On the rare occasions I use public transport I remember why I usually don't

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Packed to the gills despite it being very late at night, drunks, no working toilets, filthy, seats too small, migraine inducing lights. Still got half hour to go.

Vive la car

I love public transport because I love people watching. I'm not in the UK though, I think the public transport is better in my country. I travelled up through my country by night train this week, it was lovely. Walked through several carriages a few times going between my cabin and the restaurant car (which was very nice, lots of tables to sit at) and didn't see any anti-social behaviour. Had a nice cabin. Toilets were a bit smelly but they were clean enough, and working well. Intercity trains always have a seat because when you buy a ticket you buy a specific seat (which you pick from the seat map) so you don't have to worry about being stuck standing on a long journey. And they have a play carriage with a play area for children which keeps them happy and occupied on long journeys. You can even book little private seat cabins with 2-6 seats.

Buses are alright too though I'm sure late buses have their share of drunks on. In the city I lived when DD was a baby you could travel for free on the bus if you had a pram which was brilliant, went everywhere by bus with DD.

@PinkArt

Congratulations on not being poor. Well done you.

With all that time you save taking taxis instead of buses you must have plenty free to work on not being such a judgey prick.

@SilviaSnuffleBum Today 16:54

I rely on 'poverty chariots', as @Pisspotical terms my only mode of transport.

I call people c---s who look down on people low on the socioeconomic scale.

I agree with these posts, but lots of 'not poor' people use public transport. (Not that there is anything wrong with being poor!) So that makes that judgy, classist post by @Pisspotical totally nonsensical and moot.

I went to an event in the nearby city last week and got the last bus back to my town at 12.15.

I fully expected it to be full of loud drunk people at best, and was pleasantly surprised. People were chatting in a perfectly normal way, the driver was spoken to politely, with actual please and thank you's, no-one was sick, no-one pissed themselves, there weren't any fights and it was really no different from any other time of day.

So different from when I lived in Croydon, when getting a late bus back from central London was something to be avoided if at all possible, because it was such a nightmare.

There will be no trains running through Huddersfield at all during September, and there are engineering works every weekend on that route all summer with rail replacement buses.

On the other hand, my experience of the London Midland(not sure of the name - the line that serves Leicester and the East Midlands) is very good. All that Avanti is not.

So you have had a couple of bad experiences, meanwhile the 26 million trips made daily on londons public transport system, seem to be keeping the city moving successfully

Getting taxis in London, even black cabs, always felt dodgy to me at night, esp. the unlicensed minicabs which used to be ubiquitous 25 years ago as there were never enough black cabs. I'd get out and walk home from my friend's house rather than be the last one in a cab on my own. Later we heard about the crimes of John Worboys. Glad I went with my instincts. Tube and train always felt safer.

I agree, i much prefer public transport to a cab, or even better, a bike

Yes, I was reminded of this when I came home on the plane at the weekend. There are some utter freaks around who I’d much rather not be in the same space as.

Oh I hear you. In London especially it's a real socio economic soup. While it's the cheapest way to get around, it's also the greenest and the quickest. But @Pisspotical 's post was all about punching down on poorer people.

Not that young 🤣🤣. We’ve lived here for over 20 years and it’s been pretty good for most of that time so I guess that must be from before then. And we probably do have the best station in the area in terms of service,

I would be utterly ashamed if one of my children used the expression "poverty chariot," as it would demonstrate that they had no class or morals. Thankfully they are better than that.

My son uses the ‘Poverty Chariot’, much to my disapproval. He has a well-paid job but still insists on using it. This is why the phrase was initially coined and it stuck. My husband uses the phrase too. My son has a car and could afford the taxi fares. We have even offered to cover the costs of the taxi fares.

He has to drive 2 miles to pick up the bus route before embarking on the germ-ridden ‘Poverty Chariot’. This in itself seems nonsensical. He perpetually has a cold during the winter months and this retched form of transport is likely to be responsible for this.

He was quite happy utilising a taxi to take him to public school. Ever since attending university he took a dislike to using a taxi. He hung around with the most insufferable left-wing students at uni and I feel that he had to change in order to ‘fit in’, when in essence he could have been himself.

Last time I was on a bus in the UK (before covid 😂) a filthy high as a kite pissed lady got on and proceeded to try and hug everyone like they were some long lost family. I did my best to hide......

I only tend to use public transport when not at home. I walk a lot when I am. I quite enjoy being on public transport, I love people watching.

I thought it interesting when I was in London at the start of the year for work, that despite being very obviously pregnant, nobody even considered giving up their seat. I didn’t need them to as it happened, my ‘dying on my feet’ phase of pregnancy was way before I was visibly pregnant. However nobody else knew that, and they couldn’t have cared less anyway.

I was brought up to stand for pregnant women/disabled people/the elderly on public transport, which potentially makes me sound very old but I’m actually only 36.

It’s “peasant wagon” round here. But still equally as offensive as yours. Don’t be such a snob. It’s not attractive.

Nothing quite as embarrassing as cosplaying at having money 🙄

May your lane always be jammed like rush hour.

May you hit every red light.

May the car in front of you always be belching exhaust fumes.

May your EZ Pass or whatever you use malfunction on a daily basis.

I honestly think people don't notice. I finally got offered a seat, once, on the way home from work to start my mat leave at 35 weeks pregnant. But also several colleagues were surprised that I was going on maternity leave as they didn't know I was pregnant.

Have people no longer been brought up to offer their seats to pregnant women and the elderly?

I noticed this when we flew recently and had to go on one of those buses that take you from the terminal to the plane where most people have to stand and hang on for dear life because there's only half a dozen seats.

Twenty something couples bagged all the seats leaving pensioners and people holding babies standing.

<Cue the inevitable MN 'invisible disabilities' whataboutery>.

Looks like your son has developed his own personality.

And it's a much better one than yours.

You must live somewhere rough as I don’t have these problems in my area.

No working toilets? I wouldn’t consider public transport that has a toilet to even be public transport, sounds like a fancy train.

You should catch the 18 bus during rush hour. That will give you an insight l.

Do you live in a poor area? I find the behaviour like op was describing usually only happens in them areas.