I’ve been bedazzled by better buses

Well the statistics speak for themselves:- http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2012/jul/24/latin-america-traffic-cars-roads

By comparison the death rate in the UK is 4 per 100,000 and falling whilst in South America it’s rising. Interestingly one major factor is considered to be the lack of statutory rest periods for public service (bus) drivers.

The sort of service and comfort levels described could only be provided in this country at a premium but who’s going to pay the extra to ride a slow (65 mph) bus when they could spend the money on a much faster train or even fly? It might work in the South America so beloved of Which? correspondents where there is no real competition from air or rail but not here. Why would anyone choose to spend eight and half hours getting from London to Edinburgh by bus if they could afford to use the train which does the journey in half the time?

The last long distance bus journey I took in the UK was an hour and a half late because of an overturned lorry and we were jerked backwards and forwards in stop-start traffic on the M25 for most of the journey. Sorry but whilst there is faster competition in this country bus travel is going to be for those that can’t afford to travel any other way.

As a life-long bus user, I came across this conversation by accident but with a sense of pleasant surprise, as my one beef with Which? over the years – decades – I’ve been subscribing is that it gives so much space to cars, an occasional page or two to railways but, until now, seemingly nothing to buses. Yet there are far more trips each day in the UK made by bus than rail, and in London and other large cities, the fact that so many people are willing – or obliged – to travel together in one vehicle instead of wasting road space in a car is helping to stave off total gridlock. And of course buses play an important social role in offering a means of getting about to those who can’t afford a car and/or don’t drive for reasons of age, disability, or whatever.

Positive advantages of this method of travel include greater safety, a better view of the scenery (even from a single-decker), the ability to read or even do some work on the journey, not having to worry about parking or having a glass of something with your meal while you’re out. And these days, in many places including London you can use your mobile phone (smart or just text) to find out when the next bus will reach your stop, so saving you having to hang around there aimlessly.

I’m of course talking here not about long-distance but about the ordinary service buses. On the whole people don’t make very long trips on these, so I don’t think we can expect too much in the way of luxury. More personal space, for instance, would mean more vehicles required to carry all the people wanting to travel and hence, inevitably, to higher fares. Even so, British bus upholstery is more comfortable than that in certain other countries of my experience.