What puts you off using public transport and cycling or walking and what could the government do to help?

Answer 1

I find that other road users especially bus drivers have no respect for cyclists at all. Buses pull in to stops if there is a cyclist on the inside of them, they have no consideration at all. We have no cycle lanes here, that would help a great deal, I would cycle if it felt safer. Public transport is unreliable and can't get me to where I need to be. Our local bus service has been cut dramatically due to lack of funding, the buses are often overcrowded, and they run about 1 an hour if you are lucky. There are a lot of elderly people in the village where I live and the bus drivers drive off before they have sat down and this is wrong too.There are very few shelters at bus stops so bad weather means you get wet before you even start on the journey and a lot of the bus drivers are quite rude to passengers.

Government could help by providing
More cycle lanes
Better bus services, funding for rural services
Better roads and paths, I'm quite happy to walk but the paths are overgrown at this time of year and they are very uneven.
The bus drivers lessons on how to treat passengers, I know it isn't all of them, but some are very rude and alienate passengers.
More bus shelters
Better bus routes and better information about them, a stick saying bus stop and a tatty table are rubbish, and the print is small so those with sight problems can not work them out.
Reopening stations that have been closed down

There are loads of things the government could do to make both cycling and public transport safer and more appealing.

Answer 2

The bus service here in Greater Manchester is very diverse, what with the wide range of bus companies, and ages of the buses, from the shiny new ones for the popular commuter routes, to the crappy old ones that should have been scrapped years ago. The service also varies, with many areas poorly served and the city centre too well served (anyone who has walked through piccadilly gardens will know what I mean) due to profitability and the lack of control the passenger transport executive has over bus companies, also the reliability and cleanliness are issues. Trains are also very unreliable and dirty and the toilets stink, and are also too expensive. Behaviour of the public and crowding are issues for buses and trains. Cyclists don't benefit from enough cycle lanes and are cut off all the time and end up exhausted and sweaty at their destination (not good for commuters). Walking is fine if you're not going a long way and live in a town or city (I wouldn't like to walk down a narrow country lane with no footpath and cars speeding past you). The government needs to give more power to the local transport authorities so that they can organise the network more, and they need to invest more in transport for those not-so-profitable areas, especially rural areas. Cyclists need more lanes to cycle on. Before car owners can be enticed out of their cars, public transport needs to be much more attractive and a much more enjoyable experience.

Answer 3

Public transport is very unreliable, is not there when I need it, doesn't go where I want when I want (ie to get me into work on time without leaving 2 hours before I need to be there and the same going home) and costs a small fortune. As I have to have a car to use when I am at work (I work in a rural area which is also very hilly), the extra cost of public transport is not really a saving. My car is old enough that it can only appreciate in value when it becomes a classic.
I would love to be able to get a train or bus easily to work (it's a 50 mile round trip) and read rather than drive but it is just not realistic and I need the car when I'm there.
What can the government do to help? Take public transport back into public ownership; sort out a rational timetable that joins buses and trains up and allows people to get to and from work without it taking an age; allows people to go out at night and get home without having to leave before the end of a show or closing time and get back to their village or small town safely; make it affordable; stop it being overcrowded on some routes.
My partner also has a 50 mile round trip to work and he takes the train: it is often cancelled or delayed; it is always overcrowded and the fares go up and up and up so that it may be cheaper for him to get a car! where is the reason in that ?!?!?! He hates driving and the M1 in particular so won't but many will get a car as a response.
You can see that cycling is not always possible due to distance, weather, hills, poor roads with too fast traffic, no showers, locker rooms or safe bike storage at most work places.
I wouldn't mind living in walking distance of work but not possible at present. I do walk to the town centre and various other places when possible. But keep cyclists OFF the pavements please!

Answer 4

Ok I start work at 5 am. No bus runs in my area to take me directly to work. So the first bus here is 5 30 in to the city centre, so i would already be late. It takes almost 40 minutes to travel the 8 miles into town. I would then need to get another bus from there to work which would take another 15-20 mins. So to get to work by public transport just isn't an option. So I take the car. So we get on to the subject of the government trying to get the motorist out of the car by putting up fuel prices etc. Do buses not run on fuel, do trucks and trains not either. So those costs have to be re couped by the bus companies and the hauliers and the train companies. So up goes the cost of bus fares and transport costs. Who pays for the cost of that, yup the people that have to use the bus or train to go anywhere and when it comes to get the shopping it's more expensive too. So it is much cheaper to use the car even with the increase in the cost of fuel. Usually more efficient, comfortable and gets you where you want to be, when you want to get there and hey you might even be dry and not left standing in the rain.

If you were to add up the total costs of the Iraq war, the cost of increasing national security, the scottish parliment building, the millenium dome, the up coming olympic bid and associated costs, i am sure it would provide a very large amount of money that could be spent on improving roads, improving public transport to an acceptable level, making safe cycle routes, providing new jobs and industry in rural areas so people wouldn't have to travel great distances to get to work.

Time the government took a look at yahoo answers to get the real picture of what people want

If the government want to get people on to public transport

Answer 5

Public transport is over priced, over crowded, uncomfortable and un reliable (the busses turn up when they choose, and sometimes not at all) I need to get to work before 6am. and although there are busses scheduled from 05:20 onwards every 20 minutes, I have yet to see one until about 10 to 6. Why are they so late? Sure they cant blame traffic at that hour!
Inside the bus is generally filthy. A recent test found several different samples of urine from just one seat, and on some routes there is a genuinely intimidating atmosphere from the chavs on the back seats (who seemingly, the smoking ban doesn't apply to).
I used to cycle to work but I found I was taking my life in my hands doing so. I work hard to afford to pay for a car to take me places. Why should I walk?
The government should take back control of the public transport system and enforce strict cleanliness and timekeeping standards. A conductor would also help keep the idiots in check. Rather than expecting the drivers to (a) drive (b) collect fares and (c) be responsible for security

Answer 6

I do not use public transportation much at all! I believe that the last time that I was on any form of public transportation was over a year ago, and that was only to get to where a different car was being picked up!

I am not willing to give up the safety, comfort and convenience of driving. I can leave when I want. I do not have to stand outside in all kinds of weather. I can listen to what I want to listen to on the radio!

Every time I buy gasoline, the government has their hand in my pocket. I pay highway taxes on each gallon of fuel! I believe that this money should go to road improvements, not to subsidize other forms of transportation! If the highway taxes were used to improve the highways, the traffic problems could be lessened.

Why should my tax dollars be used to pay for someone else's transportation? Let the public transportation riders pay the cost of their travel, just like I have to!

Cycles should be required to be registered and insured, if they are going to be operated on publicly funded roadways and bike paths! They should also be taxed to pay for the services that they receive! I have to pay for tags and insurance, and I have to follow traffic laws. Why should cyclists be exempt?

It is not the job of goverment to decide what form of transportation I use! The best thing they could do is NOTHING!

Answer 7

It would cost me about £15 per day off peak to use public transport to get to work. I run a car anyway and it costs a lot less. The tube/railways are too expensive. I would cycle if the traffic wasnt so bad and the cycle lanes didnt have glass all over them.
The government needs to improve public transport- ie; look at commuter routes such as the M/A40 or the M4 and introduce more bus services from outside the M25. Many people working in London come from outside the M25 and use a car due to a lack of other options.

Answer 8

Hi as a disabled driver on the motability scheme, public transport is 1. Far to expensive / 2. Unreliable / 3. catering for disabled needs are few and far between although they are improving. But also in today's society i personally feel much safer within my car where i can lock my doors. Disabled people tend to feel more vulnerable on public transport, plus the biggist issue is public transport does not always take you where you want to go. An example my friend lives 6 miles from work and in this last week bus has broken down 3 times causing him to be late and recieve an official warning. The goverment can improve things drastically by improving local services giving people more insentive to use public transport. Most importantly reduce the price and improve reliability.

Answer 9

Nothing - I use public transport, cycle and walk to work every day and use a car occasionally. What would improve it was if the volume of road traffric was reduced, more 24 hour bus lanes were installed (and enforced) and a 20 miles per hour speed limit was imposed in town (and rigorously enforced) - these would make the roads safer and reduce the numbers killed and seriously injured on the roads each year

Another thing that would encourage more public transport, walking and cycling is relating the cost of motoring more directly to the number of miles driven - currently you pay the same insurance in most cases whether you drive 5,000 miles a year or 20,000 so if it could be made more of a pay as you drive system people would have an incentive not to drive and would be able to compare the costs of motoring and public transport more directly

Answer 10

Chris,

I cycle to all local destinations when I can go on my own. However I can imagine some being put off by the amount of traffic (selfish drivers who do not leave space a pet hate!) & lack of cylcle paths, and if I will not cycle with my son if we have to use the road. I work more than 20 miles away, and like others have said, driving by car is the only practical option here.

Another thing worth mentioning - lots of places only seem to be designed for vehicle access. Supermarkets & retail parks are a prime example of this - where I live hardly any have footpaths & places to park cycles, just lots & lots of car parking spaces! Tesco & Sainsbury are very poor in this area, however my local Asda & Lidl stores are very easy for cycling & pedestrian access. Guess where I shop?

The problem with Govt help is probably a split between national policy & local council policy. For example, cycle lane building would be a local decision, whereas laying new railway track would be national.

Why are the waterways & railways no longer used for freight? Surely they are ideal for transporting non-perishable items, like electronics & motor spares?