Tuesday 3 December 2013


Staying on the subject of things that annoys me I use the bus quite a bit and I’ve noticed recently that some people have taken to getting off the bus by the front door rather than the middle with the obvious result of meeting those getting on.  When did that start and why does it predominantly seem to be the elderly?

There’s also a growing tendency for people to stay in their seat until the bus has stopped before standing up to get off which causes significant delays when they are on the top deck.  Now I happily accept that from the elderly, disabled and those encumbered with children or other impedimenta but this seems to be a growing habit among the perfectly able young and middle-aged who could quite easily move towards the exit while the bus is in motion.

Then there are those that stand in the doorway, blocking those getting off but making no effort to get out of the way along with those who stand on the stairs, they annoy the hell out of me.  Or the people who wait at the bus stop, watch it as it approaches then only search for their Oyster Card once they’ve boarded the bus.  Or those who are plugged into their iPods so they don’t hear that their Oyster hasn’t swiped, making it necessary for the bus driver to bellow in order to attract their attention.  It all seems so self-centred, self-absorbed, discourteous and plain rude.  Am I old fashioned or just getting old and grumpy?  Meh......

On another transport matter I’ve just read that he Chinese conglomerate that owns Manganese Bronze, the makers of black cabs threatened with closure recently, have announced that they will be keeping the company open, expanding the workforce and eventually producing an electric version.  I heartily welcome the news, I’m a huge fan of the old familiar, friendly rounded shape of black cabs with its welcoming amber light on top, a beacon of hope on a cold winters night, but I will miss the distinctive chug of the four cylinder diesel engine, the comforting noise heralding that home was only a cab ride away. Maybe they could fit the electric ones with a MP3 player that reproduces the sound.

3 comments:

  1. I've noticed the front door thing too. I think the bendybuses, Boris buses and the few remaining Red Arrows have muddied the waters in that you are encouraged to board at any door so by extension get off at any door. I've also noticed that there is no longer a clear "NO EXIT" sign by the front doors on many buses so anyone not already in the habit has no way of knowing other than by seeing that things work more smoothly that way.

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  2. I must admit to using the front door of buses. However, I only ever do so after 9pm a relatively quiet bus. As long as I am at the front doors ready and waiting then it is better for the driver as (s)he doesn't have to wait for the doors to fully close before setting off.
    If the bus is busy and/or there are other people getting off at the back of the bus then I will just get off at the back.
    With me being from Newcastle though, this may be why as all our buses (with the exception of a few) only have front doors, with no middle doors.

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  3. I think one other factor is the introduction of sliding plug doors at the centre of vehicles. They don't have handrails on the doors whereas the swing inwards front doors do. Some older people like being able to hold on to these rails when alighting / boarding. Buses can also kneel more at the front door than at the centre thus reducing step heights. The old bendy buses could tilt over their full length but other buses don't have the same capability.

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