(20 Oct 2020, 10:01 pm)Ambassador wrote Public transport is the biggest barrier getting people back to our offices tbh, we’re looking at February at the earliest now for a return. All my peers are saying the same thing tho we’re seeing small pockets of childcare issues too, public transport remains our biggest issue.

We’ve had 4 positive tests within our operational team of 60 and all of them are public transport users. Now there’s no suggestion at all that’s where they caught it but once it gets around WhatsApp and Yammer that they are non car users that’s it. Guilt by association and when you see local press running with mask less  metro passenger stories and twitter and Facebook posts about buses, it’s no surprise we can’t build confidence and it’s hard to see what anyone can do.

Let’s be honest if you used a bus and everyone socially distanced and wore a mask you ain’t gonna post on twitter about it, the opposite you would.

And if I’m brutally honest if my team asked would I use a bus or metro at the moment, my answer would be no.

Interesting, where I am the local authority are running a campaign 'Because you care, please don't car share'. Whilst not explicitly pro-public transport, it's encouraging people onto buses by detracting them away from car sharing. On the odd occasion I've been without my car since COVID, I've opted for the bus over a taxi as I feel buses are more COVID secure in that I can generally have a contact free journey - doors are opened for me, payment is contactless and I'm able to sit without touching any grab points. In a taxi I'd have to use the internal & external door handles & seatbelt, many taxis still only accept cash and I cannot properly distance from the driver.