May be a silly thing but thought I would share with any Canadians recently arrived or due to arrive in the
UK which I wasn't aware of.
If your using public transport, and its highly recomended if you plan on being in the Greater London area due to high costs of owning/running a car, it is good to know that it is not run by one universal company or govt subsidised transport agency.
Keep in mind that in most of the major cities in England it is almost impossible to find totally "free" parking, the "free parking" usually is offered to customers only (who pay £1 to get a ticket then get refunded their £1 coin at the store's checkout counter or get it knocked off the total bill upon presenting the parking ticket) and considering how small and windy (alot of single lane streets!) the streets are, its not easy finding a legal parking spot on the side of the streets and you may just come back to your car with a ticket on the windscreen and find your wheels clamped.
The only exceptions are perhaps the tube (underground/metro/subway) and the tram (like they have in San Fransisco that share the streets with cars) which may be operated by one company & may have an alliance or agreement with another transport company (ie; bus company) depending on which city or town your in.
The buses however are run by all sorts of different companies, so just because you paid your fare on one bus, if you need to change to a different bus or you catch a different branded bus on the way back, you will have to pay again for passage.
Some bus companies share route numbers, ie; you catch the 524 bus to Manchester and it's a First Choice brand bus, you may then see a 524 bus branded by Magic Bus (making that bit up) & have to pay a new fare to get back unless you wait for one to come along from the original First Choice. I found this out early on when I jumped on to the first "524" bus that came to my stop and presented my "First Choice" return fare ticket only to be told by the driver that the ticket wasn't from his bus company so I'd have to pay him again or get off the bus.
Another surprise I got (can you imagine my face when it first happened to me!) was that you need to signal the bus to stop for you when your waiting at the stop. if you dont put your arm out into the road to let the bus driver know you want to get on, he'll just drive right past you assuming you must be waiting for a different bus. WOOOSH.
When you do get on the bus, the driver will want to know your destination, so you will have to tell them where you plan on getting off (fees are calculated by distance travelled as well here) and whether you want a "single" (one way) or "return" (there & back) ticket. There are usually discounts for children or Pensioners (think its 60+ but may be 65+, retirement age basically) but the driver may require proof. you may need to have a photo ID issued at your local "Travel Shop", you get the photo taken from a booth, pay them a processing fee & fill out a form, they then present you with a shiny card with your mug on it.
It's worth finding out what discounts are avaidable to you for 'saver' passes & what you need to get them if you plan on using public transport on a regular basis. the costs of public transport in this country is NOT cheap. For example; The cost in Montreal for a universal Train/Bus/Metro monthly pass was about $60CDN to go anywhere on the island of Montreal, here I am paying £85 a month for just Tram and one bus company (First Choice) to get to and from Manchester city centre, about a half hour away by car!
You may be able to save a little of your take home pay/savings by finding out if they offer weekly passes or monthly passes with unlimited travel.
Just some handy tips to help anyone moving to the
UK, something I'd not thought about prior to my move & that I learned the hard way. hopefully this info will save a few Canucks from being red faced & tutted by the people in line behind them!
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