If the public transport was good enough, would you use it?

galwegians

of course i would use a decent public transport system, if it was reasonably priced and on time, but like everything in ireland if they started to talk about updating the shabby service we have by the time they have worked out what to do, put it to commitee in charge, deal with all the union issues that would arise, apply for planning, get a hearing to resolve all the objections. we should get something moving by 2028, long wait for a bus.

Iwannahurl

galwegians wrote: »

of course i would use a decent public transport system, if it was reasonably priced and on time, but like everything in ireland if they started to talk about updating the shabby service we have by the time they have worked out what to do, put it to commitee in charge, deal with all the union issues that would arise, apply for planning, get a hearing to resolve all the objections. we should get something moving by 2028, long wait for a bus.

And then four of them will come at once. :rolleyes:

squamata

Sold my car, and used buses in the winter.
It took me 1 hour to get to work, and 2 hours to get back home.
I live in Knocknacarra and work in Parkmore.

Now I'm commuting with my colleagues that leave nearby, or occasionally cycle.

Would use the bus, really, but changing buses in city center, and worse, having unpredictable timing for 33/35 buses, makes it all a bad experience

squamata

Would be nice to have a route from West to East. As a lot of people that live in West actually work in East side of the town.

That single change, would be a gigantic improvement.

Extras: Make them not pass through the city center, and be on time.

ciotog

celty wrote: »

Madame,

Cyclists have to weave in and out of traffic because motorsts simply leave them with no choice on Galway's narrow streets. I can't believe how many pull up at lights right up against the left hand kerb, leaving cyclists no option but to go out into the middle of the road.

You should be in the middle of the lane at a junction though. It's the safest place for a cyclist to be - you're visible to drivers and have the space to safely cycle through the junction. Being left of traffic leaves you at risk of entering a drivers blind spot - particularly dangerous on left-turn junctions.

inisboffin

ciotog wrote: »

You should be in the middle of the lane at a junction though. It's the safest place for a cyclist to be - you're visible to drivers and have the space to safely cycle through the junction. Being left of traffic leaves you at risk of entering a drivers blind spot - particularly dangerous on left-turn junctions.

You're dead right. However, the odd *sshole driver really doesn't like it when you are *blocking* cars by being in the middle of the lane, and expects you to 'move over'. I heard some eejit at a junction shout at a cyclist once "will you ever move over to the edge and stop taking up the whole road":rolleyes:
I think that's why some cyclists 'keep in'.

yer man!

So is the general consensus that people want to use public transport more but simply can't as it isn't good enough? and people would cycle more if the city was more bicycle friendly?

squamata

yer man! wrote: »

So is the general consensus that people want to use public transport more but simply can't as it isn't good enough? and people would cycle more if the city was more bicycle friendly?

I am unsure about cycling. IMO making city safer (whatever that means) will not convince many people to use a bike rather than a car.

With the buses - I'm sure your conclusion is correct. The system could be made much better, and some people are really hoping for it (like me).

celty

yer man! wrote: »

So is the general consensus that people want to use public transport more but simply can't as it isn't good enough? and people would cycle more if the city was more bicycle friendly?

Basically, yes. Since switching from the car to the bike abour three or four years ago, I love the fact that I know exactly how long it will take me to get to work.

But you need your wits about you to cycle in this town and it sure can be dangerous, mostly due to the odd inconsiderate motorist who either doesn't see you or doesn't care if he or she knocks you out of the way. But I still brave it, because most of my route does not involve one of the dangerous bigger roads.

On a really wet and windy morning, I still take the car. I just couldn't be bothered to walk down the road for a bus when I have no idea if it will be there on time and, then, how long it will take me to get into town.

yer man!

Actually out of interest, do any cyclists on here wear helmets? being Galway and all.....

Iwannahurl

squamata wrote: »

Sold my car, and used buses in the winter.
It took me 1 hour to get to work, and 2 hours to get back home.
I live in Knocknacarra and work in Parkmore.

Now I'm commuting with my colleagues that leave nearby, or occasionally cycle.

Would use the bus, really, but changing buses in city center, and worse, having unpredictable timing for 33/35 buses, makes it all a bad experience

I did the same commute by bike a few years ago. Took me 45 minutes, and one or two cyclists that were much fitter than me slagged me for being slow! I did have a heavy bike though, and I took a route that deliberately avoided those stupid and pointless "cycle paths".

Iwannahurl

yer man! wrote: »

Actually out of interest, do any cyclists on here wear helmets? being Galway and all.....

Lots of footpath cyclists do, but not many of those that exercise their right to cycle on the road.

IMO Galway City could be a great place to emulate Copenhagen's Cycle Chic. Helmets are not considered chic in this city of cyclists, but their use is creeping in all the same.

inisboffin

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Lots of footpath cyclists do, but not many of those that exercise their right to cycle on the road.

IMO Galway City could be a great place to emulate Copenhagen's Cycle Chic. Helmets are not considered chic in this city of cyclists, but their use is creeping in all the same.

Wow. I can't believe that article.
I'll admit to not wearing a helmet for City cycling, I'm not a daily biker at the moment. I do feel I should however, and if I find myself cycling more, I'm getting one.
My reasoning for this is not based on any stats, but on seeing the ground down helmet of a friend who was dragged by a car after being hit. He suffered injuries to the rest of his body, but had he not been wearing a helmet, that would have been skull that was ground. Ugh.

japanesebanana

YES. 100%. Living in Madrid now and things are so efficient here I don't know how on earth I'm going to manage being back in Galway. Walk mostly at home which is fine when the weather is dry. Had a girl from here go to my lab for a month and the worst thing she found was the public transport - prices and inefficiency.

snubbleste

japanesebanana wrote: »

YES. 100%. Living in Madrid now and things are so efficient here I don't know how on earth I'm going to manage being back in Galway. Walk mostly at home which is fine when the weather is dry. Had a girl from here go to my lab for a month and the worst thing she found was the public transport - prices and inefficiency.

I can see your point
Galway ~ 75,000 citizens
Madrid ~ 3,273,049 citizens

japanesebanana

snubbleste wrote: »

I can see your point
Galway ~ 75,000 citizens
Madrid ~ 3,273,049 citizens

What a great contribution. There are plenty of cities with similar populations to Galway which have excellent public transport. Ireland has 5 million people and neither Bus Eireann or Iarnoid Eireann are efficient or affordable. What's going to happen when the cities get excessively clogged up with traffic? We may not have as many people as Madrid but the traffic problem still remains. There's a city in Belgium which introduced free bus travel, increasing the usage X 12. I think it's a joke that the private company running bus services in Galway is worse and more expensive than the Bus Eireann.

Iwannahurl

japanesebanana wrote: »

What a great contribution. There are plenty of cities with similar populations to Galway which have excellent public transport. Ireland has 5 million people and neither Bus Eireann or Iarnoid Eireann are efficient or affordable. What's going to happen when the cities get excessively clogged up with traffic? We may not have as many people as Madrid but the traffic problem still remains. There's a city in Belgium which introduced free bus travel, increasing the usage X 12. I think it's a joke that the private company running bus services in Galway is worse and more expensive than the Bus Eireann.

The private bus service in Galway is pretty poor alright. I wonder what cities of similar size in the UK, Europe and further afield have managed to achieve?

I'm aware that Chester (which has around the same population as Galway) is supposed to be a Cycling Demonstration Town, and that they have a free bus service between the railway station and the city centre. Apart from that I have no idea whether their bus service and cycling facilities are otherwise regarded as exemplary.

However, there must be many other smallish (say 80-250 thousand pop.) cities in Europe and elsewhere that have done a good job of providing decent public transport, catering for cyclists and pedestrians and tackling car dependence and traffic congestion.

There is no necessarily causal link between the size of a city and the quality of its transport provision. For example, Graz (Austria) and Brighton (England) are similar in population size (c. 250,000). Graz has a population density of 760, whereas Brighton's is 2945 which would suggest that the latter might be better for public transport. In addition, car ownership in Graz is 474 per thousand pop. whereas in Brighton it's 360. Nevertheless, the car modal share for Graz is 52% -- for all trips -- compared to 69% for Brighton. (Source: Study of European Best Practice in the Delivery of Integrated Transport)

I'm not sure what the quality of urban life is like in Brighton, but Graz is often held up as a best practice example of integrated public transport. The authorities made a political decision long ago to promote sustainable transport modes and to tackle car dependence and traffic congestion. They have systematically prioritised mobility, convenience and safety for pedestrians, cyclists and users of public transport. For example, in the mid-1990s Graz became the first European city to introduce a 30 kph limit city-wide, and now more than 75% of its road network has this lower limit. Studies have shown that 30 kph zones are of major importance in allowing public transport to compete successfully with the private car.



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Mrs OBumble

Iwannahurl wrote: »

The private bus service in Galway is pretty poor alright. I wonder what cities of similar size in the UK, Europe and further afield have managed to achieve?

Agree that the private company operating in Galway City has some opportunities for improvement (don't ya love that management speak .. )

But in the wider county, the private companies provide a very wide range of services. For the last two years, the list has only had additions from private companies, it's only the state-owned company that has removed services.

Iwannahurl

In truth I tend to focus mainly on urban transport, especially that aimed at commuters.

However, regional and inter-city transport is also important, as if these are good then fewer people will travel into the city by car.

Par & Ride is also an essential part of the mix, I would think.

what_traffic

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Lots of footpath cyclists do, but not many of those that exercise their right to cycle on the road.

Perhaps its because footpath cycling is actually more dangerous. i.e just for the cyclist themselves. Hopefully over time they will migrate from the footpaths to the roads once they realise this.

ZRelation

what_traffic wrote: »

Perhaps its because footpath cycling is actually more dangerous. i.e just for the cyclist themselves. Hopefully over time they will migrate from the footpaths to the roads once they realise this.

How is footpath cycling more dangerous for the cyclist?

Iwannahurl

ZRelation wrote: »

How is footpath cycling more dangerous for the cyclist?

Suggestion (Mods also included): this would make a good discussion topic for another thread, if it hasn't already been done to death. Footpath cycling is very common and quite controversial. A debate in this thread would be off-topic, could generate a lot of interest/heat and yet might get lost because the OP is about public transport.

Just a thought. Not sure how approach the issue otherwise. I know I have already posted OT stuff in this thread.

Head The Wall

ZRelation wrote: »

How is footpath cycling more dangerous for the cyclist?

Well for starters its more dangerous for the pedestrians that are the only ones "supposed" to be using the footpath.

ZRelation

Head The Wall wrote: »

Well for starters its more dangerous for the pedestrians that are the only ones "supposed" to be using the footpath.

Yes...I would take that as a given. Its not actually what I was asking though, what_traffic suggested its more dangerous for the cyclist and I was wondering why.

Back OT though, I use public transport daily and hate it...I'm convinced most of the 2E buses show up whenever the drivers feel like it. Especially on Sundays/Bank Holidays. Usually end up getting the 9 despite the extra walk.

As things are now its very tempting to just hop in the car and save all the hassle, there's really no incentive not to.

Mrs OBumble

Iwannahurl wrote: »

In truth I tend to focus mainly on urban transport, especially that aimed at commuters.

However, regional and inter-city transport is also important, as if these are good then fewer people will travel into the city by car.

It's the private companies that have provided improved services from spots like Tuam, Mountbellew, Claregalway, Oranmore and Athenry.

I don't think we've seen improvements to the service from Clarinbridge, Barna or Moycullen (CityLink just took over the service provided by .. umm Michael Nees I think, but didn't change it). But there's plenty of scope, and under the current way of thinking they'll be considered as regional rather than city services.

FWIW, some of the searches I see people carry out make me think there's unmet demand from towns in east Galway too - places like Monivea and Abbeyknockmoy spring to mind. Not sure whether these folk are commuters or recreational travellers though.