Taxi Ranks

[GirlsBike2]

It's a joke, the council will fine you if you don't recycle, but won't push for more late night buses so there's less taxis on the road?

Out Alford way the last bus is at half eleven and only takes you as far as Monymusk, then it's 20 to get to Alford from there... so you're 26 just to get home.

No wonder there's so many drunk drivers out here - when the pubs close, everyone climbs into their car and no-one stops them!

[Pierre Von Mondragon]

The UK is a transport joke, full stop. Out at a stag do in Amsterdam, I decided I'd had enough about quarter to two, left the club at 1:50, and was on a bus (the stop was at Rembrandtsplein, outside the club) at 1:55, and back at the campsite by 2:10, easily negotiated, even when mashed. Thats the way to do it, not our chancers charter fuckin de-regulated pish.

[Strat Harry]

The UK is a transport joke, full stop.....Thats the way to do it, not our chancers charter fuckin de-regulated pish.

well said that man... i cant believe how compliant aberdonians are. grampian regional transport was significantly cheaper, ran longer, with more frequency (even to less well populated routes) primarily because its mission statement was to serve the community...

our incumbent bus company seeks only to serve its share holders. fundamentally there is a conflict of interests when the only green option involves lining the pockets of a greedy, poor performing organisation who has a distinct contempt for its customers...

pretty much every year i go to amsterdam, the difference in transport philosophy and infrastructure is sickening (and its not just amsterdam - but it does make for a very good comparison)

[Cloud]

The public transport service here is a dream compared to Aberdeen - 20 pounds a month buys you unlimited access to buses and trams, along with night buses that go anywhere where you might possibly need to go at night. There's often quite a bit of duplication too - for instance, from my osiedle (estate), there's three tram services going to the centre of the city, along with a bus service and some other bus services that don't go into the centre, but nearby. Trams and buses run every 20 minutes at the most, and during the day, you'll never wait longer than 3 minutes for a tram.

Only bad thing is that the trams are mostly completely rotten - but they run on time and they do the job.

[Alkaline]

The public transport service here is a dream compared to Aberdeen - 20 pounds a month buys you unlimited access to buses and trams, along with night buses that go anywhere where you might possibly need to go at night. There's often quite a bit of duplication too - for instance, from my osiedle (estate), there's three tram services going to the centre of the city, along with a bus service and some other bus services that don't go into the centre, but nearby. Trams and buses run every 20 minutes at the most, and during the day, you'll never wait longer than 3 minutes for a tram.

Only bad thing is that the trams are mostly completely rotten - but they run on time and they do the job.

True, in comparison the UK's public transport system is terrible. However, there is less chance of me waking up in a bath full of ice with both my kidneys missing here than there is in Poland. Thank heavens for small mercies

[Cloud]

True, in comparison the UK's public transport system is terrible. However, there is less chance of me waking up in a bath full of ice with both my kidneys missing here than there is in Poland. Thank heavens for small mercies

Some guy shouted at me today, because I was with a friend and we kept laughing at his impressively-large nose. And he smelled of rotten fish heads

But it does seem to be a particularly-UK thing to have dreadfully expensive/useless public transport - but that's what happens when it's not funded in any way, I guess.

[Scorge]

that's crazy that they've stopped the nightbus to stoney. is there still one to portlethen or has that stopped as well? it was surely pretty busy still wasn't it?

Portlethen buses have been stopped aswell. Because of how far out I live, my best bet nowadays is drying out in the casino till 5am then gettting the first train/bus combo and crawl in the dooooooor at half six.

Unless I score, of course.

[Cloud]

They've stopped the Porthlethen buses??!

Are Stagecoach doing this, knowing fine well that Aberdeenshire Council will end up having to offer a subsidy in which they make a killing off, seeing as the late night buses were always quite busy out that way?

[KarmaTsunami]

It's ridiculous. I used to enjoy going out on a Friday, but I'm not a fan of Saturday nights out. I know there was some trouble with 'anti-social behaviour' at one point but I have no idea if that's why they pulled the service or not.

[Chris]

I know there was some trouble with 'anti-social behaviour' at one point but I have no idea if that's why they pulled the service or not.

There's been anti-social behaviour on the nightbuses south forever. That's just what happens when you get loads of pissed blokes from different communities having to share a bus together for an hour. It did improve a lot once they started putting on a seperate bus for Porty, then it was just the Newtonhill folk that were left to fight with the Stoney crowd.

[pogofish]

They've stopped the Porthlethen buses??!

Are Stagecoach doing this, knowing fine well that Aberdeenshire Council will end up having to offer a subsidy in which they make a killing off, seeing as the late night buses were always quite busy out that way?

Both Stagecoach & First - I think they work pretty hard to present a unified front to the City/Shire.

IIRC, their excuse for threatening to cut the nightbuses was along the following lines:

"We have tailored our fleet & staffing to our currently planned routes. If you insist on us not cutting out all the routes we want, the only thing we can do is cut the nightbuses instead"

So yup, that sounds like a thinly veiled demand for more cash.

[Pierre Von Mondragon]

Thats not as mental as the 40 I was going to be charged for a citylink return from Glasgow to the 'deen last weekend. I laughed at the kiosk operant, and went and got the train for 42. The only point of those crappy buses is that they are cheap, if they aren't then they are worthless.

[Jeanette]

They're only really cheap if you book them in advance. On the day bookings tend to be 20 single or something like that.

[Guest treader.]

Some guy shouted at me today, because I was with a friend and we kept laughing at his impressively-large nose.

i mean, really?? dont you have anything better to do?

[Cloud]

So yup, that sounds like a thinly veiled demand for more cash.

And no bus company apart from Stagecoach have little/any chance of winning any tender for a subsidised night route, so they're absolutely laughing their way to the bank.

First Bus in Aberdeen is subsidised partially by council tax. Appauling isn't it? The prices have now risen to 2 for a single for more than 5 stages (Which appears to be anything greater than the length of Union Street these days' date=' an all day peak ticket is now 4. I think it's 3.80 for off-peak but don't quote me on that). Complete shite. Its also up to 58 for a monthly pass. I can't see how it can be any cheaper than just driving to work. Surely your petrol wouldn't come to 4 a day for a run from the city centre to Altens?[/quote']

It's an absolutely dreadful state of affairs - how can it do anyone any good to have the dominant transport operator running the subsidised routes as well as the unsubsidised ones? I know it's a free market and so on - but I think a move to the London style system, where you're told how to run almost every aspect of the operation makes a lot more sense.

In relation to the cost of Citylink fares - a return to Berlin from Poznań (about 150 miles, so similar to Aberdeen-Glasgow), walkup, is about 30 euro. It's even cheaper if you take the slow trains in each country - which sometimes aren't even much slower.

In my opinion, it would be nice if the running of night services was linked to the approval to run bus routes - ie, if you want to run Stonehaven-Aberdeen, then you run night services too. It'll never happen, though

i mean' date=' really?? dont you have anything better to do? [/quote']

Cheer up Ewan, you can't go through your entire life being dull

[Alan Cynic]

Bring back Aberdeen Corporation Transport!

It was great when they had conductors who gave you change, and made sure the junkies were behaving.....oh,hang on...no junkies either!

(although I still retain a very sad memory of losing my home-made dalek on a no.23 to Mastrick, c.1963...it was fashioned from a glace cherry carton, topped with abit of an egg-box, and finished off with meccano bits for 'eye', weapon etc).

On topic...thank Aluko that I live near enough the city centre, so I can walk most places I need to go.

[Cloud]

Change? On a city bus? Stop spreading such nonsense Alan

[Guest Bob]

I still retain a very sad memory of losing my home-made dalek on a no.23 to Mastrick, c.1963...it was fashioned from a glace cherry carton, topped with abit of an egg-box, and finished off with meccano bits for 'eye', weapon etc

If anyone has any new information that may shed some light on the whereabouts of this much-missed toy please, do get in touch.

[Alan Cynic]

Cheers, Bob! It would mean a lot!

Just out of interest...how much would a short taxi journey be, nowadays...say from Union Street to Summerhill?

[Nev]

When I lived in Roslin Place (ie overlooking Matalan carpark), it was a fiver from Union St. No doubt that's risen...

[Bigsby]

(although I still retain a very sad memory of losing my home-made dalek on a no.23 to Mastrick, c.1963...it was fashioned from a glace cherry carton, topped with abit of an egg-box, and finished off with meccano bits for 'eye', weapon etc).

I think this is one of the saddest things I have ever read.

Sniff.

[Scootray]

I think this is one of the saddest things I have ever read.

Sniff.

The fact that he had a home made dalek, or are you genuinely gutted for him?

[Bigsby]

The fact that he had a home made dalek, or are you genuinely gutted for him?

Genuinely gutted. Although I get upset about wierd things. I remember getting upset at the end of Any Which Way You Can because Clint Eastwood's nice white T-shirt got ripped during the climatic fist fight between Eastwood's character Philo Beddoe and bare knuckle champ Jack Wilson.

Sniff.

[Neil]

Well, from the backwynd rank it costs me 3 in the day to get to my flat (near little italy on holburn street) and it's around 6 at night. It takes roughly 12 minutes to walk sober and about 20 minutes to walk sozzled. The taxi prices have definately risen.

Please tell me you don't take a taxi instead of making that "harrowing" 12 minute walk back home! o_O

[Chris]

Please tell me you don't take a taxi instead of making that "harrowing" 12 minute walk back home! o_O

This is the kind of thing I was thinking about the other week. The EE had vox pops with people who were queuing at the night ranks and asking them what they thought. There was a few who had locations beside their names that were only 10 or 20 mins walk from the city centre (Kittybrewster, Holburn, Rosemount).

Taxi queues would be much better if lazy bastards who effectively live in the city centre didn't get taxis.

Obviously though, because someone's bound to counter the above with this example, girls walking home on their own are allowed to get a taxi and not be called lazy. Even if they are really.

It's also acceptable if it's raining.