Bye bye Volvo, Hallo 7 Bus …

Some five years ago I made the momentous decision to give up driving.

The precise moment came when I happened to take the lower Roedean road between Rottingdean and Brighton.

I saw a group of kids by the roadside. Fortunately I am not a fast driver as one of the group dashed across the road in front of my car. I later discovered that this group work a scam whereby one goes down in from of a car and the the rest act as witnesses in a claim against the motorist.

I then called my accountant who said a car can cost £2,000 annually (insurance, petrol, MOT, penalty notices and parking fines) and if you drove less than 2,000 miles a year the cost was unjustifiable.

Never one who enjoyed driving, nor saw any status in owning an expensive sports or saloon car (my trusted Volvo lasted me 20 years) I was never either attracted to the classic car as an investment as, in my view, you have to be enthused by an unregulated market like art, collectibles or wine.

Thus my decision to sell my Volvo was made.

I was also influenced by the fact this gave me the opportunity to free up space in my garage and, furthermore, I was now entitled to a free bus pass.

The free bus pass proved something of a mixed blessing.

The number 7 bus goes from where I live to central Brighton and then Hove. Even before you board it you hit problems. It’s supposed to be an every 7 minute service but rarely is.

On board, if you are not driven mad by over-use of mobiles by passengers and/or the nutters that regularly use the service, the hydraulic brakes abruptly applied by the bus driver will send you flying.

This happened to a hospital consultant who was ejected from her tip-up seat and and as a result had to undergo an operation for shoulder damage.

The irony is that Brighton is green and car unfriendly.

So you might have thought they could organise an efficient bus service but apparently not.