Driving instead of training

Yesterday was the first time in over a year I drove into town instead of catching the train. Work had sent me on a course for the day (in Ponsonby) so I made the decision to drive based on knowing there would be free parking for the day, and that the trains don't go near Ponsonby, and I didn't want to add a bus trip to my commute.

So I drove. I allowed about 45mins for the trip, given Ponsonby is on the Western side of the city, I knew I wouldn't need to go all the way into town (or across it), so figured it would be ample time.

It was! Even with a petrol stop, the whole trip was only about 25mins. I had freeflow for most of the trip.

Statistics have quoted rail patronage is up 30% this winter as Aucklanders have been looking for ways to save on rising petrol costs. Given the ease of my drive, I think it's becoming really noticable, the roads are getting tolerable.

Of course increased patronage has led to over-crowding for commuters, but according to Auckland Regional Transport Authority chief Fergus Gammie, efforts were being made to add more capacity to the system.

"While we acknowledge some trains are crowded at peak times, help is in sight, with two more trains arriving in September and October this year, and six additional trains already on order will be delivered next year,"

"We are literally running to make up for lost time – while we welcome the increase in patronage and had planned for growth, the additional demand we are now seeing due to petrol price increases has meant some operational challenges for us and our (rail) operator, Veolia."

I'm not about to start driving into the city as the cost is still prohibitive, but I found it refreshing to know that should I occasionally need to take the car instead of the train, at least it'll be a painless trip.

NB - I mentioned in an earlier post that I would give updates on the free txt notification service... well it's still providing me updates a minimum of 30mins too late to be useful. It's a pity really, it could have been a really helpful innovation, instead it's another aspect of the rail service that is failing to meet expectations.

Rather than finishing on that negative note though, I will say this... my last few commutes have not been too crowded and they have run to time, and although this is the bare minimum I'd expect in terms of the quality of service provided, given the recent growth, I'd consider that positive!