Almost there

Today is my last day of self enforced no car / motorbike usage.

This last week has probably been hardest as I see the end in sight. Monday my bus didn't arrive, and the next one was late. Tuesday I got soaked walking to the bus. Wednesday the bus soared past me just as I was about to cross the road to the bus stop, and this morning the bus was late again.

I've developed a few blisters from wearing the wrong sort of work shoes to do the 10 minute walk either side of the bus stop, but I've also found I'm getting fitter and I quite like my daily bouts of exercise (albeit that I prefer the walk when its dry and have perfected moving my anorak hood before looking to make sure my peripheral vision is correct!)

So at the end of the month not only have I not filled the car up several times (I've spent £34.50 on megarider tickets or I've used my bike), I've improved my carbon foot print considerably. I've driven at least 1000 miles less than I usually would have done, and as I have to carry home whatever I buy there has been a lot less kitchen waste in our house.

So just a few more hours to go and then I'll have the car back and can finally do a proper weekly shop - the thing I've missed most. But I'll still be using the bus on a regular basis and keeping the car for those occasions that I just can't get a bus to my destination.

The wheels on the bus ....

Once my sons were getting older I swore I'd never have to sing this song again (or grit my teeth through yet another snippet of title music / episode of Thomas the Tank Engine) but I find it keeps springing to mind at the moment.

There has been so much rain in the last few days that my bicycle is back in the garage and I'm making the most of using buses where available. That said, I have my last Parish Council meeting for the month tomorrow night and - you've guessed it - no bus so on my bike for one last ride in the dark.

But I keep coming back to the bus - or lack of it - in almost every meeting I sit in at the moment. In the City the bus service is frequent and reliable. I feel the need to keep reminding people that it's not like that just 6.7 miles from Shire Hall. 2 examples really struck home last week

1) the new blue bins
2) the Library service review.

I could rant for Britain on the subject of recycling so I was really pleased to see my blue bin arrive on Friday. I can recycle lots more - and I'm on a personal quest to see how much I can reduce our kitchen bin rubbish to. BUT ....... and it's a very irritating but .... I now have 4 large bins in my garden and 3 green boxes. The previous owners of my house had a larger family than I do so had a second black bin delivered. I now have 2 black bins, a green one and a blue one - plus those dreaded green boxes. The District Council have organised drop off points for people to return them to local supermarkets and other points - but if you don't drive it's a struggle to get them back by bus. And not everyone wants three garden boxes to grow tomatoes in!

The Library service review is another exercise in reminding people that it's not just distance from something that has to be taken in to consideration - the availability of transport has to run through all service reviews. If something is 7 miles away with no public transport, unless you drive it might aswell be in another County.

I'm in to the last week of my self imposed car and motorbike ban and the only thing I truly miss is the luxury of being able to pop to the shops and do a weekly shop. But it's been a much cheaper month - if we run out we wait until the next planned shop!

Almost finished or just getting started?

Having just spent the best part of the last week at the Lib Dem Conference in Liverpool I was stunned at how many people wandered up and asked me how it was going. Stunned because I wasn't sure that anyone outside Cambridgeshire knew I'd given up my car/motorbike for a month. But I've discovered that Julian Huppert MP and I have made Page 2 of Lib Dem news. A few thought I was mad and swore they'd never be able to give up their cars ..... but a significant proportion were intrigued to know what had made me do it and what I'd learnt. A few just wanted to know if I'd given in and cheated under cover of darkness.

My intention hasn't been to wear a hair shirt doing this - more to show what it's like if you don't have easy access to transport. So I have had the odd lift (getting from Caldecote to Harston at night when 3 others are going from your village - it seemed sensible to accept a lift) - but the car is still sat on the drive continuing to collect a thin layer of dust, and the motorbike sits in the garage behind it. I can't say that I don't have the odd pang when the sun shines and I can only look at the Thruxton without actually getting it out and on the road. But she hasn't been out!

For the last two weeks I've been using the bus and (for Liverpool) the train. I realise that I'm lucky to be fit enough to walk a distance to get the bus and whilst I continue to lobby for a better local bus service, the penny has dropped that if I take the bus it's cheaper than putting petrol in the car - and much much quicker to get around the City. And I'm finally starting to "really" enjoy it.

The train was a new experience. It's been so long since I've taken one that the world of pre booked ticket deals has been a real revelation (as was the fact that Euston to Liverpool was £132 one way - never have I been more relieved to have done my homework in advance). I'm very much a novice but I've got the bug now so there'll be a bit more surfing before my next journey.

But at this stage of the month I can honestly say that I'm coming to a major mindset change. It's no longer a chore to get out my bike or walk to the bus stop - it's something I look forward to - albeit I have now bought a handbag sized umbrella and better waterproofs.

And Julian has suceeded on another issue - It took him 18 months to get me to do this - and a mere 3 weeks to agree to do the Oxford to Cambridge bike ride. I haven't specified which ride yet but I'm sure he'll sort that out soon too.

So just getting started it is!

Hearing a pin drop

Cabinet Day at Shire Hall and some very important things on the agenda. It's always hard to go through serious case reviews in relation to the deaths of young people - distressing for both the families and the professionals involved.

The pin dropping moment came right at the end with the usual Guided Bus item. Up until the last 24 hours we've been promised that an end was in sight with the completion of the Southern section in December. Now we're being told January. If there wasn't so much money at stake it would be laughable - but this has the potential to be VERY expensive. All those promises about not costing the tax payers of Cambridgeshire a penny are starting to sound very hollow. When this is done and dusted and we finally get the Public Enquiry we've been calling for, I truly hope that we will see people accepting responsibility and accountability for their actions and inactions.

For me the first Tueday of the month brings a Parish Council meeting in Barton - again inacessible from Caldecote by bus. I was sorely tempted to turn around as the rain came down (and the correct answer to the rhetorical question "do I need my waterproof trousers?" is Yes - not NO!!!!) but I felt good for perservering. I have the option of a car on the drive at the end of this month - lots of people don't.

Monday and it's raining .....

Having had a day at home on Sunday and traveled nowhere at all, Monday sees me starting my week of trying to use the bus to get about.

Needing to be at Shire Hall for 10:30 - the 07:06 Number 14 Service was no use. It would get me in to Shire Hall 2 ½ hours early - and mean that I'd have to leave 50 minutes before my two teenage sons leave for school. And as anyone who has teenagers knows - they have a tendancy to go back to bed!

The Citi 4 got me in to work easily - and having looked at the price of a Mega Rider I think I'll be using it a lot more on those days that I just need to go in and back. If I need to do several stops in my 9 villages it's not going to work.

The evening was a bit more problematic as, being the first Monday of the month, I had Parish Council meetings in both Madingley and Toft. Put simply - there is just no way to get there by bus in the evenings in a timely fashion. I cycled to Madingley for 7:30 and then after 30 minutes I got back on my bike and rode to Toft.

I'll be honest and say I didn't enjoy the ride to Toft very much. The light rain, wind and exercise were fine. What I didn't like were the invisible lines distinguishing where the cycle paths were, the lack of any sort of lighting to ensure I wasn't about to hit a pot hole, and the car drivers who refuse to dip their main beam when they approach a cyclist - it's hard enough in the dark without being dazzled.

I'm learning lots as this month goes on .....

3, 4, knock at the door

My third day in and I'm getting the hang of things. Although I haven't been a reguar exerciser in a while (quite a while!) I really do feel better for the 40 mins ride in and the 40 mins ride back. I did find it noticeable that the schools were back with a vengeance however. There was more traffic on the road and school buses are a new factor to take in to consideration. Whilst my motorcycle training has ingrained a suspicion of how well some van drivers check their mirrors and blindspots before they pull out, I'm now getting to grips with the side stream caused by a bus whoosing past. Although technically there is a cycle path most of the way up Madingley Road as you come out of town - I feel very vulnerable as I get to the M11 turnoff and may consider going back to the cycle path on the other side of the road.


Saturday was a bit more of a personal challenge as I wanted to join the canvassers out in East Chesterton who are campaigning for our candidate Ian Manning. Much as I could get there by bike I'm not that keen on knocing on people's doors when I've just had a 50 minute workout. So I explored the bus opportunities.


The biggest complaint that Caldecote residents have about public transport is the lack of buses through the village. There is a frequent service from the Citi 4 which runs along the top of the village but it can be anything up to a three mile walk to get there. From my house I have a very brisk 10 minute walk to the bus stop - but I'm young(ish) fit and healthy and not struggling with heavy shopping bags or young children. For many residents in the village taking this bus is simply not an option. Their alternative is the 07:06 Number 14 service which takes 59 minutes to get in to town - and only runs Monday to Friday. If you can't acces the Citi 4 then you are stuck in the village all weekend.


Again I've seen bits of the City I haven't explored before because I walked part of the way. East Chesterton has some beautiful areas down by the river - and a great cycle network. Something we covet just 7 miles ouside the City Centre!

Day 2 - and a few revelations

The gremlins that attack our villages' broadband in peak hours got me last night and I'm posting this a little late. Although I'm aiming to highlight the lack of bus transport in the 9 villages making up the Hardwick Division, I'm sticking to bicycle for the first few days before experimenting with buses next week. Being brutally honest - it's hard work going from almost no exercise to cycling 14 miles a day and if I hop on a bus after the first few days I'll find it harder to get back on the bike next week. There’s only so much Gel you can get in a modern saddle.That said I'm actually enjoying riding in to Shire Hall each day. The weather is great, the exercise is making me sleep more soundly than I've done for years - and I found I actually looked forward to it this morning. And it's having a few unexpected effects! I've always been keen on planning ahead and my diary goes everywhere with me. But, not being able to hop in a car at the drop of a hat is making we question whether my journeys are essential - and so far other than Parish Council and Shire Hall meetings I've found that they're not. And once the family realised that I was 100% serious that the car was going nowhere - it's help to focus their minds on what they needed. School starts back today and there were no last minute requests for items last night. I've probably NOT driven 60 or 70 miles just in the last two days. My biggest revelation has been how much quicker it is to get about the City on 2 wheels, and what great rides there are - for example getting from Shire Hall to Newmarket Road by crossing Jesus Green and then riding alongside the River. I'm keen to explore more of the City this way now. For next week I'll have panniers in lieu of my current backpack and lights as I start my monthly round of Parish Council meetings.

But I AM enjoying it – mostly!