Policy Officer Aidan Campbell
reflects on his recent public transport experiences in response to Translink’s
Get on Board NI campaign which is encouraging more people to use public
transport.
Image by Tim Doak
I live in a
place called Derrytresk, a rural townland about 3.5 miles outside Coalisland in
County Tyrone. Where I live is also only
about 1.5 miles away from the Tamnamore Roundabout Park and Ride so, although
my home is rural, it can’t be considered remote. Like most rural households we rely on our car
for the almost all journeys. A few weeks
ago, due to a car breakdown I had to use the bus for a few days. Working from home isn’t an option as the
broadband speed is so poor but that’s another story.
On the first
day the clutch went, I had the kids in the car and managed to drop them to
school before limping back home. The
time was now 8.20am. I looked at the
Translink website and saw the next bus serving Cookstown from Tamnamore Park
and Ride was departing at 9.40 and would have me in Cookstown at 10.25. Not ideal.
My next best option was a bus departing from Coalisland at 9.23 arriving
in Cookstown for 9.53 which was better.
Next step was getting to the bus stop.
A phone call to a friend confirmed I could drop my bike at her house for
the day. A quick cycle to Coalisland up
the Canal towpath and I caught the 9.23 bus and arrived in the office before
10am.
On the
second day I was headed to a conference in central Belfast starting at
10am. That was an easier journey with a planned
drop off at the Park & Ride by my wife on her way to work. I then caught one of the frequent morning
buses to Belfast that serve the Park and Ride.
A quick trip down the M1 had me in Glengall St Bus Station at 9.30am and
on time for the conference I was attending.
These two
different journeys, one undertaken at the last minute and one planned in
advance demonstrate some of the challenges for rural citizens who need to use public
transport. The car breakdown at 8am
meant that I had missed the bus from Coalisland that arrives in Cookstown
before 9am. I also had to cycle to
Coalisland and find somewhere to store my bike for the return journey that
evening. The pre-planned journey to
Belfast using the Park and Ride was convenient and was a better option than
driving. I was able to respond to emails
on the bus and had none of the usual hassle or expense of car parking in the
city centre.
The hub and
spoke model which connects arterial routes to Belfast has the potential to move
more people from cars onto public transport.
My local Park & Ride opened in 2015 and is well used by people using
public transport and for car-sharing.
This reduces vehicles on the road easing congestion, reducing emissions
and travel times. The only downside was
the £17 return bus fare. Park & Ride
facilities are expensive to develop and need to be of a certain scale on high
demand routes to be viable. Journeys on
low demand routes are more problematic and less economically viable to provide. For many people their journeys are not linear
and include drop offs to childcare or schools before work. In my case, If I had a disability or was
unable to cycle I would probably have had no option except to take a taxi.
Translink’s
Get on board campaign is primarily focused on encouraging public transport use
particularly in Greater Belfast to reduce congestion. Public transport, as its currently configured,
is not a realistic option for most rural journeys.
