Coronavirus and the effect on Public transport

Vic_08

.anon. wrote: »

In Dundrum, there are plenty of viable alternatives to single-occupant car journeys. The Luas, the 14, 44, 75, 175, improved cycling infrastructure. The only way to get people out of their cars is to make it the least attractive form of transport.

Blocking, restricting and congesting roads that bus routes also need doesn't create a modal shift away from cars, it does the opposite.

People will tolerate slow congested journeys in a car, they won't shift to slow unreliable bus services also stuck in that congestion.

The problem with so many of these schemes, particularly the half-baked ones that have been quickly pushed through to take advantage of covid 19 is that they are not designed with any consideration of their effect on public transport.

The lack of any measures to counteract the effect of increased traffic congestion on bus routes through Dun Laoghaire and Blackrock due to the closing of roads for DLRCC's cycle highway is a prime example of this.

Carrot and stick are needed, for the many who can not/will not use the sainted bicycle all these schemes provide are stick delivered with sanctimonious zeal that does nothing to convert anyone to the cause.

.anon.

Vic_08 wrote: »

Blocking, restricting and congesting roads that bus routes also need doesn't create a modal shift away from cars, it does the opposite.

People will tolerate slow congested journeys in a car, they won't shift to slow unreliable bus services also stuck in that congestion.

That's why additional measures need to be taken to ensure that buses have absolute priority, with bus lanes leading up to every major junction - people in cars need to be forced to watch buses speeding past, as traffic lights automatically change (for the bus lane only) every time a bus approaches. Also, ban all on-street parking along bus routes because parked cars cause huge delays on certain routes as bus drivers currently have to wait for 'permission' from oncoming traffic before negotiating their way past people's publicly-stored private property. People might think twice about slow congested journeys in their cars when they've nowhere to store it when they eventually get to their destination.

Vic_08 wrote:

The lack of any measures to counteract the effect of increased traffic congestion on bus routes through Dun Laoghaire and Blackrock due to the closing of roads for DLRCC's cycle highway is a prime example of this.

Increased traffic congestion on the 46a route into and out of Dun Laoghaire, for example, is caused by too many people choosing to go out for afternoon drives, not by road closures elsewhere. Buses should be able to over/undertake all those cars leading up to Honeypark, Bakers Corner and Deansgrange village. The number of cars on the road at any given time should have a minimal effect on buses.

dashcamdanny

Did you see what they did Lenards Corner on Clanbrasil street.

Bollards in the non mandatory cycle lane. Now a bus must take the two lanes . Blocking either the straight ahead or the right turn.

Its getting a bit ridicules what DDC are doing at this stage. Blocking bus routes with road furniture.

punisher5112

Bus now have to navigate pure madness....
Kerbing fitted out so far all vehicles are on the wrong side thus slowing the bus even further

GT89

punisher5112 wrote: »

Bus now have to navigate pure madness....
Kerbing fitted out so far all vehicles are on the wrong side thus slowing the bus even further

Not properly thought through

Tarabuses

GT89 wrote: »

Not properly thought through

I think that is an understatement.

Vic_08

.anon. wrote: »

That's why additional measures need to be taken to ensure that buses have absolute priority, with bus lanes leading up to every major junction - people in cars need to be forced to watch buses speeding past, as traffic lights automatically change (for the bus lane only) every time a bus approaches. Also, ban all on-street parking along bus routes because parked cars cause huge delays on certain routes as bus drivers currently have to wait for 'permission' from oncoming traffic before negotiating their way past people's publicly-stored private property. People might think twice about slow congested journeys in their cars when they've nowhere to store it when they eventually get to their destination.

Well that's transport in fantasyland sorted, meanwhile in Dublin the rabid pro-cycle lobby are getting measures pushed through that include none of the above, just road space that both cars and buses use being removed and restricted.

.anon. wrote: »

Increased traffic congestion on the 46a route into and out of Dun Laoghaire, for example, is caused by too many people choosing to go out for afternoon drives, not by road closures elsewhere. Buses should be able to over/undertake all those cars leading up to Honeypark, Bakers Corner and Deansgrange village. The number of cars on the road at any given time should have a minimal effect on buses.

What you believe should happen and what is happening are two very different things. All the bus routes through DunLaoghaire are being delayed by the additional traffic that has been removed from the coast road.

Wagging your finger and belittling the selfish motorists will not get them to use alternative modes. Cars delayed in traffic are slow journeys that people blame on traffic. Chronically delayed, cancelled and unreliable buses caused by congestion are blamed on the bus operators and people stop using them or use that as justification for sticking to their cars.

Lots of things SHOULD be done to improve public transport, instead we are seeing more and more cycle priority measures that are making bus travel in Dublin worse.

da_miser

GT89 wrote: »

Not properly thought through

Au contraire, i imagine the plan is to make traffic so bad in city center that the solution will be to bring in a congestion charge.

GT89

Vic_08 wrote: »

What you believe should happen and what is happening are two very different things. All the bus routes through DunLaoghaire are being delayed by the additional traffic that has been removed from the coast road.

Wagging your finger and belittling the selfish motorists will not get them to use alternative modes. Cars delayed in traffic are slow journeys that people blame on traffic. Chronically delayed, cancelled and unreliable buses caused by congestion are blamed on the bus operators and people stop using them or use that as justification for sticking to their cars.

Lots of things SHOULD be done to improve public transport, instead we are seeing more and more cycle priority measures that are making bus travel in Dublin worse.

Most of the traffic around DL was there before any cycle lanes were put in. The one way system in DL has absolutely nothing to do with high volumes of traffic at Baker's Corner or Deansgrange village which was a problem there before covid or cycle lanes in Monkstown or DL.

punisher5112

God help us all if or when life goes back to normal....

I want out of the driving, it's getting beyond ridiculous and dangerous too.

I don't want to be the one where someone is flattened.

.anon.

Vic_08 wrote: »

All the bus routes through DunLaoghaire are being delayed by the additional traffic that has been removed from the coast road.

That's not even slightly true of the 46A route (or the 75 or the 63). The three junctions I referred to (Honeypark, Bakers Corner and Deansgrange Village) are not affected by the removal of traffic from the coast road. Traffic there is heavier than normal because there are more people out driving - and at different times of day than would previously have been the case.

The same is also true of Bray, where there have been no road changes since Covid19... buses are being delayed by up to an hour on the Main St because there are too many cars between midday and 4pm, seven days a week.

Vic_08 wrote:

Wagging your finger and belittling the selfish motorists will not get them to use alternative modes. Cars delayed in traffic are slow journeys that people blame on traffic. Chronically delayed, cancelled and unreliable buses caused by congestion are blamed on the bus operators and people stop using them or use that as justification for sticking to their cars.

Years ago, I stopped driving to work because the same 'Xpresso' Dublin Bus overtook me at the same place on the Stillorgan Rd every morning. This was back in the early 2000s, when the traffic lights at certain junctions would turn green for the bus lane a few seconds sooner, thus giving them a head start over other traffic. I've no interest in finger-wagging or belittling anyone - it just needs to be (a) possible to get from a-b quicker by bus, and (b) blatantly obvious to motorists that this is the case.

OldGoat

Would anyone have a source for passenger loadings on DART services? I'm trying to find out how crowded (or un-crowded) the DART services are now that schools are back. Any figures I'm finding are quarterly or annual but I'm hoping to find something a bit more fine tuned.

Cyrus

OldGoat wrote: »

Would anyone have a source for passenger loadings on DART services? I'm trying to find out how crowded (or un-crowded) the DART services are now that schools are back. Any figures I'm finding are quarterly or annual but I'm hoping to find something a bit more fine tuned.

sorry i cant help for proper numbers but anecdotally as someone who takes the dart 3 mornings a week at 8.15am and back home at 5.45 pm from dalkey to ballsbridge and back

id say its maybe at 10-15% of normal capacity at those times, maybe less

devnull

Has anyone noticed a tendency for students / teenagers to congregate at the back of buses upstairs and then take their mask off when they get there in the knowledge that the driver cannot see them or do anything about it? I've also noticed adults very reluctant to go upstairs on such services, understandably why.

I have been in the UK a lot recently for work and family caring commitments and it's commonplace there in towns and mass crowding at bus stops without any social distancing, but I wondered if what I saw in Dublin this week is just anecdotal or it's common as well?

punisher5112

devnull wrote: »

Has anyone noticed a tendency for students / teenagers to congregate at the back of buses upstairs and then take their mask off when they get there in the knowledge that the driver cannot see them or do anything about it? I've also noticed adults very reluctant to go upstairs on such services, understandably why.

I have been in the UK a lot recently for work and family caring commitments and it's commonplace there in towns and mass crowding at bus stops without any social distancing, but I wondered if what I saw in Dublin this week is just anecdotal or it's common as well?

Pretty normal across the board....

Many get on with under the chin, not at all or as you say take it off.... Seeing many doing so to then talk on their phone, eat, drink or just don't want to wear it.

There is no checks or enforcement

Tickityboo

devnull wrote: »

Has anyone noticed a tendency for students / teenagers to congregate at the back of buses upstairs and then take their mask off when they get there in the knowledge that the driver cannot see them or do anything about it? I've also noticed adults very reluctant to go upstairs on such services, understandably why.

I have been in the UK a lot recently for work and family caring commitments and it's commonplace there in towns and mass crowding at bus stops without any social distancing, but I wondered if what I saw in Dublin this week is just anecdotal or it's common as well?

The back seats on the upper saloon are quite visible on the driver's monitor.
It's more a case of driver's couldn't be arsed to make a simple announcement for masks to be put back on.

StreetLight

Tickityboo wrote: »

The back seats on the upper saloon are quite visible on the driver's monitor.
It's more a case of driver's couldn't be arsed to make a simple announcement for masks to be put back on.

For all the good it would do.

devnull

Tickityboo wrote: »

The back seats on the upper saloon are quite visible on the driver's monitor.
It's more a case of driver's couldn't be arsed to make a simple announcement for masks to be put back on.

It's not always right down the very back, but the back half of the bus normally. Even when drivers have made an announcement the rare time in my experience kids are not listening.

GT89

Tickityboo wrote: »

The back seats on the upper saloon are quite visible on the driver's monitor.
It's more a case of driver's couldn't be arsed to make a simple announcement for masks to be put back on.

Do u make an announcement?

dashcamdanny

Tickityboo wrote: »

The back seats on the upper saloon are quite visible on the driver's monitor.
It's more a case of driver's couldn't be arsed to make a simple announcement for masks to be put back on.

Why would he/she in fairness. I gave up weeks ago.. All it brings is stress trying to take on the fight, while the rest of the passengers just sit there and watch you get roasted... Then post it on social media.
I nearly got into a serous fight over it not so long ago. And numerous arguments with inner city tracksuit scobbys..
"Look after yourself and dont get involved" Is my new mantra

If the company , NTA and government want it enforced, they can pay someone to do it.

road_high

dashcamdanny wrote: »

Why would he/she in fairness. I gave up weeks ago.. All it brings is stress trying to take on the fight, while the rest of the passengers just sit there and watch you get roasted... Then post it on social media.
I nearly got into a serous fight over it not so long ago. And numerous arguments with inner city tracksuit scobbys..
"Look after yourself and dont get involved" Is my new mantra

If the company , NTA and government want it enforced, they can pay someone to do it.

It’s not a drivers job to enforce (extremely questionable) “health” measures. They have enough to do to safely negotiate traffic and the roads. If nphet and all the other mask loving fruit loops want to micro enforce mask wearing them let them get on the buses and deal with it directly.

punisher5112

I'm not a Gaurd and I'm not a doctor, I don't want to get involved, I've had people ****ting out of them and starting arguments I don't need to go looking for it....

If the gubernment and company I work for cared then they would be getting enforcement measure in place....

They couldn't give a fluck

d51984

Was on the 31 route earlier ran special (full) from town once and from Howth twice. Handy day, general public dont give a ****.

bobbyy gee

i know some one in another country that got covid twice on public transport it might have been 3 times but they did not get tested the 3rd time luckly i don't have to take it but if i did i would get proper n95 or kn95 mask disposinle gloves and face shield

OscarMIlde

devnull wrote: »

Has anyone noticed a tendency for students / teenagers to congregate at the back of buses upstairs and then take their mask off when they get there in the knowledge that the driver cannot see them or do anything about it? I've also noticed adults very reluctant to go upstairs on such services, understandably why.

I have been in the UK a lot recently for work and family caring commitments and it's commonplace there in towns and mass crowding at bus stops without any social distancing, but I wondered if what I saw in Dublin this week is just anecdotal or it's common as well?

Incredibly common. A lot of teenagers/twenty year olds don't seem to give a crap about covid. Although saying that, people travelling on buses during a pandemic for non-essential social reasons probably give less of a damn about taking care than the general population anyway.

bk

Yes, my daughters primary school is next to a boys secondary school. I pick her up at 1, when it happens to be lunch time at the boys school. 200 lads literally jumping all over one another, licking each other and not a mask in sight.

I know it is typical teenage boy behaviour, so not surprising at all. But it really makes me think we are fecked and we will all be in the full April like lockdown again in a few weeks

punisher5112

bk wrote: »

Yes, my daughters primary school is next to a boys secondary school. I pick her up at 1, when it happens to be lunch time at the boys school. 200 lads literally jumping all over one another, licking each other and not a mask in sight.

I know it is typical teenage boy behaviour, so not surprising at all. But it really makes me think we are fecked and we will all be in the full April like lockdown again in a few weeks

Well I honestly hope not.

We do need people to see what the virus can do and people need to be shown how bad it was in the likes of Italy, Spain and now the US..... Etc.
So many here couldn't care less as it didn't affect them or anyone they know, luckily our death numbers were low but lockdown is only honestly going to cost more lives and destroy jobs and the economy too.

As its main strategy is attacking the older generation mostly then we need to put in seriously proper safety measures to protect and I believe they need to also up their game in many cases.... See so many not caring too.


If family and friends can't see them or visit then it's going to be one lonely life and in some cases lonely deaths. People are losing the will and hearts broken.


People especially younger need to have a but more understanding and honestly need to be getting treated like kids and not friends by the parents....

Tickityboo

GT89 wrote: »

Do u make an announcement?

Yep!! I've no problem making announcements I don't have to leave my cab and the majority of the time it does the trick.
The few times when people don't put them back
on after the announcement I don't peruse it and the other passengers can't complain that I didn't do anything.

GT89

Tickityboo wrote: »

Yep!! I've no problem making announcements I don't have to leave my cab and the majority of the time it does the trick.
The few times when people don't put them back
on after the announcement I don't peruse it and the other passengers can't complain that I didn't do anything.

Do u not just play the pre recorded annoucement find whenever drivers make annoucements themselves it's often quite hard to make out as the sounds gets muffled. Was on a bus a while back and couldn't make head nor tail of an annoucement the driver made as he was wearing a mask.

Tickityboo

GT89 wrote: »

Do u not just play the pre recorded annoucement find whenever drivers make annoucements themselves it's often quite hard to make out as the sounds gets muffled. Was on a bus a while back and couldn't make head nor tail of an annoucement the driver made as he was wearing a mask.

Yes I play the pre-recorded announcement aswell but I find the personal one more effective.
It also shows the other passengers that your making a bit of an effort too.

GT89

d51984 wrote: »

Was on the 31 route earlier ran special (full) from town once and from Howth twice. Handy day, general public dont give a ****.

Seems daft they were they all getting the bus to Howth. Firstly it wasn't even that nice a day and secondly the DART is a better option as it wouldn't go past "full".

GT89

bk wrote: »

Yes, my daughters primary school is next to a boys secondary school. I pick her up at 1, when it happens to be lunch time at the boys school. 200 lads literally jumping all over one another, licking each other and not a mask in sight.

I know it is typical teenage boy behaviour, so not surprising at all. But it really makes me think we are fecked and we will all be in the full April like lockdown again in a few weeks

I think if tried to pull that stunt again people wouldn't comply to the levels they did last time. Back in March most people were genuinely fearful now most people are a lot more relaxed in general. The only ones who seem concerned about the virus are those who are 50+. The biggest concern for most people now is their financial health

It's not just young people who are disregarding the restrictions plentynof people in the 30-60 age bracket who are going to social gatherings in people's houses too from what I gather from the likes of parents social circle who are both in their mid 50s. Birthday parties, BBQs, communions/confirmations etc. all going on and attended predominantly by older people.

suicide_circus

GT89 wrote: »

whenever drivers make annoucements themselves it's often quite hard to make out as the sounds gets muffled. Was on a bus a while back and couldn't make head nor tail of an annoucement the driver made as he was wearing a mask.

Thank you! Frequently incredibly hard to hear what drivers are saying over the PA, the microphones are obviously very low quality.

bk

GT89 wrote: »

I think if tried to pull that stunt again people wouldn't comply to the levels they did last time. Back in March most people were genuinely fearful now most people are a lot more relaxed in general. The only ones who seem concerned about the virus are those who are 50+. The biggest concern for most people now is their financial health

I bet you would have said the same about pubs and restaurants not being closed just two weeks ago and yet here we are.

I really, really hope the current restrictions work, but if they don't and hospitals are overflowing again, don't kid yourself, we will end up right back at strict restrictions *

Just like Israel is doing this week, with a full national lockdown and countries around Europe are heading towards again.

* They might not look exactly like they did back in April, our understanding of what is and isn't needed has changed, but still very strict.

GT89

bk wrote: »

I bet you would have said the same about pubs and restaurants not being closed just two weeks ago and yet here we are.

I really, really hope the current restrictions work, but if they don't and hospitals are overflowing again, don't kid yourself, we will end up right back at strict restrictions *

Just like Israel is doing this week, with a full national lockdown and countries around Europe are heading towards again.

* They might not look exactly like they did back in April, our understanding of what is and isn't needed has changed, but still very strict.

I think you are misunderstanding what I'm saying as I'm not saying there won't be restrictions all I'm saying is that those restrictions won't have the same level of compliance. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if they put in tougher restrictions.

More people now are not worried and don't care about the virus anymore. That can be seen for example by the crowds at the recent protests in the city centre. We don't have the Garda numbers to police a strict lockdown like other countries the last lockdown largely relied on public consent not Garda enforcement.

bk

GT89 wrote: »

I think you are misunderstanding what I'm saying as I'm not saying there won't be restrictions all I'm saying is that those restrictions won't have the same level of compliance. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if they put in tougher restrictions.

More people now are not worried and don't care about the virus anymore. That can be seen for example by the crowds at the recent protests in the city centre. We don't have the Garda numbers to police a strict lockdown like other countries the last lockdown largely relied on public consent not Garda enforcement.

In my own experience and circles, most people are certainly complying with restrictions. My daughter had a number of events and birthday parties over the next few weeks, all have now been cancelled, since level 3 has come in. And that includes parties in private homes. I think there is a social pressure at least amongst some circles not to be seen as breaking restrictions.

Of course some people won't give a toss, because they are selfish assholes. But they won't have many places to go anyway, if all the pubs/shops/offices/schools/etc. are closed and if the Gardai have roadblocks up again.

While the more who adhere to restrictions, the better, the truth is you don't need 100% compliance. You just need enough to reduce the rate of spread and "break the chains" as they are now saying in the UK.

But lets hope non of this is necessary, it will be very damaging to our economy.

Lets all work together and try and adhere to the current restrictions, so we can get the numbers down without stricter measures.

Potato_farl

I booked non-refundable tickets online last month with Irish Rail and was due to get the train to Belfast on the 2nd of October. I can't see any information about cancellation or refunds to due to Covid restrictions on the website. Does anyone know the procedure or if it's possible to get a refund?

ThunbergsAreGo

bk wrote: »

I bet you would have said the same about pubs and restaurants not being closed just two weeks ago and yet here we are.

I really, really hope the current restrictions work, but if they don't and hospitals are overflowing again, don't kid yourself, we will end up right back at strict restrictions *

Just like Israel is doing this week, with a full national lockdown and countries around Europe are heading towards again.

* They might not look exactly like they did back in April, our understanding of what is and isn't needed has changed, but still very strict.

Even without Covid dont hospitals overflow every winter?

CIARAN_BOYLE

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

Even without Covid dont hospitals overflow every winter?

That's the fear. A normal winter stretches the health service. A normal winter with covid on top could break things.

GT89

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

That's the fear. A normal winter stretches the health service. A normal winter with covid on top could break things.

I don't buy that personally

bk

GT89 wrote: »

I don't buy that personally

What is there not to buy?!

This is what NPHET and pretty much every health care professional in Ireland has been warning about for months now.

Somehow I think they know much better then you or I.

Last April every ICU bed was taken and they were into overflow wards and that was without flu. In a normal winter/flu season our hospitals overflow badly just treating flu cases and normally just about manage by curtailing non emergency treatment so they can focus on more serious cases.

Now add the much deadlier Covid19 on top of that and you are into a very serious situation.

Covid19 cases are currently flying up, numbers in hospital and ICU are going up and we aren't even into the Winter or Flu season yet!!

Hopefully we can avoid all this, but it really is the nightmare scenario for our health care professionals.

gmisk

Potato_farl wrote: »

I booked non-refundable tickets online last month with Irish Rail and was due to get the train to Belfast on the 2nd of October. I can't see any information about cancellation or refunds to due to Covid restrictions on the website. Does anyone know the procedure or if it's possible to get a refund?

Tbh if I was you I would tweet them they tend to get back pretty quickly on Twitter

dublinman1990

The HSE Winter Plan is being officially released tomorrow or Thursday.

Will it contain any measures for all PT staff to get the flu vaccine for free in the lead up to winter?

GT89

bk wrote: »

What is there not to buy?!

This is what NPHET and pretty much every health care professional in Ireland has been warning about for months now.

Somehow I think they know much better then you or I.

Last April every ICU bed was taken and they were into overflow wards and that was without flu. In a normal winter/flu season our hospitals overflow badly just treating flu cases and normally just about manage by curtailing non emergency treatment so they can focus on more serious cases.

Now add the much deadlier Covid19 on top of that and you are into a very serious situation.

Covid19 cases are currently flying up, numbers in hospital and ICU are going up and we aren't even into the Winter or Flu season yet!!

Hopefully we can avoid all this, but it really is the nightmare scenario for our health care professionals.

Look to be perfectly honest and it's only my own opinion that covid is not quite as serious as is being made out by the media fearmongering which is what it is at this stage. I could understand the need for the some of the measures that were taken back in March as we were dealing with the unknown but know a hell of a lot more now than we did back in March. I think it's time we lived with the virus not go back to lockdowns or other highly restrictive measures.

And you have to admit there has been an element of fearmongering for example look at the way supermarket shelves were stripped bare back in March and I'm beginning to notice from working in a supermarket that it is starting to happen again albeit to a lesser extent.

Bonkey_Donker

bk wrote: »

What is there not to buy?!

This is what NPHET and pretty much every health care professional in Ireland has been warning about for months now.

Somehow I think they know much better then you or I.

Last April every ICU bed was taken and they were into overflow wards and that was without flu. In a normal winter/flu season our hospitals overflow badly just treating flu cases and normally just about manage by curtailing non emergency treatment so they can focus on more serious cases.

Now add the much deadlier Covid19 on top of that and you are into a very serious situation.

Covid19 cases are currently flying up, numbers in hospital and ICU are going up and we aren't even into the Winter or Flu season yet!!

Hopefully we can avoid all this, but it really is the nightmare scenario for our health care professionals.

The cold/flu thing will be interesting as the methods of transmission is similar to that of COVID. So in theory, and hopefully in practice, the number of cases of both, particularly flu, will be greatly reduced as well through the restrictions/social distancing etc.. Or we can at least hope so.

Potato_farl

gmisk wrote: »

Tbh if I was you I would tweet them they tend to get back pretty quickly on Twitter

Thanks for the advice. They told me to send them an email to customer care. 10 minutes after sending the email I received a reply that the booking was cancelled and a full refund was being processed.

bk

dublinman1990 wrote: »

The HSE Winter Plan is being officially released tomorrow or Thursday.

Will it contain any measures for all PT staff to get the flu vaccine for free in the lead up to winter?

I'd hope so. VHI came to my office last year and gave everyone the flu vaccine for free. Hopefully they will do the same for PT staff and all front line staff in all industries.

GT89 wrote: »

Look to be perfectly honest and it's only my own opinion that covid is not quite as serious as is being made out by the media fearmongering which is what it is at this stage. I could understand the need for the some of the measures that were taken back in March as we were dealing with the unknown but know a hell of a lot more now than we did back in March. I think it's time we lived with the virus not go back to lockdowns or other highly restrictive measures.

This is what "living with the virus" looks like. Some people seem to have thought that means we just ignore it, go back to normal and leave people die.

In reality it means ongoing restrictions and lockdowns as is needed.

It means life isn't normal unfortunately.

Bonkey_Donker wrote: »

The cold/flu thing will be interesting as the methods of transmission is similar to that of COVID. So in theory, and hopefully in practice, the number of cases of both, particularly flu, will be greatly reduced as well through the restrictions/social distancing etc.. Or we can at least hope so.

Yes, this happened in Australia and New Zealand, flu was way down due to the Covid19 restrictions during their flu season.

However other southern hemisphere countries in South America, Africa, etc. saw the flu as bad as ever. So it seems to depend on how strictly people adhere to Covid19/flu restrictions. But yes, very much fingers crossed on this.

GT89

bk wrote: »

This is what "living with the virus" looks like. Some people seem to have thought that means we just ignore it, go back to normal and leave people die.

In reality it means ongoing restrictions and lockdowns as is needed.

It means life isn't normal unfortunately.

It's clear covid is only deadly to those with serious underlying health conditions. Yes healthy people have gotten it and died but they are very few and far between.

The fact of the matter is covid is not going anywhere anytime soon. An effective vaccine is likely to not come about. Shutting the economy every couple of months is not effective way of living with a virus which has a low mortality rate. We should live with it in the same way we live with HIV, the flu, the common cold and plethora of other viruses that circulate in our world.

bk

GT89 wrote: »

It's clear covid is only deadly to those with serious underlying health conditions. Yes healthy people have gotten it and died but they are very few and far between.

Well that is very pleasant of you. I'm guessing you are young and healthy, so you didn't care about all the other people this might kill!

Don't you care about your parents or grandparents? Are you really ok with seeing them die?

Underlying health conditions include being overweight or obese. Well 60% of people are overweight or obese in Ireland. 1 in 8 people in Ireland have asthma.

Midnight_EG

bk wrote: »

Well that is very pleasant of you. I'm guessing you are young and healthy, so you didn't care about all the other people this might kill!

Don't you care about your parents or grandparents? Are you really ok with seeing them die?

Underlying health conditions include being overweight or obese. Well 60% of people are overweight or obese in Ireland. 1 in 8 people in Ireland have asthma.

And 1 in 2736 of all people in Ireland have 'died from Covid 19' ....buuuuuuuut only circa 100 people didn't have underlying conditions meaning this 'flu' has killed 1 in over 49,000.


And you're still scared of it