Facts about public transport in London

[ChrisFilter]

Christ.. what a load of nonsense! We have arguably the best public transport of any major world city and people quibble 90p for a bus journey

Have you not noticed how much better it's all got since the C charge?! Buses just weren't an option 7 years ago when I first moved to London.

 

[High Voltage]

What's your journey?

Shepton Mallet to Ledbury. 82 miles each way of fun and enjoyment.

 

[Crispy]

Oops, sorry I thought you were talking about London

Yes, 82 miles cross country is not the sort of thing you'd want to do by public transport every day.

 

[High Voltage]

That'd be my previous observation that London has a good public transport option

We're going to be moving later on this year, with a commute of 20 miles. This is STILL NOT a public transport option.

Looked at trains and to do the 20 odd miles will take 2+ hours each way and cost £15-20 EACH DAY

I didn't even bother looking at buses, seems that people only work on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays over here.

Looks like a car share then.

 

[_angel_]

Shepton Mallet to Ledbury. 82 miles each way of fun and enjoyment.

You have to drive a round trip of 160 miles??

Blimey.

 

[citydreams]

Christ.. what a load of nonsense! We have arguably the best public transport of any major world city and people quibble 90p for a bus journey

And fares are fixed in real terms until 2010!

 

[newbie]

Have you not noticed how much better it's all got since the C charge?! Buses just weren't an option 7 years ago when I first moved to London.

The C Charge made a fairly dramatic difference but overall the remodelling of junctions has had a far greater impact on journey times. Changing layouts, moving stoplines, bus contraflows, phasing and so on have been really effective. I've noticed little evidence of that happening elsewhere in the country... it's a vision thing which the DfT could have led, but hasn't.

 

[Cobbles]

The C Charge made a fairly dramatic difference but overall the remodelling of junctions has had a far greater impact on journey times. Changing layouts, moving stoplines, bus contraflows, phasing and so on have been really effective. I've noticed little evidence of that happening elsewhere in the country... it's a vision thing which the DfT could have led, but hasn't.

But why bugger up the journey times for other traffic just to let a few buses move from stop to stop x nanoseconds faster?

 

[Crispy]

But why bugger up the journey times for other traffic just to let a few buses move from stop to stop x nanoseconds faster?

That's why.

 

[kyser_soze]

TBH, the only time I feel shamed by LU is when I've been somewhere like Paris, but that only lasts a few minutes when I remember...

1. The Metro and RATP don't carry as many people

2. They weren't starved of investment, funding or have had to endure sucecssive management restructurings for about 30 years

3. That building a new line in Paris costs about 1/3 of what it does in London cos they drill through granite, and granite only, which makes life a hell of a lot easier...

 

[newbie]

But why bugger up the journey times for other traffic just to let a few buses move from stop to stop x nanoseconds faster?

don't be silly. I use bus, tube, bicycle, car and foot to get around London and all of them except perhaps bike/foot have become both faster and less stressful in the last few years. I put the bike/foot thing down to me getting older more than anything else

 

[Dr. Furface]

don't be silly. I use bus, tube, bicycle, car and foot to get around London and all of them except perhaps bike/foot have become both faster and less stressful in the last few years. I put the bike/foot thing down to me getting older more than anything else

Buses are better run and more frequent, I'll grant you that, but faster? No way.

And if you think that the tube is less stressful these days then you must be talking about a different system to the one I use.

 

[ovaltina]

I'm going to start cycling again now that it's not so windy anymore.

 

[citydreams]

Buses are better run and more frequent, I'll grant you that, but faster? No way..

Tis true.. there's an overall reduction in bus speeds of about 11% within the central zone, 7% on the inner ring road and 8% on radial routes since 2003.

However, this has to be seen against ~ 30% rise in bus journeys and a fall in excess waiting times and average waiting times of ~ 30%. You're now more likely to have to wait less time for a bus than ever before.

 

[newbie]

that's interesting, buses seem faster because they seem to spend less time stationary. Must be subjective I suppose.

As to the tube, I mostly use the Viccie line and I get far less cross than I used to, fewer delays, better information, generally better service. Is that subjective as well?

 

[citydreams]

If the waiting time for the bus has fallen faster than the bus speed, your journey is going to be quicker, so it really is subjective.

Re: the tubes: patronage increased by around 5% from 2005 to 2006 on the whole. I'm not sure about the vicky line in particular - would need to dig through some files. But Vicky is one of the most reliable routes. Suprsingly, the Central line has taken over from the Northern line for the misery prize, running only 90% of scheduled kms.

 

[Gixxer1000]

As a self confessed hater of TfL, partly driven by the fact that I have to deal with them on a daily basis- I tell you this, they are rammed with exactly the same gravy train riding "consultants" who infest the NHS, generating reams of meaningless statistics and propaganda in the process squandering millions.
Whilst London Buses , London Underground, the police and the councils do all the work -as they did before.

 

[Gixxer1000]

But Vicky is one of the most reliable routes.

This isnt a dig honestly but youve discounted "planned" engineering works havent you