The following letter appeared in Venue's "Inbox" page. (28th Sept - 7th Oct 2007. Issue 785)
Green Germans
"This is a letter for all those public transport users in Bristol fed up with high prices, old stock and buses that arrive late or not at all. It's time we took a leaf out of the public transport book in Germany. Yes I know we've had German greeness and public services rammed down our throats but I'm sure you won't mind if I tell you this little bit.
They take bikes on buses in Germany, and trams and on the underground. Of course I don't need to mention how easy it is to load them onto their comfortable double-decker commuter trains with ample space.
You could set your watch by the punctuality of the buses, becasue the drivers only have to worry about driving, not selling tickets as well. Newsagents do that.
And the cost? A four hour train journey with a couple of changes and a bike each, tickets bought on the day, came to about £25 per person. A half hour journey involving a bike on the tram and underground was just £1.
So if we want more people to cycle or use public transport, we know what we have to do. A much more efficient ticketing system, bikes on buses, better rolling stock (particulary on the railways), a system that sets out to serve and be responsive to the needs of all the people who use it and affordable prices.
Do I hear groaning about how ridiculous that sounds? Well if Germany can do it why can't we? If privatisation's the trouble, we can unprivatise. Just imagine making a transport sytem so good that banning cars from the city centre was easy peasy.
Hamish, via e-mail "
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In The Netherlands they have a similar system. Buy tickets from newsagents. Yes I've seen bikes being taken on trams, trains and buses too. In fact you are more likely to be knocked over by a cyclist than a car and all bikes have bells that they ring to give you chance to get out the way! The trams in Amsterdam are great and I've used buses from time to time but their train service is superior to the UK. They are double decker and comfortable with plenty of room. Efficient and on time and I've travelled through the Netherlands on a number of occasions over the years and their train service is a good way to travel.
I've also used the Tram Service in Manchester. Efficient and easy to use. London I tend to use the underground. It is easy to use, very reasonably priced and gets you around London quickly. Ok it gets over crowded during rush hour but that happens anywhere in the country.
Sad thing is Bristol looks into projects but they never get anywhere or the reseach is unreliable and mistakes are made when a project comes to fruition. The tram service and Avon metro didn't happen buts loads of money was spent and many trips made. Surely there is something more cost efficient that can be done?
Green Germans
"This is a letter for all those public transport users in Bristol fed up with high prices, old stock and buses that arrive late or not at all. It's time we took a leaf out of the public transport book in Germany. Yes I know we've had German greeness and public services rammed down our throats but I'm sure you won't mind if I tell you this little bit.
They take bikes on buses in Germany, and trams and on the underground. Of course I don't need to mention how easy it is to load them onto their comfortable double-decker commuter trains with ample space.
You could set your watch by the punctuality of the buses, becasue the drivers only have to worry about driving, not selling tickets as well. Newsagents do that.
And the cost? A four hour train journey with a couple of changes and a bike each, tickets bought on the day, came to about £25 per person. A half hour journey involving a bike on the tram and underground was just £1.
So if we want more people to cycle or use public transport, we know what we have to do. A much more efficient ticketing system, bikes on buses, better rolling stock (particulary on the railways), a system that sets out to serve and be responsive to the needs of all the people who use it and affordable prices.
Do I hear groaning about how ridiculous that sounds? Well if Germany can do it why can't we? If privatisation's the trouble, we can unprivatise. Just imagine making a transport sytem so good that banning cars from the city centre was easy peasy.
Hamish, via e-mail "
------------------------------------------------------------------
In The Netherlands they have a similar system. Buy tickets from newsagents. Yes I've seen bikes being taken on trams, trains and buses too. In fact you are more likely to be knocked over by a cyclist than a car and all bikes have bells that they ring to give you chance to get out the way! The trams in Amsterdam are great and I've used buses from time to time but their train service is superior to the UK. They are double decker and comfortable with plenty of room. Efficient and on time and I've travelled through the Netherlands on a number of occasions over the years and their train service is a good way to travel.
I've also used the Tram Service in Manchester. Efficient and easy to use. London I tend to use the underground. It is easy to use, very reasonably priced and gets you around London quickly. Ok it gets over crowded during rush hour but that happens anywhere in the country.
Sad thing is Bristol looks into projects but they never get anywhere or the reseach is unreliable and mistakes are made when a project comes to fruition. The tram service and Avon metro didn't happen buts loads of money was spent and many trips made. Surely there is something more cost efficient that can be done?
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