Fourth Class Systems: The Gridlock That Is The English Public Transport System

It was the worst of times, and then it got worse… At Bank Holidays in the UK (given some paid free time in many cases) people want to travel. Rather than sit in traffic, they choose to use public transport. Why? Given how increasingly awful public transport usage is on a daily basis (and expensive), why bother? Clearly everyone is expected to naturally leap in a car (or worst case scenario, get on their bike)…

I can only speak of my own experiences, I appreciate that I am privileged in that I can and am able to walk (where and when buses fail me), and that I have access to regular trains and buses. And that Network Rail Card make a difference. I appreciate that in many towns and cities, and especially rural areas, life has been made impossible by the running down, removal and over-pricing of public services. And that includes public transport access.

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Part of the problem perhaps is that public transport is no longer public, but privatised, and expected to make a profit. Since the UK Lockdowns, anyone using public transport has been clearly put in their place by the government and the firms running them and made to feel that getting in a car is really the only option, if they can’t work from home. People in cars were allowed to merrily visit green spaces, those who needed to use a train or bus to access leisure spaces not.

I really believe in public transport — integrated public transport — I’ve seen how it can work (to a degree) in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh. I’m conscious that Scotland values public access to work, friends, family, leisure, amenities more through public transport than England. Sadly the expectation in England is that you will drive (and in Southampton that you will be on wheels of some form).

As a pedestrian in central Southampton, I walk constantly against traffic. I am flung into a mix of bikes, scooters (and those funny things which could be a bike or a moped) and really expected to get out of the way! Even if it’s a non-wheeled area. Similarly pedestrians are stalled at junctions while cars sail on by.

Commuting a short distance to work, over the last year I’ve seen buses become more expensive (dramatically), no longer link with trains and trains becoming increasing non-functional and apocalyptic. English train systems used to fall apart with a hint of snow/rain/leaves in the Autumn/Winter or sun in the Summer — now it seems to be every day. In the last month, I’ve seen people on the line, incidents, signaling failure, broken lines, a cloggage of trains, stranded staff and more literally derail the system on a daily, more like hourly basis. It seems to be a constant now. Whilst I appreciate that these things happen, and that there is delay repay for some companies, shouldn’t public transport just work 99.9% of the time to make it even worthwhile? Part of me can’t help but think that the de-staffing of stations is leading sadly to more incidents?

Moreover, the infrastructure seems to be staggering and reeling — I wonder if the engineering works are more patching than actually enabling? Then there’s the almost year of train strikes or reduced services, plus endless increasing costs just to get to work or enjoy a day out (if you can afford it). Ahh, but consider the capped £2 bus fare — what a wonder! Well it is, if the buses connected with trains and turned up on time. Sometimes they do…(and shelters seemed fiendishly designed for smokers, vapers and to wet and freeze the waiting customers).

In ‘improving’ access to the station in central Southampton, pedestrians have six months of misery. No longer will buses drop at the front of the station, you have to walk up or down the hill to access a bus stop across a junction at the top. There is a 15–20 minute gap between buses. Ahh, but there are buses behind the station — but some don’t run at night and some are not the convenient bus I want. At the moment trains are often late (slowing to super slow death crawl in the run up to Southampton) and there is nothing more disheartening that fighting your way through the slow moving convoy crammed in narrowly by a protective metal fence and then powering up the hill, to watch the bus sail by…Or worse to wait, and then see the bus you want fall off the timetable…and it still hasn’t arrived — is it late or cancelled? (Timetables are no longer ‘live’). I know I can walk faster than the bus and frankly the walk beats a wait in the dark. Although this isn’t perhaps the best thing to do at night. And when trying to avoid the costs of taxis or Ubers….(nor am I even going to get started on the infrequent hourly night buses!)

In all of this, I fear that the ‘improvement’ is only for cars and other things with wheels. Caging squashed pedestrians into a small walking area is ‘improvement’ some how? Whilst I appreciate that everyone is doing their best, something needs to change — and soon! Trains are dirtier than ever before — I overheard station staff comment how bad it was as they emptied bags of rubbish tossed all over the carriages last night. Which is something! There seem to be less staff around — and when they are, they wear the sinister ‘revenue collection’ tabards, and often block access to doors, gates and platforms or shout at people to stand back, get on or off the train. Buses can be very unsafe — particularly at night. Nothing seems to link up in many areas — those in charge of the timetable seem to expect people to stay home after 8pm — why (the thinking seems to be) would anyone want to go and see a show or film or match, which ends after 10pm? Later running services are often arbitrarily cancelled or amended at the most convenient times — Fridays in the summer or on Bank Holiday Mondays. Why are you even considering a train seems to be the thinking? Just drive is the overriding message! (Unlike the laughable chicken on a train advert of a certain train company, where they have a seat, it’s clean and calm…and much better than being in traffic. Nor are they undergoing a random diversion, nor having to abandon diverted train half-way through to leap on the only train leaving the station, nor circling the route for four hours to attempt to navigate chaos all over the place. Nor are they increasingly having to think about how much time they leave in travelling to a show because diverted trains always seem to fail around Guildford or Basingstoke or Woking or wherever really. How about we just get to where we want to go on time? Oh, that’s a car…or a bike!)

But the problem is that people have worked from home, and where they can, they will continue! Unless public transport improves significantly and starts to rival cars in getting people to where they want to go on time — people will vote with their feet and pockets, and drive. Today there has been an ongoing incident leading to day three of chaos (on top of engineering works and a broken line somewhere). Whilst I appreciate that the police need to do what they need to do, this isn’t a one off — but an ongoing catastrophe. Having already had two days of chaos, (I stood for over two hours on a train on Saturday) and had two late return nights due to inconvenient timings and significantly longer journey because of engineering works, and then had to wait for buses which do not match train times, I just couldn’t face another day of it. Which is a shame because I missed fun things to do and can’t get my money back. Even in planning ahead, it’s becoming more and more difficult — fails kick in quickly and there never seems to be a recovery plan (partly due to the ongoing shortage of bus drivers). In daily leisure travelling at Bank Holidays to avoid rising hotel costs, I’m not sure that is worth it (and neither that raising train fares are the answer to the problem either). As a nation, we need a bigger, wider plan than actually considers the people using it — i.e. often toilets don’t work or are ill-placed; there’s nowhere to store large luggage items easily and negotiating trains with small children or any access/mobility issues. If companies want their services to continue, then they have to make them services that people want to use, rather than relying on people being forced to use them — i.e. non-drivers.

Today I’ve given up, I couldn’t face more delays, more overcrowding and the awkwardness of being in an event which didn’t match with suddenly reduced train times, or a long journey — part of which might become a bus.

As for me, I’ve voted with my feet and booked a coach! (Whilst not as convenient as trains, they tend to be cleaner, generally run to time and can be considerably cheaper). Its a shame coach stations seem to be horrible facilities — in my imagination they should be equivalent to air port lounges in terms of departure. A more run-down, facility less waiting bunker I’ve never encountered, although staff continue to be amazing inspire of it all. Something does need to change though — before we become one big super highway. Perhaps a horse? (And more trams!)

*Disclaimer — there are many days when things work and all goes smoothly which I appreciate — more and more it seems to be when you really want to travel — holiday weekends and evenings, which can be particularly impacted. I really want public transport that works — not sure how this can be achieved with things are they are.