Paul Corfield wrote:

Really? Not more to do with a move towards more single door buses and
ever increasing fares and complex tickets requiring more interaction
with the driver and more change giving.

I was living in Manchester as the first low floor buses were introduced,
and with no fares changes at all, and already with single door operation,
there was a noticeable (but small) slowdown. Multiply that by the number
of stops where people both board and alight and it becomes more
significant.

I later witnessed exactly the same thing in Milton Keynes, where the change
from older Mercedes minibuses with wide doors and centre poles to Beavers
with narrower doors and no poles illustrated the same thing again.

Further to that outside the UK it is still quite common for suburban trains
with 1/3 2/3 door arrangement to have a centre pole, as it separates the
flow sufficiently that two people will use the door side by side. On
newer, more accessible trains it's not unusual just to retain the pole on
every door except the one by the wheelchair space.

For buses, though, two door is of course the most efficient, and London was
right to retain it, of course.

Neil
--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK. Put first name before the at to reply.

wrote:

I can see you've never handled a buggy with a pre-walking child. Leaving it
on the pavement while buying a ticket from the driver is the last thing most
parents would do.

When did I say anything about leaving it on the pavement? My assumption
would be that they would board at the centre door, stow it, wait for the
doors to close and then move forward in the bus to pay the driver. Or if
they have Oyster, have a reader there so no need.

It can also often be very efficient to give people in that position free or
unchecked travel.

Neil
--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK. Put first name before the at to reply.

In article ,
(Mark Bestley) wrote:

Roland Perry wrote:

In message , at 20:02:59 on Sun, 16 Sep 2012,
Phil remarked:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts
yelling at the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only
then start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.

At the supermarket self-checkout yesterday I observed someone paying in
coins, one at a time, looking at the display in between each one to see
how much more was required. She was putting in over a fiver in small
coins! Even if you over-pay, they return the balance to you as change.

Hmmm

And when finally paid up, she carefully took every item individually off
the bagging area and placed it in her rucksack. Which took another
several minutes.

Well if you have a rucksack you have to do that or else call the helper
for everyother item as it does not register as the sensor does not
really hold a rucksack.

Or use another supermarket. It seems only to be Sainsbury's that have
perpetual "unexpected item in bagging area" messages.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In article

, (Neil Williams) wrote:

wrote:

I can see you've never handled a buggy with a pre-walking child.
Leaving it on the pavement while buying a ticket from the driver is
the last thing most parents would do.

When did I say anything about leaving it on the pavement? My assumption
would be that they would board at the centre door, stow it, wait for the
doors to close and then move forward in the bus to pay the driver. Or if
they have Oyster, have a reader there so no need.

It can also often be very efficient to give people in that position free
or unchecked travel.

Right. The buses round here don't have centre doors. And many parents would
leave a child out of their sight, even in the middle of a bus.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

On 17/09/2012 15:17, wrote:
In article ,
(Mark Bestley) wrote:

Roland Perry wrote:

In message , at 20:02:59 on Sun, 16 Sep 2012,
Phil remarked:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts
yelling at the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only
then start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.

At the supermarket self-checkout yesterday I observed someone paying in
coins, one at a time, looking at the display in between each one to see
how much more was required. She was putting in over a fiver in small
coins! Even if you over-pay, they return the balance to you as change.

Hmmm

And when finally paid up, she carefully took every item individually off
the bagging area and placed it in her rucksack. Which took another
several minutes.

Well if you have a rucksack you have to do that or else call the helper
for everyother item as it does not register as the sensor does not
really hold a rucksack.

Or use another supermarket. It seems only to be Sainsbury's that have
perpetual "unexpected item in bagging area" messages.

No, I have heard that little message quite frequently in our local Tesco
Metro.

--
Martin

replies to newsgroup only please.

Mark Bestley wrote:

And when finally paid up, she carefully took every item individually off
the bagging area and placed it in her rucksack. Which took another
several minutes.

Well if you have a rucksack you have to do that or else call the helper
for everyother item as it does not register as the sensor does not
really hold a rucksack.

At all of Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons I've regularly placed my own
backpack in the bagging area. Once the supervisor flicks a switch it's
perfectly okay to load up the bag directly without having to verify every
single item. Maybe some other supermarkets use less flexible equipment?

--
My blog: http://adf.ly/4hi4c

wrote:

In article ,
(Mark Bestley) wrote:

Roland Perry wrote:

In message , at 20:02:59 on Sun, 16 Sep 2012,
Phil remarked:
through her purse looking for an Oystercard, and then starts
yelling at the driver when he says that he needs to drive off.

It's amazing how many people stand at the bus stop for 5 minutes and
only remember that they have to pay just as they board the bus.

Probably the same idiots who get to the supermarket checkout and only
then start excavating their handbags for their purse.

Or get a statement out of a cash machine and stand there reading it,
oblivious that they are preventing those behind her using the machine.

At the supermarket self-checkout yesterday I observed someone paying in
coins, one at a time, looking at the display in between each one to see
how much more was required. She was putting in over a fiver in small
coins! Even if you over-pay, they return the balance to you as change.

Hmmm

And when finally paid up, she carefully took every item individually off
the bagging area and placed it in her rucksack. Which took another
several minutes.

Well if you have a rucksack you have to do that or else call the helper
for everyother item as it does not register as the sensor does not
really hold a rucksack.

Or use another supermarket. It seems only to be Sainsbury's that have
perpetual "unexpected item in bagging area" messages.


No I used Tesco's several times before giving up, I agree Sainsbury's
fail as well
--
Mark

In message , at 16:46:37 on Mon, 17
Sep 2012, Tim Roll-Pickering remarked:

At all of Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons I've regularly placed my own
backpack in the bagging area. Once the supervisor flicks a switch it's
perfectly okay to load up the bag directly without having to verify every
single item. Maybe some other supermarkets use less flexible equipment?

The first question Tesco ask you is "Have you brought your own bag", at
which point you can put it on the bagging area and it re-calibrates the
weighing scales.
--
Roland Perry

On 17/09/2012 18:05, Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 16:46:37 on Mon, 17
Sep 2012, Tim Roll-Pickering remarked:

At all of Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons I've regularly placed my own
backpack in the bagging area. Once the supervisor flicks a switch it's
perfectly okay to load up the bag directly without having to verify every
single item. Maybe some other supermarkets use less flexible equipment?

The first question Tesco ask you is "Have you brought your own bag", at
which point you can put it on the bagging area and it re-calibrates the
weighing scales.

The machines at my local Sainsbury's don't seem to get on with rucksacks
whenever I've tried that. They can cope with normal cloth shopping bags
of the sort I seem to acquire at conferences.

--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

Roland Perry wrote:

At all of Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons I've regularly placed my own
backpack in the bagging area. Once the supervisor flicks a switch it's
perfectly okay to load up the bag directly without having to verify every
single item. Maybe some other supermarkets use less flexible equipment?

The first question Tesco ask you is "Have you brought your own bag", at
which point you can put it on the bagging area and it re-calibrates the
weighing scales.

I must admit to not having noticed that - I thought the question came up
just before payment and was linked to green incentives. But my local Tesco
often has the sound turned off and I just use the machines on autopilot.

--
My blog: http://adf.ly/4hi4c