radius...

Lots of these responses are odd. I would have helped if I could have done

Where do you think all the last minute hotels are in the place that has no taxis or buses readily available @Rewindthefilm

I need more information.

1. Why were you stuck at the station? as in where had you been?
2. What time was it?
3. Does your sister have small children?

For example, if you had been on a night out, and it’s midnight and you’re asking me to come out in my PJ’s, dragging my 6 year old out too, then no, you can call a taxi or an Uber. They do go to remote places, especially those with train stations.

If you’ve been away working, it’s 5pm, the trains have all been cancelled due to the line being out of action, and I’ve got not other responsibilities, then I’d probably help. Although, I’d still think that you could have gotten a taxi.

If you called me at midnight because you fell and broke your leg and needs to get to A&E, I’d be there in a jiffy. Context is key.

I read all of the OP posts and couldn’t see any clarification on this.

This.

Surely?

But if for some genuine reason the rail company could not supply alternative transport, and if it was an adult (her partner?) who was stranded, why couldn't they phone for a taxi, even if it was from a taxi firm in the area where the OP lives rather than closer to the actual train?

Also, I don't understand why @Parpadew needed to go at all, I presume it would have cost both time and money to pick her up before the taxi firm set off?

If all of the above is impossible, then shouldn't the passengers have been told to stay on board the train, and if it was a "catered" train, shouldnt they have been at least offered water, a hot drink, and maybe even a roll?

This whole thread just doesn't make sense to me...

OP, can you clarify why you weren't able to drive? It seems unusual that you would choose to live in such a rural location without access to your own transport?

In a rural village without pavements or street lighting, we ALL carry these things, it is just common sense

I’d have gone to collect a stranger from my village if they’d posted on Facebook 🤷🏻‍♀️ (sadly: if a man, only with my husband in tow, but that’s a separate issue)

So it does seem pretty shitty.

Was this your boyfriend visiting? I’m wondering why the onus seemed to be on you and your family and friends, not his?

Did they think taxis would be easier to come by?

Did you actually speak directly to individuals and get a no, or drop it into a group chat where people looked the other way - selfish, but they might genuinely have thought you’d get someone.

It’s really surprising to me that your own family would say no if you asked directly.

Are you constantly relying on them for lifts and there’s a whole backstory?!

then no, you can call a taxi or an Uber. They do go to remote places

Jeezo I'm embarrassed for your ignorance. from their website: "Scotland has two cities served by Uber UK, so whether you’re located in Edinburgh or Glasgow, it’s easy to get started" or "Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, is another great option for anyone considering driving with Uber"

So that leaves great swathes of Wales, and everywhere in Scotland outwith the two largest cities WITH NO SODDING UBER.

How can people be SO unaware?