Over the last week or so we have had some of the best weather so far this year. Sunny and dry, little wind and the children have just gone back to school. What we now get for the next 6 weeks are the more mature holiday makers. They come down on coach holidays because it is quieter and no longer High Season. The holidays may cost slightly less but I am afraid the bus fares don't go down. After 18 months of free(1) bus travel at home, having to pay for your bus fare comes as a bit of a shock. One thing that always happens is one elderly chap will get on the bus clutching a 5 pound note and waves his 5 companions on to the bus saying, "I'll get the bus fares, you can buy the first round." Then he turns to me and asks for, "Six returns to Brixham please and I am sorry I have nothing smaller." At this point I wonder do I know enough about what to when someone has a heart attack on the bus platform when I punch in the numbers on the ticket machine and press issue 6 times and brightly ask for, "£22.80."
An other problem we have with these holidaymakers is timing. They all have breakfast at the same time and then go for a sit down in the hotel lobby while the all decide to go to Brixham, all at the same time, 10:15. This morning I had just left the Strand in Torquay heading for Paignton and Brixham via the bus stop at Belgrave Road. There are lots of hotels in Belgrave Road and about 75% of the guests are standing at the stop waiting for little old me. I know it isn't personal but I have a little problem, I'm a 12A which goes the long way round to Brixham and takes an hour to get there; the 12 only take 40 minutes so it is better for them to get a number 12. It is a lot of explaining and not all believe the horror story of what a trip to Brixham is like on a 12A. Still they get there in the end. So on to Paignton Bus Station where an other large crowd await. Including a young lady seated in an electric wheel chair. A brand new electric wheel chair. Which she has not yet quiet got the hang of. I get out of the bus and put the ramp down so she can get on the bus but one of the wheels misses the ramp. I manage to grab the chair before it topples over and redirect so we manage to get it on the bus. It was even worse getting it of the bus, she managed to jam it in the aisle. a bit of brute force and swearing under breath got it out and of the bus but all this took time. We finally got to Brixham 1 hour 15 minutes after leaving Torquay and those passenger who hadn't believed me when I said, "Wait for a number 12, it will get you to Brixham quicker than me." certainly believed me now.
Rest of the day passed by without much noticeable incident. Oh, an X46 broke down and blocked Union Street for a few minutes. I was no where near. Oh, and who ever the driver is who like to make odd noises on the radio is still at it. I wish he would get some help before the rest of us need help. It's very childish and very annoying.
Footnote (1) No such thing as free bus travel; lots of tax payers somewhere have to pay for it.
2 comments:
With reference to your last post:
In Cambridge we have a 90 degree bend on a narrow road leading to the bus station. Just as you round the corner on your way to the bus station you come across the bus interchange where all the city circle style routes and park and ride buses go. Un fortunately despite the road being three lanes wide you get heavy congestion because there is 8 city circle services (7 going both ways) and 5 park and ride services all trying to stop and unload passengers and then squeeze past the bus thats stopped in front of them. this is not helped by the bend leading out of this road as in order to get round it the buses have to pull out across to the other side of and road and nearly hitting some idiotic taxi driver coming the other way in the middle of the road on his mobile!
I think your help for the wheelchair user was highly commendable.
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