David North

Musings on public transport, and a look round The Other University

So, full term ended yesterday, and I had to get over to Cambridge for a dinner. The X5 bus proved reasonable, both in terms of cost (£15 open return) and time, though the long stop to change drivers in Bedford lengthened an already long enough journey.

After a very pleasant afternoon being shown round Cambridge, I’ll have to begrudgingly admit to being impressed by it. King’s College Chapel, in particular, was spectacular. Even the weather wasn’t bad.

The train journey home from Oxford was tolerable, though prolonged by a needless half hour stop in Birmingham – it wasn’t so much the stop that annoyed me, but the fact that nobody bothered to tell us about it.

Yesterday only served to reaffirm my belief that public transport is mediocre at best, and ghastly at worst. Our rulers will have to try harder if they want to convince me not to use the driving licence lurking in my wallet, as soon as I can afford to…