In town without my car! Trying to be eco friendly - never again!

Back in September 2005, I worked in Birmingham City centre and based upon a region wide initiative to leave your car at home for the day, I decided to try out going to work on the train instead of using my gas guzzeling car. The following email is what I sent to all colleagues the night of my experiment in using public transport

-----Original Message-----
From: Michelle
Sent: Thu 22/09/2005 9:36 PM
To: ALL STAFF

Subject: In town without my car!

This email has absolutely nothing at all to do with work, it's also incredibly long (approx 3 A4 pages worth) - it's about my experience of 'in town without my car day'. Please feel free to delete this before reading another line, UNLESS you happen to work on transport issues, or you like to hear of other peoples trauma or your name happens to be FRAN!

Fran's recent email (about leave your car at home - get a free train pass into work on Tuesday 22 September (a date I will NEVER forget)) managed to set off the old guilt chip in my head! After all, I do a considerable amount of miles in the car, I am now seriously unfit and although I do a fair amount of recycling at home, I know I could be a lot 'greener' so to speak. So, I decided to take up CENTROs very kind offer of a free ticket and catch the train on 'in town without my car day'. I completed the online application for the free travel card! It arrived last week - I felt pretty proud of myself, being so brave and bold to leave the car at home and doing something for the environment and all that!

I had every intention of leaving the car at home today, in order to carry out my complete journey on public transport, however the first bus doesn't venture near our village until 7.30! I therefore left home in plenty of time to catch the 6.44 train from sunny Leamington Spa (I did think about going to Warwick Parkway, because there's more parking, but I thought, 'no, it's early enough, I'll be fine' - and indeed I was right, no problem parking), I was well prepared and had the exact change ready for the car park - £3.50 (a 2 pound, 1 pound and 50 pence coin) - I didn't realise the car park machine doesn't take £2 coins (how long have they been in circulation now?). I therefore went off in search of change, queued for the pleasure and consequently missed the 6.44 train! Next train 7.11!

Richard Branson arrived smack bang on time at 7.11. I entered the train thinking about all those awful stories told by colleagues re their permanent inability to find a seat on rush hour trains. Wow, there were empty seats galore. Oooh, this isn't going to be too bad after all I thought! I sat down and the ticket collector soon appeared (in fact his badge said Mike, Train Manager). I took out my Centro envelope, smiling with glee, expecting him to praise my usually lazy self for making the effort and catching the train. Instead, he just stared at my ticket and then he stared at me (as if I was a thief!) 'Ooooh, I don't think you can use that on here!' he said. I explained that it was keep the car out of town day and this was a free pass to get me anywhere in the West Midlands, 'not on a virgin train' came his retort! The woman sitting next to me said, 'All virgin staff deny any knowledge of free offers and special passes' with a wry smile on her face. He stared at me and then back at my newly found best friend - he obviously thought the better of taking on two early morning grumpy female passengers and said, 'I'll check it out in Birmingham'. I then began to panic, well, to be honest, I never actually read any of the literature that came with the ticket. Perhaps it was only for Centro trains? I'm still not sure!

Birmingham New Street - the train arrived on time and I stumbled out of the carriage onto an extremely chaotic platform, 'is there a hurricane on the way' I thought to myself. No, it's all the people who've left their cars at home! Gosh, aren't we such good, environmentally loving souls! I then spotted the lovely Lou Chilton (without the palsy ridden Mrs Pomme)! Excellent, someone to show me the way from the station to our place of work! We then enjoyed a 10 minute brisk walk in the early morning sunshine catching up with about 6 months worth of gossip. The first bonus of the day - spending quality (albeit breathless) time, with my buddy Lou.

Arrived at the office at 8.10. The journey has taken me an hour longer than usual, but that's fine, and I'm seriously ok about the loss of an hour on my flexi time sheet!

Rumours soon shot round the office that I'd left my car at home and that I was using the train today. By mid afternoon, I was collared to help carry some things (laptop, projector, papers etc, you know, the usual light, fits in your handbag kind of stuff) to the Priory Rooms, 'as I was going that way anyway!' 'OK' I said, 'I'll help you' as Shazza Gripper Doak released my neck. We left the office at just after 4pm, to the sound of the lovely Lou Chilton shouting, 'Don't get the virgin train, its always gets cancelled!' Right, I thought, I'll listen to the voice on the intrepid train traveller. We set off into the unknown world of the early rush hour public transport commuter zone!

I reckon RSOs should have credit cards or at least their own personal tab with the local taxi firm (no, I'm not joking) - it was a killer! Me and Shazza D (and Trudi, she joined us for moral support for part of the way (bit like a support walker on a charity sponsored walk) - but then she mentioned her dodgy ankle, which made me decide not to ask her to share the load), laden down with our own usual stuff, you know, the 60lb rucksack including laptop and papers for tomorrow's meeting etc, ducking and diving the masses on the streets of Birmingham, fighting our way through so we could drop off at the Priory Rooms hoping that we still have enough time to catch our train (that's the major downside of trains - the timetable - it never works in your favour!).

We left the Priory Rooms (both of us tending to our super long arms (remember the heavy bags) sore shoulders and aching backs) and set off to catch our trains. Sharon is a member of the Snow Hill gang. I felt a little vulnerable, as this was only my 2nd visit (in 10 years!) to this particular station. We looked at the train times - she had 10 minutes to wait until hers, I, on the other hand had 45 minutes!!!! So we sat and read the free paper that was thrust in our hands as we had walked in the station. The same paper people (not made out of paper) kept trying to give us the same publication as we struggled down Colmore Row. We got quite abusive towards them in the end and started shouting obscenities like 'do you honestly think we can carry any more?' Anyway, Sharon's train arrived, she departed and left me all alone! Oh dear, where's my platform?

My train got cancelled! Cheers Lou! This was the Chiltern / Chilton train!

So I waited 15 minutes for the next one. So did all those other people who had left their cars at home today!! The train arrived, I was scared! No, seriously, I was scared. Have you ever seen soooo many people push their way onto a 3 carriage train (which the train driver later informed us through his muffled speakerphone system, should have been 4 carriages - cheers mate! Where's the logic there? Give away 1000s of free tickets for people to catch the train for ONE DAY ONLY, and then say oh yes, let's take away one of carriages on the rush hour train - that should be a laugh, let's encourage all those newly acquired travellers to leave their cars at home everyday!) Anyway, I digress, back to the stampeding hordes! The British are good at queues? Are they? NO, they are NOT! Well, not at Snow Hill station they aren't! So they we are, all 7000 of us, squeezed in onto one single train. Let the train take the strain! Yes, I really do understand their advertising slogan now. I'm amazed it managed to get out of first gear when pulling out of the station!! They obviously forgot to add, 'and let the customer feel the pain' in their campaign. And yes, oh how I felt it!

I was one of the lucky ones, or so I thought, I managed to get a seat (no, I'm not British, I didn't queue either) and I sat at one of the tables next the aisle. This aisle was amazing, I really wish Norris McWhirter had been there! I can't believe you can fit that many people into one tiny train aisle. I'm really glad I'm only a fire marshall at work, if I had a health and safety role too, I'm sure I'd have been compelled to shout EVACUATE! It's true, ignorance is bliss! Yes, of course if this train crashes we'll all get out safe and sound - I kept repeating this to myself until we got to Lapworth station.

Dorridge, however, was the highlight of my journey. People who live in Dorridge are most definitely not British. They obviously don't queue, because EVERY SINGLE person who lives in Dorridge was on my train - sitting at the tables at the back of my train carriage (yes, I own it) - they had obviously elbowed their way onto the train and grabbed all the seats at the back! And then, when we arrived at Dorridge, the Dorridge people needed to get off the train. But everyone who was standing in the aisle (which seemed like the entire Man United supporters club) had to move about and climb into the luggage rack in order to make space for the Dorridge people to get off. I observed that all of the Dorridge people and all of the aisle people obviously go to our Friday morning early yoga sessions! They were seriously impressive in their movements! It's true, travelling by train does make you fitter, it certainly makes you supple!

Lapworth Station - there was a mass exodus here - it was at this point everyone's lips started to return back to their normal colour - we could all breath again. I reckon that most of the people that got off the train here, didn't actually live in Lapworth, they just realised if they didn't get off, they wouldn't make it home - EVER!

Arrived at Warwick Parkway Station - it was at this point I seriously wished I'd driven here and not to Leamington first thing this morning.

2 stations later and I'm back at my car! In one piece too! This is a true miracle - I had survived Centros run the gauntlet challenge! Trust me, I've walked 2 of the UK's highest peaks - Snowdon and Scafell Pike - they were easier than the Centro Challenge. I got home at 6.30pm.

We're on week 3 of our dry month (ie no alcohol during the week), but right now, as soon as I have sent this email, I'm going to DRIVE to the shop and get a bottle of wine!!

Please feel free to pass this on to Centro, I'm more than happy to be a case study in their attempt to get more people on the train! : )

PS, Guess who's got to get the train to London tomorrow? :-(

Have a great weekend

See you Monday

Michelle